Student-Centered Learning Consultants, Inc.

Early Intervening Resources * Professional Training * Educational Consulting * Systemic Planning

Purpose

Specific learning disabilities began to be identified, historically, in the speech and language domain. This is logical due to the base for all learning is in language, which is a process by which one receives and expresses information. Then, specific learning disabilities were separated into an independent classification and a discrepancy model was supported to describe the disability. The discrepancy was determined by the difference between the cognitive functioning of the student and the academic performance. This discrepancy model proved to be ineffective for describing a learning disability and it was known as a “wait to fail” model due to the time needed for the student to exhibit lack of academic skills. Things have come full circle and educators are, once again, looking at the student’s processing abilities and appropriate interventions for success, rather than looking for failure.

The major purpose of this book is to offer a process that was developed step-by-step with the law and integrity of purpose in the forefront. Because the law changed and practitioners have to change, also, this guide will enable those to have a reference for implementing and referencing the process to determine a specific learning disability. This guide will be a valuable tool for all teachers, school psychologists, administrators, educational specialists, parents, speech and language pathologists, educational therapists, and anyone who will participate in this educational process.

History

A brief history of specific learning disabilities is necessary to take us to current law. In 1975, Public Law 94-142 was passed into law. This was the Education of the Handicapped Act. In 1983, the Regular Education Act was passed due to the Nation At Risk report. In 1994, the Elementary and Secondary Act (ESEA) was reauthorized with sweeping changes. The IDEA, or Individuals with Disabilities Educational Act was reauthorized in 1997 and the ESEA was reauthorized in 2002 with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) initiative. In 2004, IDEA was reauthorized and aligned with NCLB so that all students would reach proficiency by 2017. In this direction, academic and behavior interventions would be necessary to improve performance of students. The 2004 IDEA law for specific learning disabilities includes Response to Intervention (RtI) as an option and that the discrepancy model cannot be the only factor considered, and evidence based interventions can be employed.

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