Learning Disabilities: Debates on definitions, causes, subtypes, and responses

International Journal of Disability, Development and Education

Volumn 58, Issue 1, 2011, Pages 75-87

  Büttner, Gerhard ^a,b   Hasselhorn, Marcus ^b,c  

^a GOETHE UNIVERSITY   (Germany)

^b Center for Individual Development and Adaptive Education of Children at Risk IDeA   (Germany)

^c GERMAN INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH   (Germany)

Author keywords

Classification; Diagnosis; Disorder of written expression; Dyscalculia; Dyslexia; IQ achievement discrepancy; Learning disabilities; Policy; Response to intervention

Indexed keywords

EID: 79952473716     PISSN: 1034912X     EISSN: 1465346X     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/1034912X.2011.548476     Document Type: Article

References (63)

1. American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
2. Barsch, R. H. (1992). Prospectives on learning disabilities: The vectors on new convergence. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 25, 6-16. doi:10.1177/002221949202500102
3. Berkeley, S., Bender, W. N., Peaster, L. G., & Saunders, L. (2009). Implementation of response to intervention. A snapshot of progress. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 42, 85-95. doi:10.1177/0022219408326214
4. Elliott, J. G., & Gibbs, S. (2008). Does dyslexia exist? Journal of Philosophy of Education, 42, 475-491. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9752.2008.00653.x
5. Fletcher, J. M. (2005). Predicting math outcomes: Reading predictors and comorbidity. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 545-552. doi:10.1177/00222194050380040501
6. Fletcher, J. M., Foorman, B. R., Boudousquie, A. B., Barnes, M. A., Schatschneider, C., & Francis, D. J. (2002). Assessment of reading and learning disabilities: A research-based intervention-oriented approach. Journal of School Psychology, 40, 27-63. doi:10.1016/S0022-4405(01)00093-0
7. Fletcher, J. M., Lyon, G. R., Fuchs, L. S., & Barnes, M. A. (2007). Learning disabilities. From identification to intervention. New York: Guilford Press.
8. Fletcher, J. M., Morris, R. D., & Lyon, G. R. (2006). Classification and definition of learning disabilities: An integrative perspective. In H. L. Swanson, K. R. Harris, & S. Graham (Eds.), Handbook of learning disabilities (pp. 30-56). New York: Guilford Press.
9. Fletcher, J. M., Shaywitz, S. E., Shankweiler, D. P., Katz, L., Liberman, I. Y., Stuebing, K. K., et al. (1994). Cognitive profiles of reading disability: Comparisons of discrepancy and low achievement definitions. Journal of Educational Psychology, 86, 6-23. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.86.1.6
10. Fuchs, D., & Fuchs, L. S. (2006). Introduction to response to intervention: What, why, and how valid is it? Reading Research Quarterly, 41, 93-99. doi:10.1598/RRQ.41.1.4
11. Fuchs, D., Fuchs, L. S., Mathes, P. G., & Lipsey, M. W. (2000). Reading differences between low-achieving students with and without learning disabilities: A meta-analysis. In R. Gersten, E. P. Schiller, & S. Vaughn (Eds.), Contemporary special education research (pp. 81-104). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
12. Fuchs, D., Mock, D., Morgan, P. L., & Young, C. (2003). Responsiveness-to-instruction: Definitions, evidence, and implications for the learning disabilities construct. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 18, 157-171. doi:10.1111/1540-5826.00072
13. Fuchs, D., & Young, C. L. (2006). On the irrelevance of intelligence in predicting responsiveness to reading instruction. Exceptional Children, 73, 8-30.
14. Geary, D. C. (2006). Learning disabilities in arithmetic: Problem-solving differences and cognitive deficits. In H. L. Swanson, K. R. Harris, & S. Graham (Eds.), Handbook of learning disabilities (pp. 199-212). New York: Guilford Press.
15. Geary, D. C., Bailey, D. H., Littlefield, A., Wood, P., Hoard, M. K., & Nugent, L. (2009). Firstgrade predictors of mathematical learning disability: A latent class trajectory analysis. Cognitive Development, 24, 411-429. doi:10.1016/j.cogdev.2009.10.001
16. Gonzales, J. E. J., & Espinel, A. I. G. (2002). Strategy choice in solving arithmetic word problems: Are there differences between students with learning disabilities, G-V poor performance and typical achievement students? Learning Disability Quarterly, 25, 113-122. doi:10.2307/1511278
17. Gross-Tsur, V., Manor, O., & Shalev, R. S. (1996). Developmental dyscalculia: Prevalence and demographic features. Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 38, 25-33. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8749.1996.tb15029.x
18. Hale, J., Alfonso, V., Berninger, V., Bracken, B., Christo, C., Clark, E., et al. (2010). Critical issues in response-to-intervention, comprehensive evaluation, and specific learning disabilities identification and intervention: An expert White Paper consensus. Learning Disability Quarterly, 33, 223-236.
