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Teaching students
with diverse learning
needs
Wanda Walker
University of Oregon
American English Institute
wandaw@uoregon.edu

Diverse Learning Needs?

Any

student who cannot keep up with the

curriculum at the same pace as their peers
can be referred to as having a diverse
learning need.
There can be a number of reasons why
students struggle to learn. We will focus on
2 ideas today:
Learning Disabilities
Autism Spectrum Disorder

First, a clarification
The term Learning Disability has 2 meanings:

Generally, students who learn at a slower

pace than their peers are referred to as having
learning disabilities.

Specifically, the term Learning Disability is a

diagnosis for a cognitive processing problem.
This is how we will use the term today.

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Specific Learning Disability (SLD)

The most common occurring form of disability in school today.

A language processing disorder
Causes are unknown but may be linked to FAS, Premature birth
or trauma during birth, malnutrition, or other events that harm
brain development.

Implications: These children may struggle in the following areasDyslexia: Reading skills
Dysgraphia: Writing skills
Dyscalculia: Math skills
Auditory/visual processing: Communication skills
http://www.ldonline.org

Students with SLD need help

with
Letter-sound

correspondence
Expressing ideas
Memorizing facts
Following directions
Organization
Task Completion
Social Skills

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

What is it?
A neurological dysfunction that results in
under-developed pathways in parts of the
brain.
What Causes it?
Linked to genetic mutations, the causes of
which are unknown.
What are the symptoms?
A vast range from mild to severe. No two
individuals are alike!

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3 Primary areas:
Communication skills~
Mild cases = Can talk, but unusual speech patterns
Severe cases = Never learns to talk
Social Skills~
Mild = Misunderstanding of facial expressions and non-verbal cues,
jokes, personal space
Severe = No friends, no shared interests, no ability to interact
Behavior/coping~
Mild = May become frustrated by change and unexpected events
Severe = Emotional break down and inability to cope with change

How can a teacher help these

learners?
Variety
Choices
Use

visuals for EVERYTHING

instructions (verbal and visual)
Predictable Routines (visual class schedule)
Frequent Peer work (Swain, 2002)
Reduce the length of assignment
POSITIVE FEEDBACK
Simple, clear

Questions?
For follow-up on any of the topics we
explored today, please use the list of weblinks
I provided.

Thank you!