Spelling is one of the most challenging areas for students with learning disabilities (LD), and improving spelling outcomes for these students is of high importance. In this synthesis, we examined the effects of spelling and reading interventions on spelling outcomes for students with LD in Grades K through 12. A systematic search of peer-reviewed…

This review investigates effective interventions for teaching algebra to students with learning disabilities and evaluates the complexity and alignment of skills with the Common Core State Standards in math. The review includes the results of 10 experimental and 5 single-subject designs (N = 15) producing a moderate overall effect size (g = 0.48).…

This study examined the effect of schema-based instruction (SBI) on the proportional problem-solving performance of students with mathematics difficulties only (MD) and students with mathematics and reading difficulties (MDRD). Specifically, we examined the responsiveness of 260 seventh grade students identified as MD or MDRD to a 6-week treatment…

Task analysis is described, and five approaches (learning hierarchies, the stimulus response table, observation, flowcharts, and the critical incident approach) are considered. (CL)

The article analyzes the stages of study in terms of skills needed at each phase. Specific ways to modify instructional activities and to develop study procedures in learning disabled students are presented. (Author/DB)

The author describes an approach to helping dyslexic children by making the learning situation as painless as possible and helping students accept responsibility for more careful scrutiny and accurate decoding. (CL)

Two types of elaboration are reviewed as potent strategies for the learning disabled: (1) modifications to make materials more learnable and (2) recommendations about elaborative strategies that learners can execute. A model of autonomous and flexible strategy use is presented with emphasis on efficient strategy application. (DB)

The author offers information on 11 modification techniques that may make commercial software programs more appropriate for learning disabled students. (CL)

The paper examines cognitive and metacognitive teaching practices in relation to theories of motivation, showing how and why they may inadvertently impede the learning disabled trainee's strategy of generalization. Ways for teachers to counteract such practices as well as implications for research needs are discussed. (Author/CL)

Described is a simulated reading activity which learning disability (LD) teachers can use to help classroom teachers experience the anxieties, frustrations, and failures that LD students experience under group norm instruction. (CL)

Intrinsic approaches to student motivations are discussed and contrasted with the traditional behaviorist approach to motivating special education students. Research implications regarding ownership and choice are considered. (Author/CL)

The author reviews implications of the previous four papers on the neuropsychological approach to learning disabilities (ED 161 035-038), notes the importance of an interdisciplinary approach, discusses potential valuable test batteries, and emphasizes the need for appropriate training in neuropsychology psychologists and teachers. (CL)

An interview with B. Slingerland, an educator with over 50 years experience with specific language disabled students, traces her early work in the field, and reviews her theories about teaching language disabled children, including her emphasis on intrinsic motivation rather than behavior modification and her reluctance to receive government…

Cognitive behavior modification (CBM), Direct Instruction (DI), and holistic approaches to the education of students with learning disabilities are compared for purposes of identifying similarities and differences in instructional practice. Comparative discussions are organized around four distinctions: specific vs. general, bottom-up vs.…

The paper reviews research, largely inconclusive, on diagnostic-prescriptive teaching and proposes a model for use with learning disabled students using neuropsychological test data to infer relevant learner aptitudes. Studies are cited to support the validity of strength-matched teaching and the use of compensatory teaching with severe learning…