19. Hallahan, D. P., & Mock, D. R. (2006). A brief history of the field of learning disabilities. In H. L. Swanson, K. R. Harris, & S. Graham (Eds.), Handbook of learning disabilities (pp. 16-29). New York: Guilford Press.
20. Hasselhorn, M., & Schuchardt, K. (2006). Lernstörungen: Eine kritische Skizze zur Epidemiologie [Learning disabilities: A critical sketch on epidemiology]. Kindheit und Entwicklung, 15, 208-215. doi:10.1026/0942-5403.15.4.208
21. Hendriksen, J. G. M., Keules, E. H. H., Feron, F. J. M., Wassenberg, R., Jolles, J., & Vles, J. S. H. (2007). Subtypes of learning disabilities. Neuropsychological and behavioural functioning of 495 children referred for multidisciplinary assessment. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 16, 517-524. doi:10.1007/s00787-007-0630-3
22. Ho, C. S.-H., Chan, D. W., Chung, K. K.-H., Lee, S.-H., & Tsang, S.-M. (2007). In search of subtypes of Chinese developmental dyslexia. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 97, 61-83. doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2007.01.002
23. Ho, C. S.-H., Chan, D. W., Tsang, S.-M., Lee, S.-H., & Luan, V. H. (2004). Cognitive profiling and preliminary subtyping in Chinese developmental dyslexia. Cognition, 91, 43-75. doi: 10.1016/S0010-0277(03)00163-X
24. Hoskyn, M., & Swanson, H. L. (2000). Cognitive processing of low achievers and children with reading disabilities: A selective meta-analytic review of the published literature. School Psychology Review, 29, 102-119.
25. Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004). Pub.L.No.108-446, 118 Stat. 2647 (2004) [Amending 20 U.S.C. § § 1400 et seq.].
26. Katusic, S. K., Colligan, R. C., Weaver, A. L., & Barbaresi, W. J. (2009). The forgotten learning disability: Epidemiology of written-language disorder in a population-based birth cohort (1976-1982), Rochester, Minnesota. Pediatrics, 123, 1306-1313. doi:10.1542/peds.2008-2098
27. Kavale, K. A., & Forness, S. R. (2006). Learning disability as a discipline. In H. L. Swanson, K. R. Harris, & S. Graham (Eds.), Handbook of learning disabilities (pp. 76-93). New York: Guilford Press.
28. Landerl, K., Fussenegger, B., Moll, K., & Willburger, E. (2009). Dyslexia and dyscalculia: Two learning disorders with different cognitive profiles. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 103, 309-324. doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2009.03.006
29. Lester, G., & Kelman, M. (1997). State disparities in the diagnosis and placement of pupils with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 30, 599-607. doi:10.1177/002221949703000603
30. Lyon, G. R. (1995). Toward a definition of dyslexia. Annals of Dyslexia, 45, 3-27. doi:10.1007/ BF02648210
31. MacMillan, D. L., Gresham, F. M. & Bocian, K. M. (1998). Discrepancy between definitions of learning disabilities and school practices: An empirical investigation. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 31, 314-326. doi:10.1177/002221949803100401
32. Maehler, C., & Schuchardt, K. (2011). Working memory in children with learning disabilities: Rethinking the criterion of discrepancy. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 58, 5-17.
33. Mastropieri, M. A., & Scruggs, T. E. (2005). Feasibility and consequences of response to intervention: Examination of the issues and scientific evidence as a model for the identification of individuals with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 525-531. doi:10.1177/00222194050380060801
34. Mayes, S. D., & Calhoun, S. L. (2006). Frequency of reading, math and writing disabilities in children with clinical disorders. Learning and Individual Differences, 16, 145-157. doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2005.07.004
35. McKenzie, R. G. (2009). Obscuring vital distinctions: The oversimplification of learning disabilities within RTI. Learning Disability Quarterly, 32, 203-215.
36. Mercer, C. D., & Pullen, P. C. (2005). Students with learning disabilities (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
37. Morris, R. D., Stuebing, K. K., Fletcher, J. M., Shaywitz, S. E., Lyon, G. R., Shankweiler, D. P., et al. (1998). Subtypes of reading disability: Variability around a phonological core. Journal of Educational Psychology, 90, 347-373. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.90.3.347
38. National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities. (2005). Responsiveness to intervention and learning disabilities. Retrieved from http://www.ldanatl.org/pdf/rti2005.pdf
39. Reschly, D. J. (2005). Learning disabilities identification: Primary intervention, secondary intervention, and then what? Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 510-515. doi:10.1177/00222194050380060601
40. Reschly, D. J., & Hosp, J. L. (2004). State SLD identification policies and practices. Learning Disability Quarterly, 27, 197-213. doi:10.2307/1593673
41. Reynolds, C. R., & Shaywitz, S. E. (2009). Response to intervention: Ready or not? Or, from waitto- fail to watch-them-fail. School Psychology Quarterly, 24, 130-145. doi:10.1037/a0016158
