Learning Disabilities or LD, which is a category of special education, is probably one of the most contentious areas in education. Throughout its relatively brief history, LD has been widely and intensely debated. For a general introduction to the topic, read an entry on learning disabilities such as the one from the Groliers Academic American Encyclopedia.

On this page, we provide a list of common questions about LD--each of which is linked to a discussion of that question.

Common Questions about LD

• Are learning disabilities real?
• What is the definition of learning disabilities?
• How many students have learning disabilities?
• Do reversals indicate learning disabilities?.
• Do children outgrow learning disabilities?
• Is inclusion right for students with learning disabilities?
• Why are there more boys than girls with learning disabilities?
• Are learning disabilities inherited?
• Who determines that someone has a learning disability?
• How do the written compositions of students with learning disabilities differ from those of their peers who do not have disabilities?
• What skills do beginning readers with learning disabilities need to learn?
• What skills in reading comprehension do students with learning disabilities need to learn?
• Do students with learning disabilities have problems in social relations?
• What kinds of spelling mistakes do students with learning disabilities make?
• Can we teach students self-control?

Interventions for LD Problems

Comments?

Surely, some who read these documents will disagree with our analyses. We welcome rational, professional, and collegial discussion of the ideas we present here. There are several forums for such discussions, many of which are described on the page about electronic discussion lists relevant to special education.

• ose information page.
• ose home page.