bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reading and Writing Competencies of Adolescents with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Algozzine Bob , O'Shea Dorothy J. , Stoddard Kim , Crews W. Bee
Published: December 2008

The current practice of minimum competency testing (MCT) presents a number of problems for regular students and their peers with handicaps. In this research, the communication performance of students with learning disabilities and that of their regular class peers on the Florida State Student Assessment Test-II (SSAT-II) was analyzed; item performance, skill performance, and mastery scores were tabulated and compared. Also analyzed were employers' opinions about the importance of communication skills assessed on the SSAT-II; the relative importance of various skills to employers was tabulated and compared for adolescents with learning disabilities. Identified were strengths and weaknesses in basic communication skills competence and relations among these skills performances and employer opinions. In general, this group of exceptional students performed better on skills requiring literal use of communication skills and worse on skills requiring application of communication knowledge. Employers' ratings of the extent to which various skills were required on the job supported the importance of competence in these basic skills.
Performance of Nondisabled Adults and Adults with Learning Disabilities on a Computerized Multiphasic Cognitive Memory Battery
Authors: Wilhardt Lynnette , Sandman Curt A.
Published: December 2008

There is scant research on cognitive impairment in adults with learning disabilities (LD), even though at least some children with LD remain affected throughout adulthood. The present study was designed to examine several memory processes in adults with LD, including (a) recall with and without cueing, (b) item recognition, (c) proactive inhibition, and (d) semantically organized material. Twenty-one adults with learning disabilities (17 males and 4 females) between 18 and 33 years of age were compared with age matched controls (N = 88). There were two noteworthy findings: First, the adults with LD consistently overestimated their ability to remember lists of words; second, adults with LD were especially impaired in the test requiring termination of an exhaustive and thorough search for relevant material. The data suggest that level of expectation and organizational (structural) strategies are areas worthy of further investigation.
Three Types of Peer Tutoring
Authors: Eiserman William D.
Published: December 2008

This study compared the effects of three types of tutoring treatments on the attitudes of students with learning disabilities and of regular class students, ranging from kindergarten to sixth grade (n = 124), using a pre-post, control group design. Multivariate analysis of covariance indicated pre-post gains by all treatment groups on peer attitudes as well as attitudes about school and learning. Univariate analysis indicated that those who tutored tended to experience the greatest attitudinal improvements.
The Effectiveness of Cross-Age Tutoring With Truant, Junior High School Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Lazerson David B. , Foster Herbert L. , Brown Steven I. , Hummel Jeffrey W.
Published: December 2008

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects that result when truant and tardy junior high school students with learning disabilities are used as tutors for younger LD pupils. After 6 weeks of tutoring, the 16 tutors made significant gains in locus of control. In addition, most of the tutors showed a decrease in truant and tardy behaviors.
Comments, Countercomments, and New Thoughts
Authors: Swanson H. Lee
Published: December 2008

Criticism invariably consists in pointing out some contradiction; either a contradiction within the theory criticized, or a contradiction between the theory and another theory which we have reason to accept, or a contradiction between theory and certain facts.… . Criticism is, in a very important sense, the main motive force of any intellectual development. Wthout contradictions, without criticism, there would be no rational motive for changing theories: there would be no intellectual progress. (Popper, 1963, p. 316)
Developing Faculty Understanding of College Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Lundeberg Mary , Svien Kaia
Published: December 2008

This paper describes the benefits of inservices on learning disabilities forfaculty and the process we used to assess campus needs and to design andpromote involvement in the inservice. Our goals were to generate interest in the inservice, to provide infomation about college students with learning disabilities, and to discuss ethical andpedagogical issues concerning this population. Evaluations of the insemice were positive. Even more importantly, promoting involvement in the inservice seemed to promote more involve- ment across the campus in serving the needs of students with learning disabilities. Learning disabled students who approach their professors to describe their disabilities are now morefre4uently met with acceptance rather than suspicion.
A Research Review and Alternative Hypothesis Explaining the Link Between Learning Disability and Delinquency
Authors: Larson Katherine A.
Published: December 2008

Current hypotheses explaining the link between learning disability and delinquency are reviewed and evaluated. Research from diverse fields is integrated and an alternative hypothesis is proposed to explain the link between learning disability and delinquency. The alternative hypothesis postulates that ineffective social cognitive problem-solving skills increase risk for delinquency in learning disabled youth. Future research is suggested.
Nonverbal Communication in Children with Reading Problems
Authors: Grogan Sarah C.
Published: December 2008

