Learning Disabilities

SYDNEY LOUIS-FERDINAND
What is LD?

 A group of neurological conditions that interfere with a person’s leaning.

There are many learning disorders related to listening, speaking, reading,
reasoning, and math calculations
 People with learning disabilities have intelligence in the near average,
average, or above-average range, which is why it is not expected for
them to have difficulties
Timeline.

 Prior to 1937- not really any recognition for LD

 1937- Samuel Orton discovers dyslexia.
 1940s-60s: most children were thought to be slow learners. Little to no help
was received.
 1960s- many children classified with a learning disability were tested in a
nonverbal format.
 1963-concerned parents gathered in Chicago to discuss their children.
 Late 1960s- special education rooms opened in response.
 1970s- classifying LD into subtypes began with Elena Boder and others
 1975- public law 94-142 passed giving all handicapped students free and
appropriate education in the least restrictive environment up to the age of
21.
 1980s- less efforts towards remediating students deficits and shifted to skill
development
 Late 1980s- The inclusion programs started
 1990- public law 94-142 was reformed and renamed to the individuals with
disabilities education act.
 2000- no child left behind.
Leaders in LD

 Samuel Orton
 Anna Gillingham
 Bessie Stillman
 Romalda Spalding
 Grace Fernald
 All of theses people developed different methods for teaching reading for
people who were classified with dyslexia.
 Really the first accomidations.
Casual factors

 These are factors that can cause LD

1. Familial factors- LD can be inherited and it is not uncommon to have multiple
members in the same family with LD
2. Premature or difficult birth can increase the likelihood of LD
3. Prenatal conditions- conditions may cause little oxygen to the fetus
4. Postnatal or birth trauma- head trauma, sustained fever, etc. can cause LD
5. Environmental factors- Lead exposure, mercury, neurotoxins.
Incidence factors

 Students show evidence of learning disability, but do not receive special

education services because they do not show a severe discrepancy.
Primary characteristics

 Perception- perceptual deficits occur because the brain misinterprets

sensory information
 Phonological discrepancies also occur.
Co-Occurring conditions

 ADHD- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Characterized by

Impulsivity, distractibility, and intrusiveness. This usually makes it hard to stay
engaged.
 Conduct disorder- usually has a lack of respect or the rights, but follows the
same guidelines as ADHD
 Tourette syndrome- Inherited neurological disorder. Involuntary tics (vocal,
motor)
Least restrictive environment

 Allows students to learn in the environment that best suits their education
 General education classroom

 Resource room

 Home

 Hospital

 For children under 5, the state provides programs through Early Childhood
Intervention Team.
 Public schools help parents with newborns that may have a disability
(counseling and such)
 While attending public school, many steps can be taken to help the child.
Attributes
Anatomy and function

 The brain interprets what is happening in the world around us.

 The central nervous system
 Nerves- Pick up the sensory information and transports It to the brain to be
interpreted.
 Brain stem- responsible for the automatic functions
 Cerebellum-bodily movements
 Cerebral cortex-all conscious activity
Brain injuries on learning

 Injuries in early years can affect the anatomy of the brain

 People who have traumatic brain injuries may suffer from problems related
to there working memory and attention, which makes learning hard
 Injuries have been associated with higher rates of anxiety, depression and
aggression. (frontal lobe)
The brain and autism

 Abnormally large white matter in the cerebellum.

 A study suggest that this could affect the social aspect
ADHD and the brain

 It has been studied that children with ADHD function differently in certain
areas of there brains( atypical processing)
 It has also been studied that children with ADHD have different chemical
balances in the brain
Biochemical influences on learning

 Students with deficits can be medicated

 Medications often help with attention and stronger connections to the
material being learned
 There are some side affects and some choose not to medicate.
Research on memory

 We are continually learning and storing that information

 The hippocampus is seen to play a huge part in memory. protein called
the “memory molecule”
 Alcino Silvia has linked Biochemical signals to memory
 It has been shown in research that students wit LD take longer to retreive
information from their memory.
Metacognition

