The Predictive role of Cognitive Factors and Academic Self-efficacy on Academic Functioning of Children at Risk for Specific Learning Disabilities

The cerebellar deficit hypothesis, proposed by Nicolson and Fawcett (1996; 1999), suggests that dyslexia, one of the most frequent specific learning disabilities, involves general impairment in the ability to perform skills automatically, which several studies have linked to the cerebellum. Disorders in cerebellar development may lead to impairments in reading and writing that are key features of dyslexia and other specific learning disabilities, which would be consistent with the presumed role of the cerebellum in language-related skills. The cerebellum has traditionally been considered as a motor area, so performance on motor and balance tasks may be a way to assess problems in cerebellar function associated with specific learning impairment. The aim of the present study was to determine whether there are differences in performance on balance and motor tasks (Yap and van der Leij, 1994; Ramus and colleagues, 2003) between students with specific learning disabilities (N=32) and typically developing students (N=32), as well as to determine whether performance in both groups correlates with reading skills. Students were in the fourth grade of elementary school in Zagreb, Croatia. Typically developing students achieved a significantly higher total score on balance and motor tasks than students with specific learning disabilities (Mann Whitney U test), supporting the cerebellar deficit hypothesis. In addition, performance on balance and motor tasks correlated significantly with performance on reading tasks (Spearman’s rank correlation). Further research is needed to clarify these correlations and why they occur.

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Can Difficulties in Language Acquisition and Specific Learning Disabilities Be Separated Among English Learners?

Council review ◽

10.1177/0014402919893931 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 86 (3) ◽

pp. 293-309

Author(s):

H. Lee Swanson ◽

Jennifer Kong ◽

Stefania D. Petcu ◽

Monica Fiorella Asencio Pimentel

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Learning Disabilities ◽

English Language Learners ◽

Language Acquisition ◽

English Learners ◽

Short Term Memory ◽

Specific Learning Disabilities ◽

Cutoff Score ◽

Latent Classes ◽

Specific Learning

This study investigated the prevalence of latent classes at risk for reading or math disabilities in elementary-age children whose first language is Spanish. To this end, children ( N = 394) in Grades 1, 2, and 3 were administered a battery of vocabulary, reading, math, and cognitive measures in both Spanish and English. Three important findings occurred. First, five latent classes emerged (average achievers, poor achievers, reading disabled, English language learners, Spanish-dominant achievers) that varied in language and achievement scores. Second, probability estimates indicated that 10% of the total sample was at risk for learning disabilities (below cutoff score), and approximately 40% of the sample reflected a language acquisition group not at risk for academic difficulties. Finally, the best model for correctly predicting the odds of latent classes differing from average achievers included English measures of short-term memory, naming speed, and the executive component of working memory. The results support the notion that statistically distinct latent classes emerge under the umbrella of children identified as English learners and that children at risk for specific learning disabilities can be separated among a heterogeneous sample of children who are acquiring English as a second language.

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