Students with learning disabilities (LD) are characterized by a clinically significant inability to learn or express their knowledge. Learning disabilities are usually diagnosed by examining the difference between a student's ability or intelligence, and their achievement, as measured by standardized test instruments. A deficit greater than 1.5 standard deviations is considered significant. Statistically, students with learning disabilities have average or above average intelligence, but their difficulty with information processing and/or retrieval can account for achievement differences.
Specific LD diagnoses focus on different types of deficits, the most common being deficits in reading, written expression, and math calculation or reasoning. Less common diagnoses involve expressive/receptive language and auditory processing.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurological impairment characterized by a clinically significant and persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity/impulsivity. ADHD is not a learning disability but rather an inability to acquire information as a result of inattentive or hyperactive symptoms or behaviors. Because students with ADHD share many of the same accommodation strategies as students with LD, the two disorders are frequently combined when describing their AT strategies.
Students with LD and ADHD account for approximately 29% and 21% (respectively) of reported disabilities of students with disabilities in higher education. (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs99/1999187.pdf )
[For more information on the above, see "Review Accommodations" in the FAME Rights and Responsibilities module.]
In total, this is half of all students registered with the Disability Support Services (DSS) office.
- Hardware Tools
- Scanner
- Microphone
- Software Tools
- Text-to-speech software(http://www.cast.org/products/ereader/index.html)
- LD specific software(http://www.texthelp.com/home.asp)
- Cognitive mapping software(http://www.inspiration.com)
- Alternative Formats
 | Video Clip: LD Text-to-speech / Speech-to-text Duration: 1.3 minutes  |