Nonverbal communication was investigated in poor readers and matched adequate readers. Contrary to expectations, poor readers did not differ from adequate readers on duration of smiling or gaze during a video-recorded interview with an adult. However, they made significantly more filled pauses during the interview than adequate readers, F(1,54) = 9.65, p < 0.004. Topic of conversation had a significant effect on nonverbal behavior. Irrespective of reading ability, children talked more, smiled more, and spent more time looking at the interviewer when talking about out-of-school compared with in-school activities, F(5,50) = 5.67, p < 0.001. Implications for poor readers' social interactions in the classroom are discussed.
Teacher Gender
Authors: McIntyre Lance L.
Published: December 2008

Crossbreak analysis shows that when teachers consider students with high levels of problem behavior for special education referral, male teachers are much more likely than females to decide not to refer.
Holistic/constructivist Principles of the Teaching/Learning Process
Authors: Poplin Mary S.
Published: December 2008

Structuralist philosophy, constructivist theory, and holistic beliefs define the learning enterprise in opposition to reductionistic behavioral learning theory and suggest that the task of schools is to help students develop new meanings in response to new experiences rather than to learn the meanings others have created. This change in the very definition of learning reveals principles of learning that beg consideration in designing classroom instruction. Twelve principles are drawn here from the structuralist, constructivist, and holist literature and are applied to teaching students with learning disabilities. Looking at learning from this paradigm, one can see a different classroom environment emerging, one in which instruction is seen through the eyes of the students rather than through preferred methodologies, mandated curricula, and student assessments and diagnoses.
Students with Learning Disabilities in College
Authors: Siperstein Gary N.
Published: December 2008

The successful inclusion of students with learning disabilities in postsecondary educational institutions is far from assured today. This has been largely because the service delivery systems in many colleges have not worked well enough to attract and keep students with learning disabilities and then send them into the workplace with jobs commensurate with their abilities. If this system is to improve, colleges need to expand their responsibility toward students with learning disabilities as they enter and exit college, as well as while they are in college. This paper describes the Three-Stage Transition Model (TSTM) of service delivery. The three transitions described in this model that constitute a student's postsecondary career are as follows: (a) entering college; (b) managing the academic and social changes during college; and (c) exiting college to enter employment. These transitions are discussed in terms of the specific activities that colleges could implement if students with learning disabilities are to achieve success in a postsecondary environment and employment. Colleges that actively implement the components of the TSTM should realize many benefits: first, an increase in the number of students with learning disabilities who select college as an option; second, an increase in the number of students with learning disabilities who successfully complete college; and third, an increase in the number of students with learning disabilities employed after graduation.
Communicative Competence of Children with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Mathinos Debra A.
Published: December 2008

Research on children with learning disabilities has suggested that many of the social difficulties evidenced by this group may result from their communicative behaviors. The purpose of this study was to identify and characterize the verbal communicative abilities of children with and without learning disabilities both within and across two distinctly different communication situations. Sixty subjects, 30 disabled and 30 nondisabled, drawn from three middle class suburban school districts and ranging between the ages of 9 and 13 years participated in this study. Statistical analyses suggested that the subjects' communicative abilities differ markedly both as a function of the presence or absence of a handicapping condition and in response to the nature of the communication task. In addition, the use of strategies, whether to narrow the comparisons needed in a referential task or to maintain engagement during a conversation, was found to play an influential role in the quality and success of subjects' verbal communicative interactions.
An Analysis of Variables that Affect Special Education Placement Decisions
Authors: Vance Lisa Kelly , Bahr Christine M. , Huberty Thomas J. , Jones Barbara Ewer
Published: December 2008

The purpose of this study was to determine the degree to which intellectual, achievement, and behavioral data would predict the placement of students with learning disabilities into a special program. The data were obtained from evaluations conducted on 95 students who were referred for evaluation of learning problems. Stepwise discriminant analysis revealed that only 33% of the variance was accounted for by the battery of assessment instruments in deciding whether to place a student in a learning disabilities classroom. With regard to placement of students with learning disabilities in full-or part-time learning disabilities classrooms, the test data accounted for only 27% of the variance. Thus a large portion of the variance was not accounted for by the assessment data. Implications for future research were discussed.
Longitudinal Study of Emotional, Social, and Physical Changes after Traumatic Brain Injury
Authors: Lezak Muriel D. , O'Brien Kevin P.
Published: December 2008

