The biggest learning disability that I've been finding is reading/comprehension. I'm working with a student who is able to answer verbal questions correctly, but will get the same ones wrong on a written test.
I teach criminal justice classes, so reading is essential. I've provided him with class outlines to try and refresh his memory and also referred him to support though the school.
To his credit, he's persistent. He's taken courses 2 or 3 times, but hasn't given up. I certainly mention that persistence when we have our talks.
I have had very poor test takers that I know have the learned the material. I do not know if this is a learning disability or test anxiety. How can I help these students perform on paper what I know they have learned when speaking with them?
Dr.PAVAN,
I would definitely agree that this seems to be the learning disability I see the most.
Dr. Ryan Meers
Dyslexia is most common form of learning deficiency -learnibg disorder,difficulty in reading written word. it seems as reversal of letters or letters and sentence run together.
Reading and English comprehension and use. The characteristics can be cultural/environmentally based, (different word meanings attitudes and slang), physically/psycologically based, (visual and motor skill as well as mental/intelegence challenges).
Dyslexia is one of the most common findings in the classroom. I have students who can not use bubble sheets for answering their exams, we usually allow them to circle their answer on the exam itself and then grade it seperately by hand.
While technically not a learning disability, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a great and legitimate problem with my students. Bsed on an unscientific, but situational, analysis, I would estimate that over half my students have problems maintaining attention. To help them realize success, my lectures are brief (followed by group work); my class notes are generously spaced; and I do my best to vary instructional methods with each class meeting. These strategies not only help those with problems like dyslexia, but they serve those with other disabilities such as ADHD, as well.
I think the most common form of learning disability that I have had to handle is dyslexia. I have suggested to some students that they tape record lectures, but I have also had some success with having a tutoring session when needed where we worked through the reading together. I have also worked with these students in how and when to take notes. Sometimes that helps, along with putting boxes around important points,and using color coding to help students learn to organize material.
The transformation of letters, with an appreciation of the fact that many first contacts with an individual come through the written word and, if an item is mispelt, is taken into consideration as a component of the first impression.
Mokii,
you make a great statement here that I think all of us should pay attention to, get out of the text. Great advice!
Dr. Ryan Meers
Alot of my students have a reading and comprehension problem. I have to (get out of thhe text) to reach these students.
How are we documenting types of learning disabilities? Are students being given academic tests by neuropsychologists and then giving us paperwork stating that they have dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, etc or are instructors just assessing that students are being challenged in certain learning areas?
Dyslexia. Some members of the military have this and have learned techniques for working with their condition. Knowing what to be looking for as covered in this lesson is helpful.
OOOHH.... That is such a great idea. I think i will give that a try in the future. I had a student with ADHD.. That was a challange but we working through it. I just keep encouraging her and worked with her one on one as much as possiable. She did well.
I have encountered a student who is having a hard time passing her tests and quizzes and so she would always volunteer to do extra credit to makeup for her grade. Then in one of my lectures when I went around the classroom for students to read their assigned paragraph, this student read the paragraph really slow and had a hard time pronouncing the words and when asked about, she did not comprehend. I realized it was why she was failing her tests so now everytime I lecture or review for the exam, I would ask her to stay 10-15mins after class to go over the material again.
I see many students who have been diagnosed as ADD or ADHD at an early age. I find sometimes these learners sometimes use the diagnosis as a crutch, and so I try to focus more on solutions than on past and/or perceived problems. Being proactive is extremely helpful in these cases; I try to plan with the students and make the most of instructional time by varying the learning activities and keeping instructional time chunked in 15 to 20 minute segments.
the most common learning disability that I have encountered was dyslexia. The student had a hard time when it can to reading the chapters required for the class. So when I lectured she recorded the lecture and then listened back to it and translate into a way that she could read and understand.
The most common form of learning disability is Dyslexia. Students with Dyslexia tend to stray away from large universities because they feel that they will not get the help they need. Career colleges fill that nitch because they tend to be small enough to where they can give special attention where special attention is due.
This is so true! The writing skills I see on a daily basis are abysmal. How does one make the determination between a true learning disability and just poorly educated or even laziness? I do have my own, self diagnosed, struggle with dyslexia. This was never found by my instructors throughout my education. I made my determination by educating myself on the subject and realizing the descriptions fit my experience. By the time I figured it out(in high school) I had already developed ways to adapt. What helped me most was understanding that I was not unintelligent just because I learned differently. Once I understood this my confidence was boosted which had a positive effect on my academic success. I believe that there could be many students that would benefit from a similar understanding.
I would have to say reading and comprehension. I was surprised to see that this was considered dyslexia. I know I have trouble with that and so does my son. Neither one of us have been diagnosed with it though.
