Specific Learning Disorders

Question 1

what is sld

Answer 1

SLD affects a person’s ability to take in, process, and/or communicate information

Question 2

SLD criteria A

Answer 2

Difficulties learning and using academic skills as
indicated by the presence of at least one of the
following symptoms that have persisted for at least 6 months

1. Inaccurate or slow and effortful word reading
2. Difficulty understanding the meaning of what is read
3. Difficulties with spelling
4. Difficulties with written expression
5. Difficulties mastering number sense, number facts, or calculation
6. Difficulties with mathematical reasoning

Question 3

SLD criteria B

Answer 3

The affected academic skills are substantially and quantifiably below those expected for the individual’s chronological age, and cause significant interference with
academic or occupational performance, or with activities of daily living, as confirmed by individually administered standardized achievement measures and comprehensive
clinical assessment. For individuals aged 17 years and older, a documented history of impaired learning difficulties may be substituted for the standardized assessment

Question 4

SLD criteria C

Answer 4

The learning difficulties begin during school-age years but may not become fully manifest until the demands for those affected academic skills exceed the individual’s limited
capacities

Question 5

SLD Criterion D

Answer 5

The learning difficulties are not be better accounted for by
another disorder (e.g. intellectual disabilities, uncorrected visual or auditory acuity, other mental or neurological
disorders, psychosocial adversity, lack of proficiency in the
language of academic instruction, or inadequate educational instruction, etc).

Question 6

How are the 4 sld diagnostic criteria met

Answer 6

Note: the 4 diagnostic criteria are to be met based on a clinical synthesis of the
individual’s history (developmental, medical, family, educational), school reports,
and psychoeducational assessment.

Question 7

SLD comorbidities

Answer 7

ADHD
Depression
Anxiety
Conduct disorder

Question 8

Risk factors for SLDs

Answer 8

Genetics

Prenatal factors
* Exposure to alcohol
* Smoking during pregnancy
* Low birth weight
* Premature birth

Question 9

SLD categories - 3

Answer 9

Reading

Written Expression

Mathematics

Question 10

Specific Learning Disorders
Reading Subtype

Visual perceptual deficits:

Phonological processing:
phonological awareness
phonological decoding
irregular word forms
syntax
semantic components and WM

Answer 10

Involves deficits in the ability to discern meaning from words in running lines of text

Numerous processes involved:
* Visual perceptual deficits: reversals – either of letters or whole words

• Phonological processing: sound-symbol relationships; using sound structures to process written material
  o Phonological awareness: spoken words must be segmented into sounds
  o Phonological decoding: letters (graphemes) correspond to sounds (phonemes)
• Irregular word forms: don’t fit regular phoneme/grapheme rules (e.g. yacht, chihuahua)
• Syntax: understanding sentence structure
• Semantic components & working memory: understanding meaning of words; promotes
  comprehension

Question 11

sld reading prevalence

Answer 11

Estimated prevalence 4-10% of school aged children

Question 12

sld reading ratio to boys and girls

Answer 12

Approximate 3 or 4: 1 ratio of boys to girls

Question 13

when do sld deficits tend to emerge

Answer 13

Deficits tend to emerge around 4th grade, and persist into adolescence and adulthood

Question 14

The Matthew Effect:

Answer 14

A widening gap between stronger and weaker readers over time

Question 15

Specific Learning Disorders
Written Expression

Answer 15

Involves difficulties with text generation / composition, or transcription

Text generation (or composition)
* understanding of sentence structure
* memory for words
* higher-order executive functions
* metacognitive skills

Transcription
* Putting ideas into written form
o Handwriting
o Spelling
o Punctuation
o Capitalization
o Word placement
- spacing issues, inconsistent case, trouble writing on line

Question 16

Specific Learning Disorders
Mathematics

Answer 16

Involves difficulties with understanding of numbers & the learning, representation, and retrieval of basic arithmetic facts

