Myths and Facts about Learning Disabilities

1.  Myth:  Learning disabilities (LDs) do not really exist.

Fact:  LDs are real.  Recent Research indicates neurological differences in the brain structure and function for people who have learning disabilities.

2.  Myth:  Learning disabilities are all the same and/or easily understood.

Fact:  Learning disabilities are complicated.  The extent of their impact and the areas of learning they affect vary greatly from person to person; combine in any variety of ways; and vary depending on context.  Helping is not as complicated:  people with LDs need to determine which modes of learning work well for them, and use these strengths to compensate for the areas affected by their LD.

3.  Myth:  Students with LDs cannot learn.

Fact:  Students with LDs can be successful learners, at all levels and in any situation, by compensating for their weaknesses by using their strengths; by using alternative, individualized teaching and learning materials and methods; and by choosing tasks that suit themselves.

4.  Myth:  More boys than girls have learning disabilities.

Fact:  Although four times as many boys as girls are identified as having LDs by schools, research studies suggest that many girls who are not identified also have the most common form of learning problem - difficulty with reading.  Many girls; learning difficulties are neither identified not treated - possibly because boys who are struggling are, in general, more disruptive in classes.

5.  Myth:  Students with LDs are just lazy.

Fact:  Students with LDs generally have to spend more time to adequately complete school assignments.  This extended effort can often lead to difficulties in completing assignments on time, maintaining course requirements such as tutorial reading and studying.  These difficulties should not be misinterpreted as 'laziness'.

6.  Myth:  Students diagnosed with LDs at school age should have outgrown them by adulthood.

Fact:  LDs are a lifelong condition.  If the diagnosis of a learning disability in childhood is accurate, the disability will endure into adulthood.  Specific learning strategies and adjustments can be developed to address problems, and can make it so that LDs are not a pressing issue, but the learning disability itself remains.

7.  Myth:  Learning disabilities are a school issue.

Fact:  LDs affect one or more modes of learning, anywhere that mode is used.  LDs tent to be noticed most often when they impact on school-learning, but exist in all areas of life - work, family, relationships, etc.

8.  Myth:  accommodating the needs of students with LDs in schools is too difficult, time consuming and expensive.

Fact:  Accommodations implemented for students with LDs are also generally good examples of universal learning strategies.  They can improve teaching and learning, not just for students with LDs, but also for the overall student population and other minority groups, such as people from a non-English speaking background.  Teachers can also benefit from this approach by developing a range of flexible teaching and learning strategies that can be implemented in a number of different environments.

9.  Myth:  Providing academic adjustments such as accommodations and individualized teaching gives students with LDs an unfair advantage over other students.

Fact:  Academic adjustments are determined on identified deficit's resulting from a student's LDs.  Adjustments ensure equal and fair participation in a learning environment and ensure actual learning is recognized.  Students with LDs are required to meet the same academic standards as their peers.

10.  Myth:  LDs can be cured.

Fact:  There have been occasional claims by individuals of "curing" learning disabilities in various ways.  Learning disabilities are a life-long condition; many people learn to successfully use accommodations and strategies with their LDs to such an extent that it is no longer an issue for them, and certain intensive study methods do help some people, but there is no researched evidence that one person's solution will work for all.

What you should know about LD's

• Learning Disabilities (LDs) are specific neurological disoders that affect the brain's ability to store, process, retreieve or communicate information.  They are invisable and lifelong.
• Manifested by significant weaknesses in listening, writing, speaking, reasoning, reading, mathematics, social skills and/or memory in a patter of uneven abilities.
• LDs can be compensated for through alternative ways of learning, accommodaitons and modifications.
• LDs can occur with other disorders (ADHD, etc) and may run in families.
• LDs are NOT the same as mental retardation, autism, deafness, blindness, behavioural disorders or laziness.
• LDs are not the result of economic disadvantage, envrionmental factors or cultural differences.

Assistive Technology and Learning Disabilities

What is Assistive Technology?

Assistive technology, also known as adaptive technology and AT, is any application or device that is used to increase, maintain or improve physical ability or academic performance.  People generally think of mechanical devices, electronics, computers, hardware and software, but there is actually a range of assistive technology.

Low-tech Assistive Technology

• Pencil grips
• Graph paper
• Highlighting pens
• Planners
• Digital clocks
• Calculators
• Computers
• Dictionaries and spell checkers

Mid to Hi-tech Assistive Technology

• Digital recorders
• Talking calculators
• Portable keyboards
• Electronic spell checkers and dictionaries
• Reading systems that use a computer, scanner, and software to read scanned book pages out loud
• Speech recognition software that allows a computer to operate by speaking to it
• Mind mapping/outlining software
• Global Positioning System (GPS)
• Smartphones, cellular phones, PDAs, iPods, MP3 players

Benefits of Assistive Technology

• Assistive technology can help an individual with learning disabilities (LD) be more independent. 
• Using AT can provide more choices and greater freedom in daily life.
• AT provides tools to enable an individual to experience success at home, at school, at work and/or in the community
• AT helps people of all ages
• At, successfully applied, can increase an individuals confidence and self-esteem
•  AT improves the quality of life, and removes barriers providing the tools for possible employment and educational opportunities

Who can access Assisitive Technology services?

Students registered with the disability services office at a post-secondary institution can access AT services.  You will be assessed for AT requirements based on your academic area of study and your LD-related needs to determine a best fit.  The AT specialist will talk about your learning challenges and strengths and will introduce and train you on adaptive technologies using your course material.

