MPHIL Course work Presentation assigned by Dr Ifthikhar Hussain Jafri and Presented by Salman Khowaja

1. Name: SALMAN KHOWAJA
Roll Number: MPhil/Edu/2K16/38
Class: M-Phil. 2016
2nd Semester
Subject: Assignment
Topics: Learning Disability, Mental Retardation and Children who
are gifted
ED- 802 Psychological Perspective & Issues in Education
Chapter Number # 5
Learner who are Exceptional
UNIVERSITY OF SINDH
Course Faculty: Dr. Iftikhar Hussain
Jafri
Faculty of Education
Elsa Qazi Campus Hyderabad

2. Children with Disabilities
 Learning Disabilities
 Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
 Mental Retardation
 Physical Disorders
 Sensory Disorders
 Speech and Language Disorders
 Autism Spectrum Disorders
 Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

3. Educational Issues Involving
Children with Disabilities
 Legal Aspects
 Technology

4. Children Who Are Gifted
 Characteristics
 Nature-Nurture Issue, Developmental Changes,
and Domain-Specific
 Giftedness
 Educating Children Who Are Gifted

5. Term Exceptionality
 Students with exceptionalities include students
with disabilities and students who are gifted.
 Most often, the term “exceptionality” is
associated with special education and some
form of disability.
 However, students who are gifted are also
identified as exceptional and may qualify for
special-education resources.

6. CHILDREN WITH
DISABILITIES
Learning
Disability
Mental
Retardation
Sensory
Disorder
Autism Spectrum
Disorder
Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity
Disorder
Physical Disorder
Emotional &
Behavioral
DisorderSpeech &
language Disorder

7. Learning Disability
 Bobby’s second-grade teacher complains that his
spelling is awful.
 Eight-year-old Tim says reading is really hard for
him, and a lot of times the words don’t make
much sense.
 Alisha has good oral language skills but has
considerable difficulty in computing correct
answers to arithmetic problems.
 Each of these students has a learning disability.

8.  Educators increasingly speak of
“Children with Disability rather than
Disabled children”, means (To
emphasize the person not the disability)
 Also, children with disabilities are no
longer referred to as “handicapped,”
 Handicapping Condition is still used to
describe the impediments to the learning
and functioning of individuals with a
disability that have been imposed by society.
 For example, when children who use a
wheelchair do not have adequate access to a
bathroom, transportation and so on, this is

9. Learning Disability
 A child with a learning Disability has difficulty in
learning that involves understanding or using spoken
or written language , and the difficulty can appear in
listening, thinking, reading, writing and spelling.
 A learning disability also may involve difficulty in doing
mathematics.
 To be classified as a learning disability, learning
problem can not be primarily the result of visual,
hearing or motor disabilities; mental retardation; or
due to environment emotional disorders; or due to
environmental, cultural or economic disadvantages.
(US Government defined disability in 1997 then few minor
changes in 2004)

10. Mid 1970s through the early 1990s
 Dramatic increase in the % of U.S students receiving
Special education services from 1.8% in 1976 -1977
to 12.2 % in 1994-1995( National Center for
Education Statistics 2008)
 Some Experts reflected that:
 Poor Diagnostic practices & over identification
 Experts argued that Teachers some time are too quick
to label children with slightest learning problem as
having a learning disability instead of recognizing that
the problem may rest ineffective teaching .
 Other Experts say that increase in the number of
children being labeled with learning disability justified.
(Hallahan, Kauffman & Pullen,2009)

11. Research
 About three times as many boys as girls are classified as
having a learning disability.
 Among the explanations for this gender difference are a
greater biological vulnerability among boys and referral
bias (that is, boys are more likely to be referred by
teachers for treatment because of their behavior).
 Most learning disabilities are lifelong. Compared with
children without a learning disability children with a
disability are more likely to show
 Poor academic performance throughout their schooling
 High Dropout rates
 Poor Employment
 Post Secondary education records
(Berninger,2006)

12.  Children with a learning disability who are taught
in the regular classroom without extensive
support rarely achieve the level of competence of
even children who are low achieving and do not
have a disability (Hocutt, 1996).
 Still, despite the problems they encounter, many
children with a learning disability grow up to lead
normal lives and engage in productive work
(Smith & Tyler, 2010).

