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August 25, 2022
A teacher's overview of supporting children with moderate learning difficulties.
Main, P (2022, August 25). Moderate Learning Difficulties. Retrieved from https://www.structural-learning.com/post/moderate-learning-difficulties
Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD) are one of the most prevalent triggers that teachers and parents experience with a child. A learning difficulty, often known as a learning disability, occurs when the brain's ability to comprehend information is impaired. This impairment can be caused by many factors, including genetic or biological causes, neurological disorders, sensory impairments, emotional problems, or environmental influences such as poverty, abuse, trauma, or neglect.The National Center for Educational Statistics reports that approximately 15% of children have some type of learning difficulty. In addition, about 1 in 5 adults has been diagnosed with a learning disability. The majority of people who are diagnosed with a learning disability do not receive the services they need to succeed in primary schools and/or work.
Whether you work in a special or a mainstream school, accurately assessing children's needs is paramount for providing them with a broad and balanced education. Special educational needs can be very complex and overlapping. Diagnosing children early on can prevent unnecessary permanent exclusions from school. Identification rates are generally quite accurate but nonetheless, some students can slip through the net, having a detrimental effect on their attitudes towards education.
Learning problems can coexist with developmental disabilities such as ADHD, ASD, and intellectual disability. There are four levels of learning difficulties:
The main focus of this article will be on moderate learning difficulties. We'll define MLD and learn about the symptoms as well as supported strategies.
Before we get into the specifics of moderate learning difficulties in this article, it's important to note that learning difficulties are all on a spectrum; they can be mild, moderate, or severe.
All of the learning challenges have an impact on the child's ability to learn new abilities in other areas of life as well as in non-maintained special schools. It makes it harder to grasp new skills and information while also making it challenging to cope independently with previously taught skills. A child with MLD, for example, may have difficulty putting on his own clothes.
Even with support and differentiation, moderate learning problems (MLD) can cause difficulty working at the expected age level, resulting in issues across the special school curriculum.
There may be other specific special needs, such as dyspraxia, or broader conditions, such as Down syndrome, in addition to moderate learning challenges. MLD is also known as intellectual disability or generalised learning problem.
MLD is not the official term for diagnosing learning problems; it is always associated with a child's IQ score being below the normal range. Although a specific assessment by an educational psychologist should be performed to determine the learning disability, this is usually the main problem that teachers and parents face; the child's IQ is below average, and sometimes it is normal average, but there is a specific learning disability such as dyspraxia that is a trigger for academic, social, and behavioural progress.
There are different types of disabilities in education: physical, mental, and emotional. Physical disabilities include visual impairments, hearing impairments, and motor skills. Mental disabilities include intellectual disabilities, attention deficit disorder, and autism spectrum disorders. Emotional disabilities include anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder.
In terms of learning disabilities, these are often referred to as "intellectual" because the impairment affects the brain's capacity to process information. The most common type of learning disability is called Specific Language Impairment (SLI). SLI is when children struggle to understand language and use it appropriately. This can affect their speech, writing, reading, listening, and understanding of spoken words.
Children with special educational needs may have trouble using grammar correctly, pronouncing sounds clearly, or speaking fluently. They may have trouble following instructions, remembering what was said, or finding the right word to express themselves.
Pupils who have special educational needs may need extra help from teachers or tutors to improve their communication skills.
Students with special educational needs often struggle with verbal concepts, especially those related to language. This includes vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and pronunciation. These children may have difficulty expressing themselves verbally, and therefore require additional support from teachers or tutors.
All children with MLD have different types of challenges and each group requires different types of scaffolding from educators.
Children with moderate learning difficulties can often struggle with reading, writing, arithmetic and comprehension skills. They may also find it difficult to focus and concentrate and may experience problems with attention, organisation, planning and problem-solving.
They may also have communication needs and may present as emotionally older than their chronological age. In some cases, they may even appear to be older than their peers because of their inability to understand what others mean.
Some children with MLD may need additional support with carrying out everyday activities such as dressing, eating, washing and cleaning up; however, not all children with a mild learning difficulty will show every one of these behaviours.
The additional support that you provide should always be informed by the individual child and their specific needs, however here are some general ideas which we hope will benefit most pupils:
Provide a quiet place where children feel comfortable, safe and supported and ensure that learning materials are age appropriate and accessible. Make sure that children have access to books, magazines, newspapers, computers, music etc. You can also encourage children to take part in activities such as arts and crafts, sports, hobbies, clubbing, socialising and group games. Helping children to develop good study skills, including organisation, note taking and revision techniques will advance their metacognitive abilities and improve their independence. Supporting children to learn how to manage their emotions and behaviour appropriately might also need to be considered.
There are three main types of schools for people with severe learning disabilities: specialist schools, mainstream schools and dual placement schools.
Specialist schools cater specifically to students with specific needs such as autism, dyslexia, Asperger syndrome etc. They usually offer support around teaching methods and curriculum, and provide training for teachers and other professionals working with students with SLD.
Mainstream schools are designed to meet the educational needs of students with mild to moderate learning difficulties, but there is certainly no 'one size fits all' and the provision will differ from school to school. Some mainstream schools offer additional help and support for those with more complex needs.
