communication & learning disorders

Question 1

Specific learning disorder

Answer 1

Difficulties learning and using academic skills for 6+ months, specify in math, reading, writing/spelling

Skills SUBSTANTIALLY below developmental norms

Question 2

Dyslexia difficulties

Answer 2

1. Difficulty in learning basic sight words (laugh, the, what, said)
2. Errors in reversal (b/d, p/q)
3. Errors in transposition (was/saw)
4. Errors in inversions (m/w, u/n)
5. Errors in omissions (place/palace)

Question 3

Dyslexia prevalence

Answer 3

5-17%
Referral bias toward boys?

Question 4

Dyslexia precursors/symptoms IN THE CHILD

Answer 4

Lack of rhyming play, trouble with left/right, expressive language difficulties

Question 5

Dyslexia comorbidity

Answer 5

Any learning disorder, ADHD
Trouble w/reading and written expression

Question 6

Dyslexia assessment controversy

Answer 6

Some children miss the cut-off and cannot receive treatment for dyslexia.

Question 7

Dyslexia assessment

Answer 7

Discrepancy model in which we compare measured IQ with academic achievement in reading, writing, math

CONSTANTLY TRYING TO RULE OUT ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATIONS!

Question 8

Traditional method of dyslexia diagnosis

Answer 8

Aptitude vs achievement

Dyslexic children will have similar aptitudes to normative children, but lower levels of achievement in tests (R recognition, R comprehension, M calc, M app, Writing)

Question 9

Academic achievement testing for dyslexia

Answer 9

Wechsler Individual Achievement Test & specialized sub-tests

Question 10

Specialized sub-tests for dyslexia

Answer 10

Word attack - pronouncing nonsense words like “narp”, “jibly”
Rhyming subsets - “give me a word that rhymes with __”
Phonological awareness test - “say start without the “s” sound

Question 11

Wechsler Individual Achievement Test

Answer 11

Academic achievement test

Question 12

Dyslexia genetic etiology

Answer 12

1. Heritable
2. Chromosome 6 DYSLEXIA - written language
3. Not using the same brain area while reading, planum temporale’s right lobe BIGGER in dyslexic individuals.

Question 13

Environmental etiology dyslexia

Answer 13

1. Exposure to language/language difficulties in parents
2. Socio-economic status (SES)

Question 14

Dyslexia systems model

Answer 14

1. Cognitive/neuropsychological skills
2. Biological factors
3. Psychosocial adjustment/motivation
4. Environmental factors
5. Academic achievement/school performance

Remember by: Canon Ball Pools Eat Ants

Question 15

Interventions, Dyslexia

Answer 15

1. Reading recovery program
2. PALS (Peer Assisted Literacy Strategies)
3. Orton Gillingham method ($$)
4. Response to treatment (RTI)

Question 16

Reading recovery program, dyslexia intervention

Answer 16

Early evidence, now mixed at best
Read 30 min, teacher tracks erros

Question 17

PALS (Peer Assisted Literacy Strategies), dyslexia intervention

Answer 17

Better support
Pair struggling readers with strong readers
Peer motivation
CONS: Doesn’t address fundamental problem of decoding words

Question 18

Orton Gillingham method, dyslexia intervention

Answer 18

Teaches phonics
Multisensory
Highly structured
One-on-one, small group learning
Prof. diagnosed a little girl, family had the means to find an Orton-Gillingham school, and she showed great progress.

Question 19

RTI, dyslexia intervention

Answer 19

Response to Treatment approach
- School based
- Multilevel
- Measures reading ability
- “Overly sensitive” early screener
- Intervention level tailored to individual rate of change

Question 20

Ineffective treatments

Answer 20

Anything to do with VISION - vision exercises, tinted lenses, filters.

Question 21

Dyslexia controversy: READING INSTRUCTION

Answer 21

Publishers and teaching methods have a deal, can be hard to learn.