42. Scruggs, T. E., & Mastropieri, M. A. (2002). On babies and bathwater: Addressing the problem of identification of learning disabilities. Learning Disability Quarterly, 25, 155-168. doi:10.2307/1511299
43. Shalev, R. S., Auerbach, J., Manot, O., & Gross-Tsur, V. (2000). Developmental dyscalculia: Prevalence and prognosis. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 9(Suppl 2), 58-64. doi:10.1007/s007870070009
44. Shaywitz, S. E., Escobar, M. D., Shaywitz, B. A., Fletcher, J. M., & Makuch, R. (1992). Evidence that dyslexia may represent the lower tail of a normal distribution of reading ability. New England Journal of Medicine, 326, 145-150.
45. Shaywitz, S. E., & Shaywitz, B. E. (1988). Attention deficit disorder: Current perspectives. In J. F. Kavanaugh & T. J. Truss (Eds.), Learning disabilities: Proceedings of the national conference (pp. 369-523). Parkton, MD: York Press.
46. Shu, H., McBride-Chang, C., Wu, S., & Liu, H. (2006). Understanding Chinese developmental dyslexia: Morphological awareness as a core cognitive construct. Journal of Educational Psychology, 98, 122-133. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.98.1.122
47. Siegel, L. S. (1989). IQ is irrelevant to the definition of learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 22, 469-478. doi:10.1177/002221948902200803
48. Siegel, L. S. (1992). An evaluation of the discrepancy definition of dyslexia. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 25, 618-629. doi:10.1177/002221949202501001
49. Stanovich, K. E. (1988). Explaining the differences between the dyslexic and the garden-variety poor reader: The phonological core variable difference model. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 21, 590-604. doi:10.1177/002221948802101003
50. Stanovich, K. E. (2005). The future of a mistake: Will discrepancy measurement continue to make the learning disabilities field a pseudoscience? Learning Disability Quarterly, 28, 103-106. doi:10.2307/1593604
51. Stuebing, K. K., Barth, A. E., Molfese, P. J., Weiss, B., & Fletcher, J. M. (2009). IQ is not strongly related to response to reading instruction: A meta-analytic interpretation. Exceptional Children, 76, 31-51.
52. Stuebing, K. K., Fletcher, J. M., LeDoux, J. M., Lyon, G. R., Shaywitz, S. E., & Shaywitz, B. A. (2002). Validity of IQ-discrepancy classifications of reading disabilities: A meta-analysis. American Educational Research Journal, 39, 469-518. doi:10.3102/00028312039002469
53. Swanson, H. L., Harris, K. R., & Graham, S. (Eds.). (2006). Handbook of learning disabilities. New York: Guilford Press.
54. Tiffin-Richards, M. C., Hasselhorn, M., Woerner, W., Rothenberger, A., & Banaschewski, T. (2008). Phonological short-term memory and central executive processing in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder with/without dyslexia-evidence of cognitive overlap. Journal of Neural Transmission, 115, 227-234.
55. Torgesen, J. K. (2004). Learning disabilities: An historical and conceptual overview. In B. Y. L. Wong (Ed.), Learning about learning disabilities (3rd ed., pp. 3-40). Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Elsevier.
56. van der Sluis, S., van der Leij, A., & de Jong, P. F. (2005). Working memory in Dutch children with reading- and arithmetic-related LD. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 207-221. doi:10.1177/00222194050380030301
57. Vaughn, S., Linan-Thompson, S., & Hickman, P. (2003). Response to instruction as a means of identifying students with reading/learning disabilities. Exceptional Children, 69, 391-409.
58. Vellutino, F. R., & Fletcher, J. M. (2005). Developmental dyslexia. In M.J. Snowling & C. Hulme (Eds.), The science of reading: A handbook (pp. 362-378). Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
59. Vellutino, F. R., Fletcher, J. M., Snowling, M. J., & Scanlon, D. M. (2004). Specific reading disability (dyslexia): What have we learned in the past four decades? Journal of Child Psychiatry and Psychology, 45, 2-40.
60. Vellutino, F. R., Scanlon, D. M., & Lyon, G. R. (2000). Differentiating between difficult-to-remediate and readily remediated poor readers: More evidence against the IQ-achievement discrepancy definition of reading disability. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 3, 223-238. doi:10.1177/002221940003300302
61. Vellutino, F. R., Scanlon, D. M., Small, S., & Fanuele, D. P. (2006). Response to intervention as a vehicle for distinguishing between children with and without reading disabilities: Evidence for the role of kindergarten and first-grade interventions. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 39, 157-169. doi:10.1177/00222194060390020401
62. Willcutt, E. G., Pennington, B. F., Olson, R. K., Chhabildas, N., & Hulslander, J. (2005). Neuropsychological analyses of comorbidity between reading disability and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: In search of the common deficit. Developmental Neuropsychology, 27, 35-78. doi:10.1207/s15326942dn2701_3
63. World Health Organization. (1992). The ICD-10 classification of mental and behavioral disorders: Clinical descriptions and diagnostic guidelines. Geneva, Switzerland: Author.