The AT specialist will determine the right AT solution for you by asking the following questions:

• Does the AT use any of your strengths?
• Does the AT work around some of your weaker areas?
• Is it easier to accomplish your task with the AT?
• Is it faster to accomplish your task with the AT?
• Is your task more understandable?

The key to effective assistive technology is finding the right match between the AT tool, the learning disability and the task.  Finding the right tool is easy, addressing the problem(s) and making it work may not be as easy and may require a trial and error approach.

Students with learning disabilities will most often require AT that assists with reading, language, organizational skills and processing information.

Cost is often a factor, but your disability services office will be able to guide you in finding the appropriate funding sources and training.

Learn to Be Your Own Advocate

Self-advocacy is one of the most important skills you need in order to be successful in college and university.  No one is looking out for you, and you will only get information, services and academic accommodations when you take control of your own situation.

It's your responsibility to:

• Register before class begins at the disability services office.
• Provide documentation for your LD and/or ADHD.
• Find out what kinds of academic accommodations and supports you will need in all aspects of your program (including classrooms, labs and field placements).
• Know how to ask and who to ask for these services and supports.

Becoming an effective self-advocate starts with:

• Knowing and understanding your learning disabilities.
• Knowing your strengths and challenges, both personal and academic.
• Being able to explain what academic accommodations and strategies you use for your learning disabilities.
• Understanding disclosure.
• Understanding your rights and responsibilities as a student with a disability.
• Keeping a portfolio of all of your transcripts, any recent standard test scores, up-to-date psychological assessments, letters of recommendations, your resume, correspondence from the disability services office, etc.

Try this checklist:

• Do you understand your learning disability yourself before you try to explain it to others?
• Can you comfortably and clearly explain your learning disability to others, particularly your professors - in simple terms, not in medical langage?
• Are you awar of and understand your learning strengths and weaknesses?

Suggestons:

• Visit the disability services office and make use of the help it provides.
• Make an appointment to see your professor in his/her office - identify yourself and which class you attend.
• Be able to explain what assistance you will need from your professor.
• Let your professors know that you are receiving help from the disability services office.

Disclosure:

You do not need to provide information about your learning disability to anyone other than the disability services office.  The information you provide to them is confidential.  The office cannot share it without your written consent.

Source:  http://www.youth2youth.ca/

Warning Signs in Secondary School Children

Some learning disabilities go undetected until secondary school.  Physical changes occurring during adolescence and the increased demands of middle and senior high school may bring the disabilities to light.  Previously satisfactory performance declines.  Inappropriate social skills may lead to changes in peer relationships and discipline problems.  Increased frustration and poor self-concepts can lead to depression and/or outbursts.  Warning signs of learning disabilities in secondary school students include the following, which occur in a pattern of behaviours, to a significant degree, and over time:

Language and Mathematics

• Avoidance of reading and writing
• Tendency to misread information
• Difficulty summarizing
• Poor reading comprehension
• Difficulty understanding subject are textbooks
• Trouble with open-ended questions
• Continued poor spelling
• Poor grasp of abstract concepts
• Poor skills in writing essays
• Difficulty in learning a foreign language
• Poor ability to apply math facts

Attention/Organization

• Difficulty staying organized
• Trouble with test formats such as multiple choice
• Slow work pace in class and in testing situations
• Poor note taking skills
• Poor ability to proofread or double check work

Social Behaviour

• Difficulty accepting criticism
• Difficulty seeking or giving feedback
• Problems negotiating or advocating for oneself
• Difficulty resisting peer pressure
• Difficulty understanding another person's perspectives

Again, parents have the right to request an evaluation by the public schools to determine if the student has learning problems.

Summary

Research has shown that the sooner a LD is detected and intervention is begun, the better the chance to avoid school failure and to improve chance for success in life.  When parents or teachers suspect a child has learning disabilities, they should seek an evaluation.

Warning Signs in Elementary School Children

It is during the elementary school years that learning problems frequently become apparent as disabilities interfere with increasingly demanding and complex learning tasks.  Difficulties in learning academic subjects and emotional and/or social skills may become a problem.  Warning signs for this age-group may include any of those for preschool children in addition to the following:

Language

• Slow learning of the correspondence of sound to letter
• Consistent errors in reading or spelling
• Difficulty remembering basic sight words
• Inability to retell a story in sequence
• Trouble with learning to tell time or count money
• Confusion of math signs
• Transposition of number sequences
• Trouble memorizing math facts
• Trouble with place value
• Difficulty remembering the steps of mathematical operations such as long division

Motor Skills

• Poor coordination or awkwardness
• Difficulty copying from chalkboard
• Difficulty aligning columns (math)
• Poor handwriting

Attention/Organization

• Difficulty concentrating or focusing on a task
• Difficulty finishing work on time
• Inability to follow multiple directions
• Unusual sloppiness, carelessness
• Poor concept of direction (left, right)
• Rejection of new concepts or changes in routine

Social Behaviour

• Difficulty understanding facial expressions or gestures
• Difficulty understanding social situations
• Tendency to misinterpret behaviour of peers and/or adults
• Apparent lack of "common sense"

If teachers have not discussed the possibility of an evaluation already, the parents may request that the child's school conduct a formal evaluation.  A request submitted to the school principal must be honoured by the school system in a timely manner.

Just for Teachers: 5 Tips to Help ADHD Children Stay Organized | ADDitude - ADHD & LD Children and Adults

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