• Has poor understanding of numbers, their magnitude, and relationships
• Gets lost in the midst of arithmetic computation (following through on multistep
  calculations)
• Recognizing numbers and symbols
• Mental math
• Estimating or approximating
• Number patterns

Question 17

artithmetic in younger children

Answer 17

Arithmetic abilities in younger children: build on skills in understanding numbers or
numerosity and counting

Question 18

By age 5…

children with math subtype

Answer 18

By age 5 > typically developing children understand basic principles of counting

Children learn that counting all… can also be counting on…

Children with mathematics subtype
* acquire many of these abilities but do so more slowly and less accurately
* third grade or above > display errors in rapid retrieval of number facts & problems
using addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division

Question 19

identifying slds

Answer 19

1. Discrepancy between IQ & Achievement Level
2. Discrepancy between average academic achievement and grade level
3. Response to Intervention Approach

Question 20

identifying slds

1. Discrepancy between IQ & Achievement Level

Answer 20

• Performance on a measure of general ability (IQ) exceeds performance on specific tests of achievement
• A discrepancy of two or more SDs between intelligence and achievement scores is the standard approach

Overall General Ability > Specific Area
= Impairment

Question 21

standardized achievement tests

Answer 21

Peabody Individual
Achievement Test - Revised

Woodcock Reading
Mastery Series

Question 22

identifying slds
2. Discrepancy between average academic achievement and grade level

Answer 22

• The average academic achievement (in at least one academic area) is 1-2
  grade levels below what is expected of their current grade level
• A 1-2 year discrepancy represents a greater deficit at an earlier age than it does at later ages

Question 23

identifying slds
3. Response to Intervention Approach

Answer 23

• A method of identifying children with SLDs based on whether they respond to a particular intervention; can be considered a form of prevention
• Exposes child to progressively more intense levels of instruction
• Children who do not perform commensurate with peers are provided with a more intensive educational program
• If the child continues to perform poorly with additional support, they receive an evaluation to identify whether a SLD is present

Question 24

Response to intervention tiers

Answer 24

Tier 3
Individualized, high intensity intervention, progress monitoring, and diagnostic assessment.

Tier 2
Targeted small group interventions for at risk students; consistent progress monitoring

Tier 1
Provision of evidence-based, scientifically informed educational
instruction to all students, with universal screening

Question 25

SLDs & Self-Concept

Answer 25

SLDs are associated with a reduced sense of self-worth Even when school grades are comparable, children with SLDs report greater levels of helplessness and reduced self-efficacy compared to their typically developing peers As a result of academic failure, children with SLDs doubt their intellectual abilities and believe that their efforts to achieve are futile

Question 26

Assessing achievement across domains

Answer 26

Wide Range Achievement Test * Paper and pencil test of reading, spelling, and arithmetic skills * Questions become progressively harder, and the child is told to do as many problems as they can * Fairly quick and easy estimate of academic grade levels Peabody Individual Achievement Test * Kindergarten to grade 12 * Provides measures of: o General information, reading recognition, reading comprehension, mathematics, spelling, written expression, written language composite, total reading score

Question 27

Assessing SLDs Reading Subtype

Answer 27

Woodcock Reading Mastery Series Letter identification * Upper and lowercase letters that are written in a variety of fonts Word identification * Read words in a list format aloud Nonsense words * Read words that are not real Word comprehension * Antonyms, synonyms, and analogies Passage comprehension * Read passages to themselves & draw inferences

Question 28

Assessing SLDs Written Expression Subtype

Answer 28

Peabody Individual Achievement Test Handwriting * Fine motor skills – develops gradually and requires effort Spelling * Draws on phenetic skills, word recognition, retrieval of learned letters, and words from memory Text generation (composition) * Involves memory for words, understanding sentence structure, higher order executive functions, and metacognitive skills ** standardized tests for writing skills are limited and may require analysis of children’s written work

Question 29

Assessing SLDs Mathematics Subtype

Answer 29

Test of Early Mathematics Abilities (TEMA 3)