Questioning Discrepancies: Retaking the First Step 20 Years Later

1987 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 301-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bob Algozzine ◽  
James E. Ysseldyke
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Driving Force ◽  
Achievement Tests ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Achievement Scores ◽  
Grade Levels ◽  
Overall Performance ◽  
General Difference ◽  
Political Economic

The term learning disability was scarsely off the breath of the early pioneers when a profession began questioning its own integrity. Today, the proliferation of students classified as learning disabled (LD) has caused social, political, economic, and educational concerns that, in turn, have produced serious questioning of practices. The driving force behind most conceptualizations of learning disabilities is the discrepancy between ability and achievement; yet, the dimensions of this parameter have not been documented. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the nature and occurrence of discrepancies between ability and achievement scores of students demonstrating average overall performance on commonly used assessment devices. Ability and achievement scores in several domains on individual and group-administered tests were compared. In general, difference patterns of students with average overall performance scores were similar across grade levels and achievement tests. Average discrepancies were generally small; however, wide (30–50 points) ranges were evident at all grade levels for individual and group-administered tests. Implications of these findings for current and future use of discrepancies as estimators of disabilities are discussed.

Questioning Discrepancies: Retaking the First Step 20 Years Later

1988 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bob Algozzine ◽  
James E. Ysseldyke
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Driving Force ◽  
Achievement Tests ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Achievement Scores ◽  
Grade Levels ◽  
Overall Performance ◽  
General Difference ◽  
Political Economic

The term learning disability was scarsely off the breath of the early pioneers when a profession began questioning its own integrity. Today, the proliferation of students classified as learning disabled (LD) has caused social, political, economic, and educational concerns that, in turn, have produced serious questioning of practices. The driving force behind most conceptualizations of learning disabilities is the discrepancy between ability and achievement; yet, the dimensions of this parameter have not been documented. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the nature and occurrence of discrepancies between ability and achievement scores of students demonstrating average overall performance on commonly used assessment devices. Ability and achievement scores in several domains on individual and group-administered tests were compared. In general, difference patterns of students with average overall performance scores were similar across grade levels and achievement tests. Average discrepancies were generally small; however, wide (30–50 points) ranges were evident at all grade levels for individual and group-administered tests. Implications of these findings for current and future use of discrepancies as estimators of disabilities are discussed.

Learning Disability Research: How Far Have We Progressed?

1981 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 372-381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean R. Harber
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Control Groups ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Experimental Learning ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
And Control ◽  
Disability Research

This article presents an analysis of the 229 research reports which have appeared in two major learning disability journals since 1978. Findings indicate that (1) the vast majority of these studies are quasi-experimental in nature; (2) control of extraneous variables (e.g., intelligence) was not appropriately demonstrated in many studies; (3) comparability between experimental and control groups was not adequately established in numerous reports; (4) fewer than half of the studies utilized subjects classified as learning disabled; (5) in more than two-fifths of the studies involving learning disabled subjects, the criteria for such classification were not provided; (6) studies which did operationally define learning disabilities utilized a wide range of criteria. The ethical limitations of conducting experimental learning disability research are discussed and suggestions for enhancing such research are offered. Finally, the importance of focusing research efforts on homogeneous populations (e.g., the severely learning disabled) is illustrated.

Learning Disabilities and the Professional Educator

1978 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Larsen
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Civil Rights ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Educational Practice ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Educational Needs ◽  
Professional Standards ◽  
Ethical Practice ◽  
Disabled Students ◽  
Professional Educator

Dr. Stephen Larsen, President of D.C.L.D., has identified four central issues in the learning disability field as they relate to the educator: 1) determining the true parameters of the learning disabilities field; 2) monitoring the proliferation of tests and materials presumed relevant to educational practice; 3) insuring that learning disabled students are provided instructional opportunities in accordance with their educational needs and civil rights; and 4) determining professional standards that are necessary for competent and ethical practice. The professional educator is seen as the central person in the resolution of these issues as well as the central professional in planning, conducting, and/or coordinating the overall diagnostic and remedial efforts used with the learning disabled individual.

Learning Disabilities and other Attributes as Factors in Delinquent Activities among Adolescents in a Nonurban Area

1987 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 327-334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fran Trocinsky Fleener
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
White Male ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Mathematics Skills ◽  
Poor Families ◽  
Delinquent Activity ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
Northern Idaho ◽  
Eastern Washington

62% of 50 adjudicated delinquents in the Palouse area of eastern Washington and northern Idaho showed learning disabilities when tested. Among the learning disabled and nonlearning disabled delinquents, there was no difference in kind or seriousness of delinquent activity. The typical delinquent of the nonurban Palouse area tends to be white, male and has a learning disability. His reading and mathematics skills are at least two years below grade. His family is large; his real parents are divorced. He comes from a poorer economic and cultural background than do the nondelinquents. This analysis suggests that the academic treatment of the learning disabled youngster should not be ignored as a factor in delinquency, especially in economically and culturally poor families.