Understanding the nature and course of personality alterations following traumatic brain injury (TBI) is needed for rational planning and effective management of TBI patients' many behavioral and social problems. Therefore, levels of emotional and social adjustment and socially relevant aspects of physical status during the first 5 years posttrauma were documented for 39 male TBI patients at six time intervals using the Portland Adaptability Inventory (PAI), an instrument developed for this study. Responses to 21 items (seven dealing with Temperament and personality, eight with Activities of Social Behavior, and six with Physical Competence) were analyzed for evidence of moderate to severe impairment. Three types of problem areas were identified: (a) those which represented persistent difficulty for many patients throughout the 5-year follow-up period; (b) those in which there was significant improvement that was sustained over time; and (c) those in which there was slight or variable improvement. At 5 years posttrauma, most patients were still socially dysfunctional in one or more ways.
A Comparison of Listening and Reading Performance with Children in Three Educational Placements
Authors: Wood Thomas A. , Buckhalt Joseph A. , Tomlin Judy G.
Published: December 2008

One hundred eighty-one children ranging in age from 9 to 15 years in three educational placements, learning disability, mild mental retardation, and regular education, were tested with the Durrell Listening-Reading Series (DLRS). Children with learning disabilities, consistent with previous research, were less delayed in listening than in reading skills, scored higher than children in the mild mental retardation group, and lower than the regular education group. There were no main or interaction effects for place of residence (urban or rural). Correlation coefficients indicated a stronger relationship between listening and reading scores for the children with learning disabilities and the regular education group. No relationship was demonstrated between Verbal IQ scores and DLRS scores for the group of children with learning disabilities.
Teacher Perceptions of Temperament Characteristics of Children Classified as Learning Disabled
Authors: Cardell Cheryl D. , Parmar Rene S.
Published: December 2008

The present study investigated the temperament characteristics of children classified as learning disabled (LD) by comparing the responses of teachers of LD students on the Temperament Assessment Battery (Martin, 1984) to those of teachers of non-LD students. Overall group differences were found between teachers of the LD students and teachers of the non-LD students. Overall, the teachers of the LD students consistently evidenced perceptions in the negative direction, as compared to the teachers of the non-LD. It was concluded that social ability/adjustment (adaptability and approach/withdrawal) and persistence (persistence and distractibility) contribute to the definition of the LD child's temperament. Teachers' perceptions of temperament then may affect teachers' perception of the LD child's social competence status.
A Cross-Validation Study of Patterns of Cognitive Ability in Children with Learning Difficulties, as Described by Factorially Defined WISC-R Verbal and Performance IQs
Authors: Nichols E. G. , Inglis James , Lawson J. S. , MacKay Iain
Published: December 2008

WISC-R Verbal and Performance factorial IQs have been developed that can provide a formal statistical metric for the description of the patterns of cognitive ability exhibited by children with learning disability. The present study of 813 children includes test-retest data from 224 boys and girls. The results in large part confirm previous findings. These children suffer a progressive deterioration in verbal ability, whereas their nonverbal ability shows an increase in the earlier years, leveling off thereafter. These results can be used to evaluate the alternative hypothesis of developmental lag as opposed to deficit as a cause of learning disability.
Hampered Production of Words as a Characteristic of School Failure
Authors: van der Wissel A.
Published: December 2008

The present study demonstrated that children with learning problems are characterized not by a restricted vocabulary as such (i.e., the variance common to both receptive and productive vocabulary measures), but by a hampered production of words (i.e., the variance common to both speed-of-naming and productive vocabulary measures).
The Effects of Revision Strategy Instruction on the Writing Performance of Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Reynolds Catharine J. , Hill David S. , Swassing Raymond H. , Ward Marjorie E.
Published: December 2008

The present study investigated the effects of instruction in two revision strategies on the paragraph writing of students with learning disabilities in Grades 6 through 8. The two experimental groups both received instruction in one strategy for revision of mechanics and one for content, but the order of instruction varied. Results suggest that revision instruction for both experimental groups improved scores on an analytic scale for mechanics, regardless of order of instruction, but improvement in content scores was not demonstrated.
Effects of Corrective Feedback on Word Accuracy and Reading Comprehension of Readers with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Pany Darlene , McCoy Kathleen M.
Published: December 2008

This study examined reading comprehension and word recognition effects of corrective feedback during oral reading on the performance of readers with learning disabilities. In a repeated measures design, students with learning disabilities read under three treatment conditions: corrective feedback on every oral reading error, correction on meaning change errors only, and no feedback regardless of errors. Corrective feedback on oral reading errors had a significant positive effect on both word recognition accuracy and reading comprehension. Results are discussed in relation to theory and practice.
A Cooperative Assessment Strategy for Evaluating School-Aged Children with Language Impairments
Authors: Plenge Teresa F. , Romski Mary Ann , Wacker Jean Ann
Published: December 2008