13. Diagnosing whether a child has a learning
disability is often a difficult task:
 Because federal guidelines are just that
guidelines, it is up to each state, or in some cases
school systems within a state, to determine how
to define and implement diagnosis of learning
disabilities.
 The same child might be diagnosed as having a
learning disability in one school system and
therefore receive services but not be diagnosed
and not receive services in another school
system.
 In such cases, parents sometimes will move to
either obtain or avoid the diagnosis.

14. Initial identification
 Initial identification of a possible learning disability
usually is made by the classroom teacher. If a
learning disability is suspected, the teacher calls
on specialists.
 An interdisciplinary team of professionals is best
suited to verify whether a student has a learning
disability.
 Individual psychological evaluations (of
intelligence) and educational assessments (such
as current level of achievement) are required
(Hallahan, Kauff man, & Pullen, 2009).
 In addition, tests of visual-motor skills, language,
and memory may be used.

15. Reading, Writing, and Math
Difficulties
 The most common academic areas in which children
with a learning disability have problems are reading,
writing, and math.
 Dyslexia The most common learning disability is
dyslexia, a severe impairment in the ability to read
and spell (Ise & Schulte-Korne, 2010; Reid & others,
2009).
 Dysgraphia A learning disability that involves
difficulty in handwriting is dysgraphia (Rosenblum,
Aloni, & Josman, 2010).
 Dyscalculia Also known as developmental arithmetic
disorder, dyscalculia is a learning disability that
involves difficulty in math computation (Rykhlevskaia
& others, 2010).

16. Causes and Intervention
Strategies
 The precise causes of learning disabilities have
not yet been determined (Hallahan,Kauff man, &
Pullen, 2009; Rosenberg, Westling, & McLesky,
2011).
 Learning disabilities tend to run in families with
one parent being so affected, although the
specific genetic transmission of learning
disabilities is not known.
 Also, some learning disabilities are likely caused
by problems during prenatal development or
delivery. For example, a number of studies have
found that learning disabilities are more prevalent
in low birth weight infants (Litt & others, 2005).

17. Asked Teachers how they work with
students with a learning disability.
 Following are their responses:
 EARLY CHILDHOOD
1. To accommodate our children with learning
disabilities, we have them sit close to teachers
during work time at craft tables, we use more
transition warnings so all students clearly
know when we are moving to a different
activity, and we prepare lessons that are
visual and hands-on.
2. Having children of different abilities in our
school not only benefits the learning of children
with disabilities, but it immensely helps their
“typically” developing peers to accept others

18. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: GRADES
K–5
1. Learning disabilities come in all shapes and sizes
and require adaptations to ensure that all students
reach their full potential.
2. An adaptation that helps a student with ADHD is not
an adaptation that will help a student with dyslexia.
Some of the adaptations and modifications I use in
my class are visuals, modeling, graphic
organizers, and mnemonic devices.
3. Many students with learning disabilities have trouble
learning information through one sense. Therefore,
the more senses you engage while teaching, the
more likely the children will learn.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a disability in which
children consistently show one or more of these characteristics over a
period of time: (1) inattention, (2) hyperactivity, and (3) impulsivity.

19. MIDDLE SCHOOL: GRADES 6–8
 When working with students with learning
disabilities, I offer assistance with organization
(by providing a notebook with color coded
individual folders for each subject); provide a
structured classroom setting with high
expectations; have private, open discussions
concerning specific disabilities with the
student; maintain a consistent classroom routine
and schedule (students with learning challenges
often have difficulty with change); and provide a
daily overview of the day.

20. HIGH SCHOOL: GRADES 9–12
 With high school students, I find it extremely
effective to pair the student with a learning
disability with a concerned, helpful peer.
Sometimes it is necessary to let the peer know
what to expect or how to help the other
student.
 However, there is a fine line to walk as you do not
want other students to be aware of the student’s
disability.
 I also find that books on tape help students
with a learning disability master information as
does providing extra time to complete tests
and quizzes.

