The author reviews the controversy over definitions of learning disabilities and posits two "givens" in any defintion of the condition: that all learning is neurological, and that learning is conditioning. He proposes a definition based on neuropsychological dysfunction which can be translated into an educational regimen. (CL)

The study involving 33 children referred to school psychologists compared the Bender Gestalt and the Minnesota Perceptual Diagnostic Test-Revised (MPDT-R) in ability to predict intellectual and academic performance as measured by standardized tests. Factor analysis suggested that the MPDT-R provides unique information concerning…

The position statement of the Council for Learning Disabilities' Board of Trustees opposes the measurement and training of perceptual and perceptual-motor functions as a part of learning disability services and recommends instead that assessment and remediation focus on the primary disorders of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, and…

The fourth of five volumes (and the third of four curriculum guides) in the Project Teach 'n' Reach series presents curriculum suggestions to help regular classroom teachers teach nondisabled students about learning handicaps. The developmentally disabled are considered in terms of anatomical structures of the brain, etiology, definition, sensory…

This article critically examines issues of whether children with learning disabilities differentially exhibit concomitant problems in sensory integration (SI) and whether such children are helped by SI therapy. It concludes that research findings indicate that SI therapy is not merely unproven but a demonstrably ineffective remedial treatment for…

The Motoric-Perceptual-Conceptual/Behavioral (MPC/B) model, a developmentally eclectic approach to evaluating and remediating learning disabilities in children, is described. The model is explained to view learners and the learning process on three educational levels (preschool, elementary school, and high school/post school), on three subject…

Position statements of the Council for Learning Disabilities oppose the following: (1) use of discrepancy formulas in the identification of learning disabled individuals; (2) inclusion of nonhandicapped low achievers and underachievers in learning disability programs; and (3) measurement and training of perceptual and perceptual-motor functions.…

Although there are many remediation materials for learning disabled children available commercially, with more being produced none are as universally available or as economical as comic strips. (Author)

The cerebral laterality of children with various configurations of verbal-performance discrepancies was inferred with an objective measure of lateral preference using Verbal and Performance IQ scores of the WISC-R. Results were interpreted as lending support to the notion of competition antagonism between cortical hemispheres and a possible…

Investigated was the effect on the sensory integration of 24 aphasic students, of a 7-month sensorimotor program-designed to stimulate the tactile, vestibular, and proprioceptive systems; motor planning ability; bilateral integration; postural and equilibrium responses; visual form and space perception; and motor development. ( DLS)

Research on hemispheric mode functioning indicates that some connections exist between learning disabilities (LD) and right-mode dominance, which suggests that instruction should be offered to develop right hemispheric (spatial perception) abilities in LD persons. The influence on student drawing of the right-left hemispheric shift during reading…

Frequently a variety of visual perception difficulties correlate with reading disabilities. A study was made to investigate the relationship between visual perception and reading disability in families, and to explore the genetic aspects of the relationship. One-hundred twenty-five reading-disabled students, ages 7.5 to 12 years, were matched with…

An investigation of the disturbing nature of constructs underlying learning disabilities (LD) and the reliability of factors of LD characteristics within an ecological framework used 150 advanced undergraduate special education students as Ss. (Author/PHR)

Seven characteristics of the learning disabled child are described and suggestions to remediate these problems, from the viewpoint of an occupational therapist, are provided. Following are the seven areas (with sample teaching suggestions in parentheses): (1)tactile defensiveness (encourage children to use sand, clay, and finger paint with sawdust…

Intended to be used as the basis for a brief inservice workshop, the auditory discrimination/listening skills packet provides information on ideas, materials, and resources for remediating auditory discrimination and listening skill deficits. Included are a sample prescription form, tests of auditory discrimination, and a list of auditory…