Purpose: This study examines the written language samples of fifth grade English learner (EL) students with and without diagnosed language-based learning disabilities (LLDs) in an effort to explore the utility of such supplemental materials for aiding in differential diagnosis of ELs with and without LLDs. Method: This sample of 127 fifth grade…

The purpose of this study was to understand and compare the types of errors students with a specific learning disability in reading and/or writing (SLD-R/W) and those with a specific learning disability in math (SLD-M) made in the areas of reading, writing, language, and mathematics. Clinical samples were selected from the norming population of…

The effects of extended time on the writing performance of university students with learning disabilities (LD) was examined. Thirty-eight students (19 LD; 19 non-LD) completed a collection of cognitive, linguistic, and literacy measures, and wrote essays under regular and extended time conditions. Limited evidence was found to support the…

Participants in this study completed an online experiment in which they wrote essays by stylus or keyboard. Three translation measures (length of language burst, length of pauses, and rate of pausing) and four transcription measures (total words, total time, words/minute, and percent spelling errors) for composition were analyzed for two research…

This comparative study investigated the productivity and the process of written composition in students with and without disabilities between 8 and 16 years of age. Participants were assigned to four groups as follows: (a) 59 with both attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) and writing learning disabilities (WLD), (b) 40 with ADHD, (c)…

The purpose of this study was to examine effectiveness of paraphrasing interventions on mathematics word problem-solving accuracy in third grade children (N = 72) at risk for mathematics disabilities (MD). Three instructional conditions directed students' attention through paraphrasing, via writing, to different propositions within word problems.…

Dramatic language arts integration (DLA) and conventional language arts (CLA) lessons were compared for their influence on third grade students' written narrative cohesion and on-task behavior in a self-contained, nonpublic elementary classroom. Participants included students (N = 14) with comorbid language-based learning disabilities (LD) and…

Writing may be an especially useful tool for improving the reading comprehension of lower performing readers and students with disabilities. However, it is reasonable to expect that students with poor writing skills in particular, may actually be less adept at using writing to improve their reading skills, and may not be able to do so without…

The aim of the study was to compare two samples of sixth-grade Spanish primary students on coordination of writing processes measured by online or direct retrospection techniques and writing products. One group was comprised of 81 students with learning disabilities (LD), the other was made up by 80 typically achieving students. The results showed…

Fourth graders with learning disabilities in transcription (handwriting and spelling), LD-TD, and without LD-TD (non-LD), were compared on three writing tasks (letters, sentences, and essays), which differed by level of language, when writing by pen and by keyboard. The two groups did not differ significantly in Verbal IQ but did in handwriting,…

Twenty-one learning-disabled eighth and eleventh graders wrote essays and answered a questionnaire concerning metacognition. Subjects were comparable to normally achieving sixth graders in their essays' interestingness, clarity in communication of goals, word choice, paragraph structure, and metacognition about the writing process. (Author/JDD)

This study of the story composition abilities of 46 students (aged 11-14) with learning disabilities found that subjects had a rudimentary knowledge of story form, but this knowledge was less developed than that of their nondisabled peers. Subjects also had greater coherence problems in their writing and were less fluent writers. (Author/JDD)

This study compared the written products of four groups of 26 male students in grades 4-6, including 8 students identified as gifted, 6 learning-disabled/gifted, 6 learning-disabled, and 6 normal. The Test of Written Language-2 was administered and seven subtest scores were compared among the four groups. In general, the speculation that…

This study of 40 junior high school students with learning disabilities and 20 control students found that significant intergroup differences in the quality of narrative compositions were not evident when students were allocated time for planning and were given "Create a Story" cues. (Author/JDD)

This report describes a federally funded project to study integration of computers into the writing instruction of classroom teachers, and evaluates the impact of a computer-supported writing program on instruction, on the writing process, and on products of normally achieving and learning-disabled (LD) students. The study compared the impact of a…