I am not sure but being a math teacher I feel like i do not have problems with reading. I see in my classes a lack of ability to use their time tables which I am not sure if that is do to disability or poor past education.
The most common form of learning disability I encounter would be dyslexia. Most of the students do not read! When asked who read the chapter, most of them say they looked over it while very few admit that they don't like to read. There are some who say they read the chapter but didn't understand it.
Tammie,
unfortunately this does seem to be a very prevalent disability in many of our students.
Dr. Ryan Meers
The most common form of learning disability is reading comprehension (dyslexia). The way to tell a person has a disability like this is by the way they right or preceive what they have read.The do not see the words the way they really are.
Sharon,
I agree that dyslexia seems to be a rather prevalent learning disability.
Dr. Ryan Meers
The most common form I have found is the reading. They require more time to decode and comprehend. I like seperate testing so they can read the question outloud to themselves as many times as needed to understand the question being asked.
Dyslexia is by far the most common learning disability I encounter. Students in this category have trouble with reading comprehension and retaining written material.
I would have to say reading skills. People have a hard enough time reading general books as it is, but medical term makes it even more difficult for my students. Big words I have noticed intimidate my students.
Dennis,
this is a great way to really help those students who simply need more time.
Dr. Ryan Meers
As a writing and literature teacher, I come into contact with students who have trouble comprehending texts, usually because of dyslexia. I always provide them more time to enact the reading and sometimes I go over the reading with them in one-to-one conferences. The same is true of writing assignments. Providing more time takes some of the pressure off. Conferencing provide assistance and support. Usually these students are capable of very good work and are often quite motivated.
By Eddy Mojena
I'm not informed in Vance but when I do notice at every beginning of class with a pretest this allows me to evaluate all students in advance so I know how I can help them.
I am usually not officially informed of a specific diagnosis of a student's learning diability. If a student has an IEP, we are required to meet certain accomodations--such as allowing extra time for completing tasks, taking a test away from the rest of the group, etc. I will specify that they must be what we call "reasonable accomodations." For example, it's important for the student to understand that they will not be excused from an assignment (spelling quizzes, unit exams, etc.). So the biggest problem I have seen is that some students do not always understand that even though they will be given certain accomodations, that still does not excuse them from completing all of the course objectives and content like the students who do not have those problems.
The most common form of learning disability that I personally find in my classes is exactly what our course here is telling us: reading abilty (or reading comprehension). The characteristics may be obvious when a student has difficulty reading out loud in class. Other times, the characteristic may show itself when a student seems to constantly misunderstand homework assignments, quiz questions, and/or in class projects. Finally, it may be more subtle when you receive poor performance on homework assignments because there may be a whole slew of other reasons for the poorly done reading assignments.
Mary,
yes, when the student is willing to share this information & also discuss strategies that have helped in the past, we are in a much better position to help now.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Sometimes I am told of a student's learning disability from my supervisor but most often the student is the one that informed me. It is helpful when the student tells me because we are able to work together to accomodate their learning needs. The most common forms of learning disabilities that I have seen are read/writing and dyslexia.
Tara ,
I think case studies are a great idea; maybe also some questions that require them to paraphrase what they read.
Dr. Ryan Meers
this course was helpful since i have students who are unable to read and write properly. Spelling is also a challenge. I will certainly put to use what I have learnt here in my class
Difficulty with reading comprehension is definitely one of the issues I see. When I am trying to move beyond bisic knowledge to appllication and critical thinking, I see that many students have a hard time if the answer is not written verbatim. After reading this forum, I think taking more time on daily basis to show how reading comprehension is applicable to the career field will be a great use of time. I will bring in case studies. Any other suggestions of productive reading comprehension activities?
Same situation here...no knowledge of the disability, just required accommadations which include a test reader and sufficient time to complete each examaination and quiz.
If I must give the most challenging disability faced in my classroom I will say Dyscalculia. It have been very challenging to get students to understand math computation when it comes to financial statements or formulas. The students tend to get stress and frustrated when they are not grasping those concepts.