Family as a Factor in Delinquency

1999 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fran T. Fleener
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Rural Area ◽  
White Male ◽  
Delinquent Behavior ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
The Other ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Dysfunctional Family

50 adjudicated delinquents were given academic and psychological tests and a self-report of delinquency according to the learning disability/delinquency study of the National Criminal Justice Service of 1980. 31 learning disabled delinquents were identified. The test of proportions compared learning disabilities in delinquent ( n = 31) and nondelinquent (ns = 24 and 43) samples. The Mann-Whitney U test compared the reported number of categories of delinquent behavior in the three groups. A typical delinquent of this rural area tends to be a white male with average or above intelligence and a learning disability. His family is large; his parents are divorced. He comes from a poorer economic and cultural background. A dysfunctional family can be a center wherein delinquency grows; on the other hand, a strong family can nurture and protect when peers and school fail.

Allergies and Learning Disabilities

1985 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 255-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
James A. McLoughlin ◽  
Michael Nall ◽  
Joseph Petrosko
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Emotional Disorders ◽  
School Attendance ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Learning Problems ◽  
Achievement Scores ◽  
Popular Press ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Medical Symptoms ◽  
Made In

Numerous connections between allergies and learning disabilities have been made in the popular press and other media directed to parents of the learning disabled. This article briefly traces the reasons for this association and critically analyzes existing research of such factors as school underachievement and learning problems, listening and hearing problems, absenteeism, and social-emotional disorders. Results of a comparison of group achievement scores, school attendance records, and medical symptoms of allergic and nonallergic students with and without learning disabilities raise serious questions about the purported relationship between allergies and learning problems.

The mental health needs of older people with learning disability

2005 ◽  
Vol 15 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 245-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick SG Chance
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Older People ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Differential Mortality ◽  
Functional Impairments ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Care Needs

The term ‘older people with learning disability’ refers to a highly heterogeneous group of people. By definition, they all have delayed or abnormal early development, together with significant intellectual and functional impairments, but they differ considerably in terms of cause, developmental profile, nature and degree of impairments and their social and personal backgrounds. Overall, people with learning disabilities make up only a small minority of the population, however it is well recognized that they have increased overall health care needs, including mental health needs. It has been estimated there are 210 000 people living in England and Wales who have a severe or profound learning disability: only 25 000 (12%) of these are older people aged over 60 years. Of the 1.2 million people with mild or moderate learning disability, 265 000 (21%) of these are older people over the age of 60. Life expectancy seems to be influenced by severity of learning disability, the age profile of the mild to moderate learning-disabled population being much more closely matched to that of the general population. As a result of this differential mortality, across the spectrum of disability there is a reduced level of learning disability with advancing age, and older people with learning disabilities, when considered as a group, have higher levels of functional ability (and reduced levels of challenging behaviour) than the younger group.

Learning Disability Discrepancy Formulas: Their Use in Actual Practice

1983 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven R. Forness ◽  
Esther Sinclair ◽  
Donald Guthrie
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disability ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Actual Practice ◽  
Achievement Scores ◽  
Significant Discrepancy

Commonly accepted definitions of learning disability require the presence of a significant discrepancy between a child's potential and his/her achievement. Eight commonly used “discrepancy” formulas were applied to the IQ and achievement scores of a sample of 92 potentially learning disabled youngsters. Extremely variable results were found depending on the formula used. Implications of these findings for actual practice are suggested.

Marker Variables: A Search for Comparability and Generalizability in the Field of Learning Disabilities

1978 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 5-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara K. Keogh ◽  
Susan M. Major ◽  
Helen Patricia Reid ◽  
Patricia Gándara ◽  
Hisako Omori
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Disabled Students ◽  
Research Results ◽  
Cooperative Approach ◽  
Program Effects ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Marker Variables

The learning disability field has been plagued by unclear definitional criteria resulting in inconsistencies and confusion regarding research findings and program effects. The concept of marker variables as presented by Keogh et al. may be a means of guiding research and comparing research results. Marker variables may be thought of as a set of core variables which are collected in common by those conducting research within a given field. The identification and adoption of a systematic, cooperative approach to the documentation of research and intervention with learning disabled students would aid in the comparability and generalizability of the findings. This article discusses the concept of marker variables as they are being applied to the learning disability field in the UCLA Marker Variable Project.

Social climate in Learning Disability services

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Willets ◽  
Paul Mooney ◽  
Nicholas Blagden
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
Psychiatric Hospitals ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Social Climate ◽  
Disability Services ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The social climate of psychiatric institutions correlates with multiple outcomes related to staff and patients. Research into social climate in Learning Disability services is limited. Staff and patients in Learning Disability services have documented both positive and negative experiences. No research has directly compared the social climate of Learning Disability and non-Learning Disability psychiatric services. The purpose of this paper is to understand how these compare. The study will also compare staff and patient views of social climate and the impact of security on social climate in Learning Disability services. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 64 patients and 73 staff, from Learning Disability and non-Learning Disability psychiatric hospitals completed the Essen Climate Evaluation Schema (EssenCES) measure of social climate. Findings – Patients in Learning Disability and non-Learning Disability services did not differ in their perceptions of social climate. Staff in non-Learning Disability services had a more positive perception of social climate than staff in Learning Disability services. Patients and staff did not differ in their views on climate. Security was negatively related to patients’ Experienced Safety. Originality/value – The findings suggest that staff perceive that the deficits associated with Learning Disabilities may limit patients’ therapeutic experience and relationships with their peers. Despite this, patients with Learning Disabilities feel supported by their peers, have positive views of the treatment process and feel as safe as non-Learning Disabled psychiatric patients.

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