Category: Nature of Learning Disability
Priority Issues Addressed in Response: Definition
ASHA and DCDD Response to Issues:
The ASHA and DCDD response is based on the National Joint Committee on Learning
Disabilities document titled, "Learning Disabilities: Issues on Definition,"
(January 1990).
The definition of learning disability included
in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is as follows:
"Specific learning disability" means a disorder in one or more of
the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language,
spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen,
think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. The
term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal
brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. The term does not
include children who have learning problems which are primarily the result
of visual, hearing, or motor handicaps, of mental retardation, of emotional
disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage."
The Federal definition of learning disabilities
frequently has been misinterpreted. This has led many people to regard those
with learning disabilities as a homogeneous group of individuals. This conclusion
is clearly erroneous. The definition also has led to the belief that a standard
approach to assessment and educational management exists for individuals with
learning disabilities. Practices related to identification, assessment, and
remediation were keyed to this misinterpretation of the definition with resulting
confusion in these areas.
ASHA and DCDD support the definition of learning
disabilities as developed by the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities
(NJCLD). The definition is as follows:
"Learning disabilities is a general term that refers to a heterogeneous
group of disorders manifested by significant difficulties in the acquisition
and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, or mathematical
skills. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual, presumed to be due
to central nervous system dysfunction, and may occur across the life span.
Problems in self-regulatory behaviors, social perception, and social interaction
may exist with learning disabilities but do not, by themselves, constitute
a learning disability. Although learning disabilities may occur concomitantly
with other disabilities (e.g., sensory impairment, mental retardation, serious
emotional disturbance), or with extrinsic influences (such as cultural differences,
insufficient or inappropriate instruction), they are not the result of those
conditions or influences (NJCLD, Learning Disabilities: Issues on Definition,
January, 1990).
· The term "Learning Disabilities" must be recognized as
a general term referring to a heterogeneous group of disorders. These disorders
are realized as significant difficulties in the acquisition and use of one
or more of the following functions: listening, speaking, reading, writing,
reasoning, and mathematical abilities. The fact that the population identified
as have learning disabilities includes different subgroups of individuals
can no longer be ignored. An integration of the results of past and current
research and clinical educational experience related to these subgroups is
essential to identifying the "who" in learning disabilities.
· The disorders represented by the collective term "learning disabilities"
are understood as intrinsic to the individual and that the basis of the disorders
is presumed to be due to central nervous system dysfunction. Although ASHA
and DCDD support the idea that failure to learn or to attain curricular expectations
occurs for diverse reasons, learning disabilities have their basis in inherently
altered processes of acquiring and using information. It is essential to understand
this notion if one is to appreciate the resultant interaction between the
learner and the learning environments. An understanding of this interaction
facilitates the development of effective service delivery models and adaptive
curriculum. This also leads to a clearer understanding of the ways in which
individuals with learning disabilities may interact in a life-long social
and cultural milieu.
· The idea of central nervous system dysfunction as a basis for learning
disabilities is appropriate. This must not, however, restrict the identification
of a learning disability to the physician. In fact, many individuals with
manifest central nervous system dysfunction, such as individuals with cerebral
palsy, do not necessarily evidence learning disabilities. For the individual
with learning disabilities, evidence of central nervous system dysfunction
may or may not be elicited during the course of a medical-neurological examination.
The critical elements in the diagnosis of learning disabilities are elicited
during psychological, educational and/or language assessments.
· An understanding of etiological mechanisms (a) facilitates a determination
of prognosis, (b) provides information to individuals and their families that
helps to clarify their understanding of the manifest disorder(s), and (c)
provides direction to research studies that will influence educational practice.
Implications of Response:
· Policy: Adopt the NJCLD definition
· Practice: Use qualified personnel to assess individuals suspected
of having a learning disability in the areas of listening, speaking, reading,
writing, reasoning, and mathematical skills. Because 85% of students identified
as learning disabled have a language based learning disability, a qualified
speech-language pathologist should assess all individuals suspected of having
a learning disability.
· Research: Studies to verify that central nervous system dysfunction
is a basis for learning disabilities.