Dual placement schools combine both mainstream and specialist provision within one school. This allows students to receive extra support and guidance in areas where they struggle most. Students spend half their day in the mainstream setting and half in a specialist setting but not all countries will have this level of support in place. Educational psychologists can also provide guidance and support but in some local authorities, this provision can be scarce.
https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/learning/conditioninfo/signs
https://www.goodtherapy.org/learn-about-therapy/issues/learning-difficulties
Moderate Learning Difficulties (MLD) are one of the most prevalent triggers that teachers and parents experience with a child. A learning difficulty, often known as a learning disability, occurs when the brain's ability to comprehend information is impaired. This impairment can be caused by many factors, including genetic or biological causes, neurological disorders, sensory impairments, emotional problems, or environmental influences such as poverty, abuse, trauma, or neglect.The National Center for Educational Statistics reports that approximately 15% of children have some type of learning difficulty. In addition, about 1 in 5 adults has been diagnosed with a learning disability. The majority of people who are diagnosed with a learning disability do not receive the services they need to succeed in primary schools and/or work.
Whether you work in a special or a mainstream school, accurately assessing children's needs is paramount for providing them with a broad and balanced education. Special educational needs can be very complex and overlapping. Diagnosing children early on can prevent unnecessary permanent exclusions from school. Identification rates are generally quite accurate but nonetheless, some students can slip through the net, having a detrimental effect on their attitudes towards education.
Learning problems can coexist with developmental disabilities such as ADHD, ASD, and intellectual disability. There are four levels of learning difficulties:
The main focus of this article will be on moderate learning difficulties. We'll define MLD and learn about the symptoms as well as supported strategies.
Before we get into the specifics of moderate learning difficulties in this article, it's important to note that learning difficulties are all on a spectrum; they can be mild, moderate, or severe.
All of the learning challenges have an impact on the child's ability to learn new abilities in other areas of life as well as in non-maintained special schools. It makes it harder to grasp new skills and information while also making it challenging to cope independently with previously taught skills. A child with MLD, for example, may have difficulty putting on his own clothes.
Even with support and differentiation, moderate learning problems (MLD) can cause difficulty working at the expected age level, resulting in issues across the special school curriculum.
There may be other specific special needs, such as dyspraxia, or broader conditions, such as Down syndrome, in addition to moderate learning challenges. MLD is also known as intellectual disability or generalised learning problem.
MLD is not the official term for diagnosing learning problems; it is always associated with a child's IQ score being below the normal range. Although a specific assessment by an educational psychologist should be performed to determine the learning disability, this is usually the main problem that teachers and parents face; the child's IQ is below average, and sometimes it is normal average, but there is a specific learning disability such as dyspraxia that is a trigger for academic, social, and behavioural progress.
There are different types of disabilities in education: physical, mental, and emotional. Physical disabilities include visual impairments, hearing impairments, and motor skills. Mental disabilities include intellectual disabilities, attention deficit disorder, and autism spectrum disorders. Emotional disabilities include anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder.
In terms of learning disabilities, these are often referred to as "intellectual" because the impairment affects the brain's capacity to process information. The most common type of learning disability is called Specific Language Impairment (SLI). SLI is when children struggle to understand language and use it appropriately. This can affect their speech, writing, reading, listening, and understanding of spoken words.
Children with special educational needs may have trouble using grammar correctly, pronouncing sounds clearly, or speaking fluently. They may have trouble following instructions, remembering what was said, or finding the right word to express themselves.
Pupils who have special educational needs may need extra help from teachers or tutors to improve their communication skills.
Students with special educational needs often struggle with verbal concepts, especially those related to language. This includes vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and pronunciation. These children may have difficulty expressing themselves verbally, and therefore require additional support from teachers or tutors.
All children with MLD have different types of challenges and each group requires different types of scaffolding from educators.
Children with moderate learning difficulties can often struggle with reading, writing, arithmetic and comprehension skills. They may also find it difficult to focus and concentrate and may experience problems with attention, organisation, planning and problem-solving.
They may also have communication needs and may present as emotionally older than their chronological age. In some cases, they may even appear to be older than their peers because of their inability to understand what others mean.
Some children with MLD may need additional support with carrying out everyday activities such as dressing, eating, washing and cleaning up; however, not all children with a mild learning difficulty will show every one of these behaviours.
The additional support that you provide should always be informed by the individual child and their specific needs, however here are some general ideas which we hope will benefit most pupils:
Provide a quiet place where children feel comfortable, safe and supported and ensure that learning materials are age appropriate and accessible. Make sure that children have access to books, magazines, newspapers, computers, music etc. You can also encourage children to take part in activities such as arts and crafts, sports, hobbies, clubbing, socialising and group games. Helping children to develop good study skills, including organisation, note taking and revision techniques will advance their metacognitive abilities and improve their independence. Supporting children to learn how to manage their emotions and behaviour appropriately might also need to be considered.
There are three main types of schools for people with severe learning disabilities: specialist schools, mainstream schools and dual placement schools.
Specialist schools cater specifically to students with specific needs such as autism, dyslexia, Asperger syndrome etc. They usually offer support around teaching methods and curriculum, and provide training for teachers and other professionals working with students with SLD.
Mainstream schools are designed to meet the educational needs of students with mild to moderate learning difficulties, but there is certainly no 'one size fits all' and the provision will differ from school to school. Some mainstream schools offer additional help and support for those with more complex needs.
Dual placement schools combine both mainstream and specialist provision within one school. This allows students to receive extra support and guidance in areas where they struggle most. Students spend half their day in the mainstream setting and half in a specialist setting but not all countries will have this level of support in place. Educational psychologists can also provide guidance and support but in some local authorities, this provision can be scarce.
https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/learning/conditioninfo/signs
https://www.goodtherapy.org/learn-about-therapy/issues/learning-difficulties