The difficulty of obtaining adequate measures of intellectual and educational abilities in school-aged children with language impairments has long been a concern for educators. This report proposes a cooperative assessment strategy that serves to assist the interdisciplinary psychoeducational evaluation and planning team to function as a unit when assessing the student with a known or suspected language impairment by (a) agreeing on a theoretical framework that will guide the assessment process, (b) cooperating in planning an assessment strategy, (c) raising questions that should be answered during the assessment process, and (d) making cooperative decisions regarding test interpretation. Issues regarding operationalization of the concept are also discussed.
Do Children with Learning Disabilities Outgrow Deficits in Selective Auditory Attention? Evidence from Dichotic Listening in Adults with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Bowen Sara M. , Hynd George W.
Published: December 2008

Previous research suggests that children with learning disabilities (LD) evidence similar degrees of cerebral lateralization as nondisabled children, but they perform at a degraded level due to deficits in selective attention. The developmental lag hypothesis predicts that these deficits should attenuate in children with LD with maturity. The present study examined this notion by evaluating dichotic listening ability using both free recall and directed attention conditions in 24 adults with LD and their age- and sex-matched controls. Dichotic syllables, words, and sentences were employed. The results indicated similar degrees of cerebral lateralization but significantly degraded levels of accuracy in the adults with LD in the free recall and directed attention conditions across all levels of semantic processing. Thus, it would appear that adults with LD evidence similar deficits in lateralized selective auditory linguistic processing as found in children with LD.
Problem-Solving Tasks on the Microcomputer
Authors: Zimmerman Sara Olin
Published: December 2008

Previous research has shown that students with learning disabilities (LD) and other low achieving students may perform differently on cognitive tasks when compared to their normally achieving peers. This study was completed in order to specifically examine possible areas of strengths and deficiencies in the problem-solving abilities of students with LD. Using the microcomputer as an assessment tool the study measured the performances of students with and without learning disabilities. The results of this investigation indicated that there are similarities between these groups. This was established when the performance scores of the two groups fell within a common range. The paper concludes with implications for identification and educational practices, as well as comments on future research.
Traditional Eligibility Criteria for Identifying Students as Specific Learning Disabled
Authors: Rivers Diane , C. Smith Tom E.
Published: December 2008

Assessment batteries of 200 elementary children, previously identified as having a specific learning disability (SLD), were analyzed to determine the different practices associated with the use of individual intelligence and achievement tests. Among the conclusions: Many students identified as SLD have below-average intelligence, do not exhibit discrepancies on the WISC-R, and do not have severe discrepancies between achievement and ability.
Cognitive Deficits in Reading Disability and Attention Deficit Disorder
Authors: Felton Rebecca H. , Wood Frank B.
Published: December 2008

This paper presents data from three studies (a cross-sectional study of school-referred children, a test-retest study of subtypes of reading disabilities, and a study of a large, random sample of first graders) that focus on specifying the cognitive deficits associated with reading difficulties and separating them from those associated with attentional deficits. The cognitive deficits associated with difficulty in reading were consistent across samples, developmental levels, definitions, and subtypes of reading disabilities. With IQ, age, and sex controlled for, poor readers were significantly impaired on measures of naming and phonological awareness. The effects of attentional deficits were more variable and complex but were clearly separate from the reading disability effects.

In the previous issue of this journal, two articles from the Austin Invitational Research Symposium were published. This symposium was made possible by a grant from the Donald D. Hammill Foundation to this journal. In this issue two additional articles follow from that symposium. See the December 1988 issue for an introduction to the series from Joseph K. Torgesen, coordinator and chair of the symposium.-JLW
Forum
Authors: Trent Stan
Published: December 2008

One of our editorial policies is to provide a forum for discussion on various key issues in our field. This is important because there are many different vantage points to some issues. The Forum section of the journal allows individuals to reflect on these matters from their own viewpoints. In the following article, Stan Trent responds to the series of articles on the Regular Education Initiative that appeared in the January issue of the journal.—JLW
Interventions
Authors: Blackbourn J. M.
Published: December 2008

The generalization of specific social skills to new environments/situations by elementary-aged students with learning disabilities was the primary focus of this study. During the spring semester of 1985, training in the learning disabilities resource room, including a discussion and verbal rehearsal of appropriate skill use and positive consequences of using the specific social skill appropriately, was initiated. Once the subject became proficient in the skill of interest, attempts to establish the skill outside the resource room were initiated (training sufficient exemplars). Reinforcement in the form of systematic attention was delivered in the new environments by teachers and parents. During the fall semester of 1985 each of the subjects was again observed with respect to the behaviors of interest. All subjects manifested generalization of the social skills to the new environments.
Symptom Expression in Hyperactive Children
Authors: Schworm Ronald W. , Birnbaum Ricki
Published: December 2008