 Refers to the knowledge and control individuals have over their own
thinking and learning. It is a process on how you choose to remember the
information
 There are many strategies to metacognition: Note taking, verbal self-
mediation, Mnemonics, Mapping and graphic organizer.
 All of these help with the solidification of the information
Phonological processing problems

 May have consistent problems spelling words

 Recalling the sounds of letters/ words may be difficult and take time
 This is often a sign of dyslexia.
The Law
Timelines

 1975- education for all handicapped children

 1990,2000- IDEA
 2000- NCLB- no child left behind
Parental rights and the law

 It is the intent of the laws to include the parent(s) in each process and
evaluation of their child’s progress.
 The educators must make an effort to foster a relationship with the parent
 It is a legal requirement that parents et a copy of their rights
 Parents have the right to request confidential information about their child
 Parent have the right to have their child assessed
 Parents have many rights regarding there child's education.
IDEA 504
 Criteria receiving services at the  Prevents discrimination against those
government level with disabilities in programs that
 Requires IEP
receive federal funding

 Extended services for child with special  Less specific criteria

needs 2-5 years  Does not require parental consent
 Enforced by the u.s. department of
 Requires a plan set by individuals in
education
the school district
 Enforced by the U.S office of civil rights
Parents as advocates

 It is often difficult to get all services for their children, so they have to fight
for it
 Legal groups put on training seminars, offers advocacy sheets online, and
has a number of books out that list the legal issues involved in advocacy
(wrights-law)
Students rights

 Has the right to due process

 Be heard in defense of self and review documents that support charges
 Be treated with respect by all members of school staff
 Expect a safe learning environment
 Receive free and appropriate education
 Be provided accommodations for learning disabilities
Teachers rights and obligations

 Work in a safe environment

 Treated respectfully
 Be able to teach
 Obligated to notify the parents before beginning the evaluation process
to set up an IEP
 Follow the IEP
 Realize that parents have the right to see the documents and have copies
of these, By law.
Behavior plan

 Is put in place to evaluate and control a students behavior if they have

trouble following rules
 Parents should be notified and be involved in the planning
Suspension and expulsion

 Can not exceed ten days

 Before the 11th day the IEP team must rewrite the BIP
 A re evaluation of the BIP is also applicable
 Due process officer looks to see if the suspension was validated
 Expulsion is serious and must require a pre expulsion IEP team meeting
The IEP
MET

 Multidisciplinary Evaluation Team (MET) is the first step in determining if the

child has a disability that interferes with educational performance and
meets the eligibility standards for special education services.
REED

 Evaluation (and particularly reevaluation) typically begins with a review of

existing evaluation data on the child,
 which may include from the child’s classroom work
 his or her performance on State or district assessments
 information provided by the parents
 The purpose of this review is to decide if the existing data is sufficient to
establish the child’s eligibility and determine educational needs, or if
additional information is needed.
IEPT

 The team that is responsible for completing the IEP for the student
 Parent
 Resource room teacher
 School psychologist
 Any other personnel deemed necessary
IEP

 An initial IEP is the first IEP must be in place within 30 days of the evaluation
meeting determining eligibility.
 A transition IEP
 Put in place before the student turns 16 to help with post secondary goals
Annual review of IEP

 The IEP must be reviewed every year.

 Changes are to be made accordingly
 Can be requested by parent that changes be made
 Reevaluations can be done before the year is up
 Can be requested by the parent to reevaluate the IEP
Manifestation determination

 The manifestation determination must occur within 10 school days of any

decision to change the placement of a child with a disability because of a
violation of a code of student conduct
 The IEP team is responsible for making changes to the behavior plan during
this proccess.
Addendum to the IEP

 An amendment or the original IEP. This is a meeting of the IEP team.

 Progress reporting:
 Recording the students progress and relaying the progress to parents and member of
the IEP team to help the student reach their IEP goal.
Due process hearing

 provides parents with the right to resolve disputes with your school district.
 This is under IDEA
sources

 http://www.michiganallianceforfamilies.org/education/reed/
 www.parentcenterhub.org/manifestation/
 www.michigan.gov/mde