By Elizabeth Walcot-Gayda, Ph. D., Montreal, QC, Past President of LDAC
‘What are learning disabilities?’ ‘What do they look like in my classroom?’ and ‘How can we help students with learning disabilities (LD) succeed?’ In order to frame the responses to these frequently asked questions a current, research-based, national definition of LD1 is used. This definition, which underlines the capacity of those with learning disabilities to be successful in their elementary, secondary and post-secondary studies, makes evident the measures needed to support secondary graduation and options at the post-secondary level.
- The definition targets the following fundamental parameters:
- Learning disabilities are distinct from global intellectual deficiency
- Learning disabilities result from impairments in one or more processes related to perceiving, thinking, remembering or learning
- Learning disabilities range in severity and may affect any or several areas of life
- Learning disabilities are life long
- Learning disabilities are neurobiological and/or genetic in origin
It is important to understand what is meant by each of the statements and what such impairments look like and to recognize that each presents serious implications for educational practices and policies. To read more on the above parameters
Credit: Learning Disabilities of Canada