Hyperactivity is typically diagnosed when children display overactivity, inappropriate inattention, and impulsivity during the school day when involved in tasks that require sustained and voluntary attention. However, distinguishing children with hyperactivity from children with other learning and behavior disorders is often difficult because of an overlap in symptom expression. Some studies have failed to find any factors associated only with the hyperactive syndrome. The present study compared the behavior of students diagnosed as hyperactive or having attention deficit disorder to students diagnosed as having learning disabilities. Symptoms associated with overactivity, inattention, and impulsivity of 19 hyperactive and 17 nonhyperactive (learning disordered) students were observed and counted using a direct diagnostic procedure following a momentary time sampling technique. Analyses revealed that differences between the groups were often qualitative rather than quantitative, and only a few symptoms distinguished one diagnosis from the other. Hyperactive students demonstrated more talking, unsystematic search, and motor impersistence than nonhyperactive students. Nonhyperactive students demonstrated more upper extremity movement and displayed more inattention when engaged in visual tasks than hyperactive students. The findings questioned the use of general categories of behavior such as overactivity to discriminate hyperactive from nonhyperactive students. Implications for diagnosis and the need for continued studies are reviewed.
Manifest Anxiety in Children with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Stein Pamela A. , Hoover John H.
Published: December 2008

Manifest anxiety scores of students receiving part-time services for learning disabilities, students receiving full-time services for learning disabilities, and a matched group of nonexceptional peers were compared. A significant difference was found between the part-time group and the nonexceptional group in Total Anxiety and Worry-Oversensitivity.
On Learning … More or Less
Authors: Ceci Stephen J. , Baker Jacquelyn G.
Published: December 2008

The authors review the last decade of their research on learning disabilities and conclude that knowledge x process x context is the most useful way to think about children's cognitive difficulties. According to this framework, learning disabilities is seen as a result of the interplay between a poorly elaborated knowledge (especially in language-related domains), the biologically determined efficiencies of various microlevel processes such as encoding, and the physical and social meaning attached to performance (i.e, the context). It is suggested that this framework helps explain instances of asymmetry wherein children with learning disabilities deploy a cognitive process more or less efficiently, depending on the material and task demands. It also raises several interesting questions about the presumed “specificity” of the impairment underlying learning disablement and the possibility that these children may not differ qualitatively from nonimpaired peers, only quantitatively.
Social Skills Deficits as a Primary Learning Disability
Authors: Gresham Frank M. , Elliott Stephen N.
Published: December 2008

Advances in the definition of social skills deficits in children and youth with learning disabilities are presented and critiqued. The proposed modified definition of learning disability by the Interagency Committee on Learning Disabilities, which includes social skills deficits as a specific learning disability, is presented and discussed. This definition is analyzed from primary, secondary, and social learning theory causative hypotheses. Development of an adequate assessment technology is viewed as critical to the identification and classification of social skills deficits in children and youth with learning disabilities.
Language Skills and Cognitive Processes Related to Poor Reading Comprehension Performance
Authors: Santos Olga B.
Published: December 2008

Eleven tests were administered to 20 high school readers with learning disabilities (LD) and 20 controls. The objective was to examine the relation between reading comprehension performance and performance on tests of language skills and cognitive processes. As a whole, the performance of the group with LD was significantly below the performance of the controls on all measures. However, the variance on nonverbal tests was greater for the group with LD than for controls; some individuals with learning disabilities performed as well as the controls. Results are discussed in terms of how performance deficits are amenable to remediation by instruction.
Assisted Assessment
Authors: Campione Joseph C.
Published: December 2008

Traditional approaches to both the assessment of student abilities and the design of instructional programs have recently come under strong attack. Of particular concern to many is the nature of the link between assessment and instruction. Some of the criticisms are reviewed, and a set of alternative approaches designed to overcome the difficulties is presented. The major focus is on dynamic, as opposed to static, assessment. A major feature of these approaches is the provision, to the student, of some form of assistance designed to influence performance and hence reveal students' potential for change. Within this general approach, specific applications differ along three dimensions. The first, focus, refers to the goal of evaluating change itself or the processes presumed to underlie change. The second, intervention, refers to the fact that the assistance included in the assessment can be given in either a standardized or clinical fashion. And the third, target, reflects the fact that assessment can be aimed at either domain-general or domain-specific skills. The distinct approaches that have been developed are categorized, and their respective strengths and weaknesses discussed. Suggestions for future research are made.
A Childhood Learning Disability that Predisposes Those Afflicted to Adolescent and Adult Depression and Suicide Risk
Authors: Rourke Byron P. , Young Gerald C. , Leenaars Antoon A.
Published: December 2008

