This executive summary discusses the definition of learning disabilities (LD) and how students are identified as having a learning disability. It begins by outlining four major methods that are used to compute the discrepancy-based definition of LD and the flaws of the discrepancy-based model. It then describes an approach to defining LD that is…

This guide was developed with the recognition of the growing need for school districts to provide access to the general education curriculum for students with special needs and to align assistive technology (AT) with performance requirements of the curriculum. The AT solutions presented represent changes in materials and instructional strategies…

This information packet provides an overview of learning disabilities. Information includes the following: (1) the definition of learning disability; (2) incidence of learning disabilities; (3) criteria used to decide whether a person has a learning disability; (4) common causes of learning disabilities; (5) the importance of early identification;…

This digest provides an overview of nonverbal learning disabilities (NLD) along with principles for designing and implementing instructional interventions to address its effects. It begins by explaining characteristics of students with NLD, including their tendency to focus on details rather than on the larger picture, the difficulties they may…

This book provides an interdisciplinary projection of the factors affecting the lives of Europe's children in the coming decades. It is a sequel to a volume of the same name, published in 1979. Europe is undergoing dramatic changes, demographic, political and technological, which will influence the health, well-being and potential of children.…

This digest discusses the occurrence of other disabilities which, in combination with diminished hearing, can create additional learning problems for children with hearing impairments. Topics on educational strategies for these children address: (1) the prevalence of other disabilities in children with hearing loss, including learning…

A study reviewed recent research on issues central to adult learning, learning disabilities, and study skills in seven important areas--reading and listening, writing, arithmetic, memory, metacognition, representational competence, and perceived competence. The review focused on recent findings that had direct implications for the assessment and…

The purpose of the Profiling System is to provide diagnostic and instructional resources to regular and special education teachers. The Profiling System is based on research and literature in psychological type and learning style. It combines the literature in these areas with academic and perceptual assessment instruments to screen for learning…

This book provides specific suggestions for ways to make accommodations and modify leisure activities to enable and encourage the participation of individuals with learning disabilities. The following chapters include: (1) "An Introduction"; (2) "Learning Disabilities," which describes types of learning disabilities, guidelines…

This book is a compendium of papers presented March 18-20, 1996, at the eighteenth annual Spectrum of Developmental Disabilities course. Research findings are presented that address identification, diagnosis, management, and prognosis of specific reading disability. Individual chapters include: (1) "Dyslexia: The Evolution of a Concept" (John…

This guide to cooperative teaching provides field-tested ideas and strategies using an organizational analogy of a home remodeling project. Chapters address the following topics: (1) recent changes in the nations schools and an overview of collaboration in the contemporary educational system; (2) different approaches to collaboration, including…

This paper discusses the outcomes of a survey of 39 special education practitioners (including 24 school psychologists) and 280 elementary classroom teachers on the identification of students with reading disabilities. Practitioners were asked to rate five empirically valid and five clinical-traditional non-valid student traits for their…

The design of this curriculum project allows teachers to introduce the rich Indian culture in a non-threatening way to learners who struggle with writing material. It was initially developed for special education students who read and write significantly below grade level. Some of the project's lessons include showing the students artwork and…

The researcher/author developed, out of necessity as a teacher, an alternative method to teach reading to a classroom containing students with learning disabilities. A study sought to determine whether the "Achieve" reading curriculum is an effective instructional methodology for increasing the reading achievement of seventh-grade…

This paper reviews the research on use of American Sign Language in elementary classes that do not include children with hearing impairment and also reports on the use of the manual sign language alphabet in a primary class learning the phonetic sounds of the alphabet. The research reported is overwhelmingly positive in support of using sign…