The report summarizes findings on evaluation studies conducted over a 6 year period at the Institute for Research on Learning Disabilities. Major findings are highlighted in the first chapter. Findings are grouped under the following topics: current evaluation practices, reading evaluation, spelling evaluation, written expression evaluation, oral…

Many functionally illiterate freshmen feel helpless in the face of their inability to learn to read at a competent level. College freshmen who drop out because of this disability are losers who suffer tremendous disadvantages when they leave college without earning a diploma. Possible causes of functional illiteracy hindering the least educated…

The paper examines implications of the high incidence of learning disabilities in children with Tourette Syndrome. Tourette Syndrome is a neurological disorder that causes involuntary muscle jerks and vocalizations. Approximately 60% of children with Tourette Syndrome are classified as learning disabled. It is possible that this high correlation…

Prepared in response to a report by the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges on learning disabled students, this report describes students with learning disabilities, explains the operation of the community colleges' learning disability eligibility model, summarizes the main findings of the Office of the Chancellor's…

The fact sheet provides basic information about how alcohol and drug use during pregnancy can lead to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and Alcohol Related Birth Defects (ARBD), resulting in such problems as mental retardation, sleep disturbances, learning disabilities, muscle problems, heart defects, and small head size. The question and answer format…

This resource paper provides information about postsecondary programs for young adults with substantial learning disabilities and other special needs. The introductory section outlines characteristics of the population and components of successful educational programs. Subsequent sections include guidelines for recognizing the young person's…

The final report describes a project addressing the lack of adequate transitional assistance for learning disabled students interested in attending a New York community college. The project attempted to: (1) plan and develop a cooperative model; and (2) implement and evaluate the model. After a search of the literature and a needs assessment the…

The major purpose of this study was to describe the rule-governed and contingency-shaped behavior of learning-disabled, hyperactive, and nonselected elementary school children working on a computer-managed task. Hypotheses tested were (1) that the children would differ in the degree to which either instructions or external contingencies controlled…

Many learning disabled students attending Avocado Elementary School in Homestead, Florida, were unable to write legibly when taught with available cursive handwriting programs. To redress the problem, a complete, sequential cursive handwriting program was devised for use with learning disabled and other students. The program combined tracing and…

Developed as part of Delta College's Parent Awareness Program, this manual offers parents and family members of handicapped children explanations of the following conditions: mental retardation, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, learning disabilities, and autism. In the first section, "Special Parenting Information," Gerri Caesar describes her own…

Although a college program to retain high risk freshmen--those who fall below the 50th percentile of their graduating class--can result in increased academic success, a number of concerns must be addressed. The structure of one such program contains three components: the paired course curriculum, a career planning and personal goal exploration…

The Intellectually Gifted/Learning Disabled Project investigated characteristics of this population and implications for educational programming. Twenty-three children, aged 7 to 16 years old, were identified through a referral process involving schools and parents. Only two subjects were female. A detailed analysis of school records; individual…

This document describes the WORDS software, a computer program designed to evaluate a reading disabled student's sight word vocabulary using an Apple II microcomputer. A brief discussion of various methods of addressing reading difficulties precedes a detailed description of the WORDS program and its use. This description covers: (1) the…

During the 1980's, a series of studies have been conducted to examine assessment strategies, teaching methodologies, core services, and delivery systems for Learning Disabled Average (LDA) adults in California's community colleges. Study findings included the following: (1) between 1981-82 and 1985-86, the number of formal programs for LDA adults…

The paper examines current research on the social and personal competence of learning disabled (LD) adolescents and young adults, revealing two major lines of inquiry: (1) interpersonal environment (perceptions by others, sociometric status, social behavior deficits, verbal and nonverbal communication skills), and (2) affective status…