A particular subtype of learning disability (nonverbal learning disability) is described. This subtype of individuals with learning disability is seen to be at particular risk for depression and suicide. The origins of the study of this subtype of learning disability, its incidence in various forms of neurological disease, disorder, and dysfunction, and its behavioral and socioemotional manifestations (including its association with significant internalized forms of psychopathology) are described. A case history of a young woman who manifests this disability and who has attempted suicide on three occasions is also presented.
Dyslexia and Neurodevelopmental Pathology
Authors: Hynd George W. , Semrud-Clikeman Margaret
Published: December 2008

This article addresses the neuroimaging (CT/MRI), electrophysiological (ERP/EEG), and postmortem evidence as to the neurological basis of dyslexia and discusses why these sources of evidence yield what appear to be inconsistent findings. It is concluded that what appear to be inconsistencies may relate in part to limitations of these investigative technologies. Then, important correlates of reading ability and disability are discussed in a developmental-neuropsychological context, and recommendations are made for research serving to further integrate cognitive and neurological paradigms. Of particular importance, inconsistencies between the results revealed through neuroimaging, electrophysiological, and postmortem studies, on the one hand, and neurolinguistic theory, on the other, must be addressed. Articulating the neurometabolic role—and particularly the nature of the behavioral correlates of the thalamus, supplementary motor area, and frontal cortex—in regard to bihemispheric mechanisms related to reading in developmental dyslexia should be a priority in future research.
Effectiveness of a Sensory Integrative Therapy Program for Children with Perceptual-Motor Deficits
Authors: Densem Julie F. , Nuthall Graham A. , Bushnell John , Horn Jacqueline
Published: December 2008

This study was an evaluation of the sensory integrative therapy (SIT) program (Ayres, 1972a) for children at the Christchurch Hospital. Fifty-five children were randomly assigned to the SIT program, a parallel physical education program, or to a no-treatment condition. The children were assessed before and after treatment on measures of perceptual-motor development, language and reading development, self-concept, and handwriting skills. Covariance analysis, with age and pretest scores as covariates, found no significant differences between groups on any of the measures except reading progress among those children who could already read at the beginning of the program. Children who made the least progress during therapy were those who (a) had epilepsy, (b) were from a low-income, single-parent family, or (c) had behavioral problems.
Toward a Procedure for Minimizing and Detecting False Positive Diagnoses of Learning Disability
Authors: Adelman Howard S. , Lauber Bennett A. , Nelson Perry , Smith Douglas C.
Published: December 2008

Assessment procedures that can significantly enhance motivation to perform are needed so that poor performance due to low or avoidance motivation is not misdiagnosed as indicating ability deficits or as symptomatic of learning disabilities (LD). In this connection, research is under way to investigate the degree to which a highly motivating computer game learning task can improve differential diagnoses of LD. Findings from the initial investigation indicate that a large proportion of students diagnosed as LD were able to learn effectively when pursuing such a task. The results illustrate the key role motivation plays in determining the validity of diagnostic assessment and demonstrate the potential value of similar tasks for use in differentiating, from among individuals diagnosed as LD, those who do not have impaired learning processes.
Cross-Sectional Comparisons of the Mathematical Performance of Children with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Cawley John F. , Miller James H.
Published: December 2008

This study examines the mathematical performance of 220 children from 8 years through 17 years of age diagnosed as having learning disabilities. Student records were searched for data indicating performance on standardized test instruments relating to mathematics. Data for the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Achievement Battery math subtests and for the IQ scores from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Revised were obtained. Comparisons were made among children at different ages and among specific age clusters. Primary attention was directed toward calculations and applications of math concepts and principles. Developmental patterns across the ages studied were discovered. Implications for long-term comprehensive programming are presented.
Comparisons of Cutoff and Regression-Based Definitions of Reading Disabilities
Authors: Fletcher Jack M. , Espy K. A. , Francis David J. , Davidson Kevin C. , Rourke Byron P. , Shaywitz Sally E.
Published: December 2008

This study addressed the issue of specificity in reading disability by comparing two approaches to defining and selecting children with reading disabilities. One approach defined reading disability according to cutoff scores representing appropriate levels of intelligence and reading deficiency, whereas the other approach adjusted these scores for their intercorrelation through regression procedures. Results revealed clear differences in which children were identified as reading disabled according to the two definitions. However, differences in neuropsychological performance between children whose reading scores were discrepant or not discrepant with IQ were small and nonspecific for both definitions. The results of this study show that children identified as reading disabled vary according to the definition employed; at this point, there is little evidence suggesting any specificity of reading disability according to definition.
Specific Deficits in Component Reading and Language Skills
Authors: Olson Richard , Wise Barbara , Conners Frances , Rack John , Fulker David
Published: December 2008

