Children referred for evaluation of learning impairment (n=100) and 243 typical children were evaluated on a visual filtering task. With each additional processing demand, response times increased disproportionately for children with learning impairments. Overall response time predicted academic skills and cognitive ability, but was more strongly…

A study compared 84 readers with learning disabilities, chronologically age-matched and reading level-matched, for the children's working memory performance for phonological, visual-spatial, and semantic information under initial, gain, and maintenance conditions. The working memory deficits of readers with learning disabilities were hard to…

A study found that among second-grade children with mathematics difficulties (n=49), children with both mathematics and reading difficulties were distinct from children with only mathematics difficulties, with the former being characterized by pervasive deficiencies in mathematical thinking and the latter by more specific deficits in problem…

A study investigated whether an instruction designed to facilitate planning would have differential effects depending on specific planning, attention, simultaneous, successive (PASS) cognitive characteristics of 19 students (ages 12-14) with learning disabilities and mild mental impairments. Children with a cognitive weakness in planning improved…

This article discusses research on the traditional use of the IQ-achievement discrepancy to define specific reading disability. It highlights results from a study which found that IQ scores did not differentiate between poor readers who were found to be readily remediated and poor readers who were difficult to remediate. (Contains references.)…

This article critically analyzes available definitions of learning disability. The general problem of definition is discussed first, followed by a discussion of individual definitions from the earliest to the latest. It is concluded that the definitions fail to provide substantive insight into the nature of the condition. (Contains extensive…

A study compared the effectiveness of two reading interventions with 45 second-graders. Interventions differed in the unit of word analysis (phoneme versus onset-rime), the approach to intervention (contextualized versus decontextualized), and the primary domain of reading instruction (oral versus written language). Children in both reading…

Twenty-one children with specific reading disorders were treated with a method derived from dual-route models and 23 with a method derived from single-route models of reading. Treatment deriving from dual-route models produced significant improvements in homophone recognition. Treatment deriving from single-route models produced significant…

The reliability and validity of a revised version of the Reading History Questionnaire was examined using 84 adults from an ongoing study of familial dyslexia and the parents of 107 children from a longitudinal study of reading development. The results indicated that the questionnaire (appended to the article) is both reliable and valid. (Contains…

Using cluster analysis, a study empirically divided 54 children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) based on their Full Scale IQ and reading ability. Clusters had different patterns of cognitive, behavioral, and neurochemical functions, as determined by discrepancies in Verbal-Performance IQ, academic achievement, parent…

This study examined the effectiveness of reciprocal teaching during social studies instruction with several students with learning disabilities in inclusive classrooms (grades 4-6). Results indicated that all students improved their performance on comprehension measures and students with learning disabilities significantly improved their ability…

Twenty-three first-graders at risk for learning disabilities received one-to-one tutoring from noncertified tutors for 30 minutes, 4 days a week, for one school year. Tutoring included instruction in phonological skills, explicit decoding, writing, spelling, and reading phonically controlled text. Participants significantly outperformed controls…

A study involving 31 Indian families with a child (ages 3-16) with mental retardation found expressed emotion toward the child predicted a high level of burden among the caregivers. Age of child and family income significant in the univariate analysis were also clinically associated with burden in a developing country. (Contains references.)…

This article explores research on the use of touch with people with mental retardation and learning disabilities for the purpose of developing a staff training package. The review indicates the therapeutic role of touch and its use in behavior management and discusses the need for increasing staff awareness of the practice with this group of…

A study examined the role of coping style attributions and emotions in response to challenging behavior in predicting helping behaviors of 33 support staff of people with mental retardation. Coping styles of practical problem solving and wishful thinking and attributions of controllability and internality were significant predictors of effort in…