Students' knowledge of vocabulary affects their reading comprehension. Despite abundant research findings in vocabulary learning, practical instructional methods for use in schools are typically underdeveloped. This article proposes a research-based method for teaching the meanings of base academic vocabulary (i.e., Tier 2) words. The method…

Poorly developed word recognition skills are the most pervasive and debilitating source of reading challenges for students with learning disabilities (LD). With a notable decrease in word reading instruction in the upper elementary grades, struggling readers receive fewer instructional opportunities to develop proficient word reading skills, yet…

As high-stakes testing, Common Core, and state standards become the new norms in schools, teachers are tasked with helping all students meet specific benchmarks. In conjunction with the influx of more students with disabilities being included in inclusive and general education classrooms where lectures with note-taking comprise a majority of…

This author recently spent a year studying best practices in serving students with learning and other disabilities, and, surprisingly, the experience altered his thinking in significant ways. He came to this study not as a specialist in disabilities but as an academic administrator with years of faculty experience, and that perspective helped him…

Students with learning disabilities lack effective note-taking skills for a variety of reasons. Despite the important role that notes play in helping students to understand lecture content information and serving as documents for later review, many students with learning disabilities are simply not effective note-takers. Many of these students…

Addition of a word processing component to a study skills program for eight learning disabled freshman students in a community college resulted in higher term paper grades and positive student and faculty evaluations. (CL)

The geometric organizer, a multisensory technique using visual mnemonic devices that key information to color-coded geometric shapes, can help learning disabled students read, organize, and study information in content subject textbooks. (CL)

A resource teacher of learning disabled adolescents describes a cognitive strategies approach designed to allow students to generalize skills to other tasks. This approach focuses on such skills as gaining information from texts, performing more accurately on tests, and presenting written work attractively and cogently. (CL)

The paper describes a learning skills program designed to serve college students whose learning styles are different from the norm and whose skill levels vary widely. Development phases of the program featured a task force approach to needs assessment, planning, initial pilot testing, and ongoing faculty development. Difficulties encountered in…

The paper describes the background and development of HELP (Higher Education for Learning-disabled People). The HELP program located at Marshall University (West Virginia) provides testing to determine the presence of a learning disability; individual tutoring in reading, spelling, and written expression; oral tests; note-taking instruction; study…

Literacy is an increasingly important factor as schools focus on improving student achievement. Literacy skills in reading and writing are critical components needed for both access to the general curriculum and for successful academic achievement. A key component of reading and writing is word identification, a skill deficit for many adolescent…

The author proposes two theoretical constructs from cognitive psychology planning and limited central processing to aid understanding of the complexity and inefficiences in study performance of learning disabled (LD) children due to memory problems. Applies the constructs to memory development and instruction and provides recommendations for…

The article describes a two-year learning strategies program for ninth and tenth grade learning-disabled students which involves four tutorial periods and four learning strategy classes per week, and team teaching of strategy development in mainstream classes. The program has fostered independence and generalization of learned strategies to…

Research indicates that students with learning disabilities may experience significant difficulty with taking notes during teacher lectures. Approaches for helping students include task accommodations (such as taping the lectures or purchasing notes) and notetaking skill/strategy instruction (such as paraphrasing, outlining, using abbreviations,…

Two articles look at effective practices with the learning disabled. The first, "Facilitating Mainstreaming through a School-Wide Study Skills Program" (Gayle Smith), stresses one skill each month. "Semantic Feature Analysis: An Interactive Teaching Strategy for Facilitating Learning from Text" (Candace Bos and Patricia Anders) offers a method for…