Phonological coding, measured by the oral reading of nonwords, and orthographic coding, measured by the discrimination of words from homophonic nonwords (e.g., rane, rain), were compared for pairs of older children with reading disabilities (RD) and younger nondisabled readers matched on word recognition. Phonological coding was substantially lower for most children with RD, indicating a unique developmental deficit in phonological coding rather than an equal developmental lag across all component reading skills. Data from identical and fraternal twins indicated that the phonological coding deficit of the children with RD was highly heritable and accounted for most of the heritable variance in their word recognition deficits. The deficits of the twins with RD in segmental language skills (rhyming and phoneme segmentation) were related to the heritable variance in their phonological coding deficits. Orthographic coding was not significantly heritable, and it accounted for much of the environmental variance in word recognition deficits. Implications of the results for the remediation of reading disability are discussed.
The Effects of an Interactive Instructional Strategy for Enhancing Reading Comprehension and Content Area Learning for Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Bos Candace S. , Anders Patricia L. , Filip Dorothy , Jaffe Lynne E.
Published: December 2008

This study investigated the effectiveness of an interactive vocabulary instructional strategy, semantic-feature analysis (SFA), on the content area text comprehension of adolescents with learning disabilities. Prior to reading a social studies text, students in resource classes either completed a relationship chart as part of the SFA condition or used the dictionary to write definitions and sentences as part of the contrast condition. Passage comprehension was measured on a multiple-choice test consisting of two types of items, vocabulary and conceptual. Comprehension was measured immediately following teaching and again 6 months after teaching. Prior knowledge for the content of the passage served as a covariate. Results indicated that students in the SFA instructional condition had significantly greater measured comprehension immediately following and 6 months after initial teaching. These results are discussed in relation to concept-driven, interactive strategies for teaching content and facilitating text comprehension.
Spontaneous Talkers Among Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Suzuki Lisa A. , Leton Donald A.
Published: December 2008

Experimental studies and clinical observations have indicated that right-hemisphere lesions produce impulsive talkative behavior. An exploratory study was conducted to investigate whether right-cerebral dysfunction would be evident in the intelligence test scores of talkative students with learning disabilities. Limitations and implications of the study are discussed.
The Newtonian Mechanistic Paradigm, Special Education, and Contours of Alternatives
Authors: Heshusius Lous
Published: December 2008

The concept of paradigm as a set of ontological and epistemological benchmarks is the basis for a discussion of the influence the Newtonian mechanistic paradigm has exerted over special education theory, research, and practice. Discussions of “malcontents” with the mechanistic paradigm across the social sciences and within special education are noted. Recent literature in the field of special education is critiqued for renaming theories as paradigms, thereby leaving mechanistic assumptions in place. The contours are then drawn of theoretical reorientations and of the emerging alternative holistic paradigm and its importance for special education. It is concluded that we do not have paradigms or paradigm shifts within the field, but that the field is part of a paradigm that is undergoing change across the sciences and social sciences.
Perceptions of Control at School Among Students In Special Education Programs
Authors: Taylor Linda , Adelman Howard S. , Nelson Perry , Smith Douglas C. , Phares Vicky
Published: December 2008

Data are reported on special and regular education students' perceptions of control at school and the importance to the students of having such control. For both special and regular education populations, comparisons were made between students enrolled in experimental and nonexperimental programs. Findings indicate comparability among the four groups with regard to areas in which control is valued. Perceptions of control at school for those in the standard special education group were lower than the ratings of regular education students and lower than those given by special education students in the experimental program.
IQ Is Irrelevant to the Definition of Learning Disabilities
Authors: Siegel Linda S.
Published: December 2008

