Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities
Until recently, only Exceptional Student Education teachers were the
ones teaching students with learning disabilities. Children with any
learning difficulties were automatically placed into special
classrooms and regular classroom teachers never encountered them.
However, in recent years the push has been toward mainstreaming even
children with severe disabilities. Combined with the recent increase
in diagnosis of learning disabilities, this means that the average
classroom teacher is now likely to encounter many children with
different learning needs, including those with learning
disabilities.
Learning disability schools and even colleges for learning
disabilities do exist and may be an option for severely impacted
learning-disabled children. However, as with any special school,
learning disability schools and colleges for learning disabilities
carry a number of disadvantages as well as the obvious advantages.
Many of these schools and colleges are geared toward children with
severe disorders such as autism and may not be the best choice for
those with more mild learning disabilities. Learning-disabled
children who attend special schools or colleges may develop
self-image problems, seeing themselves as their learning
disabilities rather than as whole people who happen to have a
disability. Integration of self may be more difficult. Colleges for
learning disabilities and learning disability schools should be
considered as an alternative but not treated as the default choice
for learning disabled children.
For these reasons, it is quite likely that the regular classroom
teacher will find himself teaching students with learning
disabilities throughout his or her career. It is important for the
teacher to understand the particular challenges and issues inherent
in teaching students with learning disabilities.
The classroom teacher should strive to understand the specific
learning disability with which a student has been diagnosed. Perhaps
the most common, or at least the best known, learning disability is
dyslexia. Dyslexia affects the ability to process written language.
Another common learning disability is dyscalculia, which affects the
ability to perform mathematical computations. Strategies for
teaching students with learning disabilities vary according to the
specific learning disability.
Be sure to involve students with learning disabilities as well as
their parents in developing their individual educational plan. Most
students with learning disabilities are familiar with their
disability and develop strategies that work for them. Managing a
learning disability in the classroom may simply involve new ways of
presenting information, or it may require a significant outlay of
resources and individual time. As learning disabilities are covered
under both the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the
Americans with Disabilities Act, the school system is required to
provide needed resources. Be sure to ask for what you need, from
time with the school psychologist to assistive technology equipment.
Teaching students with learning disabilities is challenging but
ultimately rewarding. Learning disabilities are specific conditions
that can be managed well through a combination of strategies.
Classroom teachers should strive to provide learning disabled
children with the resources they need to succeed while focusing on
the child's strengths rather than weaknesses. In this way, the
teacher can help the child integrate the learning disability as a
part of his or her life rather than a reason to be pitied or
ignored.
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