The purpose of this article was to examine the logic and the empirical data supporting the proposition that intelligence tests are not necessary for the definition of a learning disability. Four assumptions of the use of IQ test scores in the definition of learning disabilities were examined. These assumptions were (a) IQ tests measure intelligence; (b) intelligence and achievement are independent, and the presence of a learning disability will not affect IQ scores; (c) IQ scores predict reading, and children with low IQ scores should be poor readers; and (d) reading disabled children with different IQ scores have different cognitive processes and information skills. It was argued that IQ scores measure factual knowledge, expressive language abilities, and short-term memory, among other skills, and that because children with learning disabilities have deficits in these areas, their scores may be spuriously low. It was also shown that some children with low IQ scores can be good readers, indicating that low IQ scores do not necessarily result in poor reading. Empirical evidence was presented that poor readers at a variety of IQ levels show similar reading, spelling, language, and memory deficits. On logical and empirical grounds, IQ test scores are not necessary for the definition of learning disabilities.
Attention Deficit Disorder With and Without Hyperactivity
Authors: Hynd George W. , Nieves Naomi , Connor Robert T. , Stone Penny , Town Patricia , Becker Mary Gail , Lahey Benjamin B. , Lorys Alison R.
Published: December 2008

This study addressed the issue as to whether children reliably diagnosed as attention deficit disordered with hyperactivity (ADD/H) and without hyperactivity (ADD/ WO) differed significantly from each other and a clinic control (CC) population on speed and efficiency of cognitive processing. From an outpatient clinic population, 43 ADD/H and 22 ADD/ WO children were examined. An analysis of mean reaction time and speeded classification task performance revealed significant group effects on both mean reaction time and on a measure of within-subject variability. ADD/H children performed significantly more slowly and variably than the CC children on several of the speeded classification tasks. However, the ADD/ WO group was not distinguished on any measure. Thus, while children may be reliably diagnosed as ADD/H or ADD/WO using behavioral measures, it would appear that they cannot be distinguished on these neurocognitive tasks. Issues related to childhood psychopathology and the neuropsychological basis of ADD/H are discussed.
Perceived Family Functioning, Marital Status, and Depression in Parents of Boys with Attention Deficit Disorder
Authors: Brown Ronald T. , Pacini Joseph N.
Published: December 2008

The present study examined the perceptions of parents of children with attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADD/H) regarding their family environment and depression in comparison with a clinical and a nondisabled control group. Parents of children with ADD/H perceived their family environment as less supportive and more stressful than did either the clinical or the nondisabled controls. Specifically, ADD/H parents viewed their families as having lower levels of interpersonal relationships than did either of the control groups. Ratings of depression for each of the parent groups indicated a greater frequency of depressive symptomatology among the parents of children with ADD/H. In addition, more parents of ADD/H children were separated or divorced. Correlation coefficients computed for the entire sample suggest differences between mothers' and fathers' depression and differences in their perceptions of the family. Recommendations are made for future research as well as the development of treatment programs to incorporate work with the parents of children with ADD/H.
Predictor Variables Related to the Classification of Learning Disabilities
Authors: Christopher James D. , Giuliani Richard , Holte Carol S. , Beaman Arthur L , Camp George C.
Published: December 2008

Psychoeducational assessment variables for high school students were subjected to a discriminant function analysis. Variables predictive of learning disability classification were spelling, IQ, and a student interview question.
The Adjustment of Students with Learning Disabilities to University and Its Relationship to Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy
Authors: Saracoglu Berenice , Minden Harold , Wilchesky Marc
Published: December 2008

Using self-report questionnaires, this study found that a sample of 34 university students with learning disabilities reported significantly poorer self-esteem, academic adjustment, and personal-emotional adjustment than a sample of 31 non-learning-disabled students. For both groups, self-esteem correlated positively with general self-efficacy. Both variables correlated positively with adjustment to university.
Opinion Papers
Authors: Adelman Howard S.
Published: December 2008

The learning disabilities (LD) field has “boxed itserf in” and, as a result, is not making satisfactory progress in reducing misdiagnoses and improving intervention efficacy. Evolving trends are not seen as reflecting fundamental changes in thinking and practice. With a view to the future, the position is taken that the field must (1) address causality in differentiating LD from other learning problems, (2) expand prevailing approaches to individualizing instruction so that intrinsic motivation is accounted for in a systematic and comprehensive manner, and (3) move beyond piecemeal programs to implement a fully integrated and coordinated continuum of interventions.
Vocational Education and Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Cawley John F. , Kahn Harris , Tedesco Angelo
Published: December 2008

This inquiry focuses on the status of nearly 500 students with learning disabilities in 17 state-operated regional vocational-technical schools in a northeastern state. The inquiry addressed four primary concerns: patterns of assessment, career choice, school marks, and attendance. The data indicate that a variety of instruments were used in the assessment process and that the overall grade equivalent levels of attainment ranged between fifth- and seventh-grade levels. Children defined as learning disabled participated in a large number of vocational trade specialties and some 50% or more had school marks indicating that they were passing in these areas. Attendance was high. Many children with learning disabilities successfully perform in competitive vocational education programs designed to produce proficiency at the level of journey person.