21. Mental Retardation
A condition with onset before age 18 that involves low
intelligence usually before 70 on a traditional
individually administrated intelligence test and difficulty
in adapting to every day life .
Down Syndrome
A genetically transmitted form of mental Retardation
due to an extra chromosome

22. Classification of Mental
Retardation Based On IQ
Type of Mental
Retardation
IQ Range Percentage
Mild 55-70 89
Moderate 40-54 6
Severe 25-39 4
Profound Below 25 1

23. Genetic factors, brain damage, and environmental factors are key
determinants of mental retardation. Let’s explore genetic causes first.
Genetic Factors The most commonly identified form of mental retardation
is
Down syndrome, which is genetically transmitted. Children with Down
syndrome
have an extra (47th) chromosome. They have a round face, a flattened
skull, an extra
fold of skin over the eyelids, a protruding tongue, short limbs, and
retardation of
motor and mental abilities.
 It is not known why the extra chromosome is present, but the health of the
male sperm or female ovum might be involved. Women between the ages
of 18 and 38 are far less likely than younger or older women to give birth.
Determinants

24. During the school years, the main goals of teaching children with mental retardation
are to provide them with basic educational skills such as reading and mathematics, as
well as vocational (Boyles & Contadino, 1997) and independent-living skills. Here
are some positive teaching strategies for giving students who have mental retardation
the best learning experience:
1. Help students who have mental retardation to practice making personal choices
and to engage in self determination when possible.
2. Always keep in mind the student’s level of mental functioning. Students who have
mental retardation will be at a considerably lower level of mental functioning than
most other students in your class. If you start at one level of instruction, and the
student is not responding effectively, move to a lower level.
3. Work with a special educator to individualize your instruction to meet the
student’s needs. Always follow the individual education plan (IEP) developed for the
student.
4. As with other students with a disability, make sure that you give concrete
examples of concepts. Make your instructions clear and simple.
Strategies for Working with Children Who Have
Mental Retardation

25. 5. Give students opportunities to practice what they have learned. Have them
repeat steps a number of times and overlearn a concept to retain it.
6. Have positive expectations for the student’s learning. It is easy to fall into
the trap of thinking that the student with mental retardation cannot achieve
academically. Set a goal to maximize his or her learning.
7. Look for resource support. Use teacher aides and recruit volunteers, such
as sensitive retirees, to help you educate children with mental retardation.
They can assist you in increasing the amount of one-on-one instruction the
student receives.
8. Consider using applied behavior analysis strategies. Some teachers report
that these strategies improve students’ self-maintenance, social, and
academic skills. If you are interested in using these strategies, consult a
resource such as Applied Behavior Analysis for Teachers, by Paul Alberto
and Anne Troutman (2009).
The precise steps involved in applied behavior analysis can especially help
you effectively use positive reinforcement with students who have mental
retardation.

26. Students Who Are Gifted
 The final form of exceptionality we will review is
quite different from the disabilities and disorders
we have discussed so far.
 While it is estimated that children who are gifted
or otherwise “developmentally advanced”
(Keating, 1990) comprise between 3 and 5
percent of students in Canadian schools
(Hutchison, 2002)
 There is no universally accepted definition or
measure of giftedness for all provinces or
territories. The definition of giftedness most
frequently cited in North America is the Marland
definition, adopted by The United States Office of
Education in 1972 (Alberta Learning, 2000).

27. CHARACTERISTICS
1. Precocity. Children who are gifted are precocious when given the
opportunity to use their gift or talent. They begin to master an area earlier
than their peers. Learning in their domain is more effortless for them than
for children who are not gift ed. In most instances, children who are gifted
are precocious because they have an inborn high ability in a particular
domain or domains, although this inborn precocity has to be identified and
nourished.
2. Marching to their own drummer. Children who are gifted learn in a
qualitatively different way than children who are not gift ed. One way they
march to a different drummer is that they require less support, or
scaffolding (discussed in Chapter 2), from adults to learn than their non
gifted peers do. Oft en they resist explicit instruction. They also oft en
make discoveries on their own and solve problems in unique ways within
their area of giftedness. They can be normal or below normal in other areas.
3. A passion to master. Children who are gifted are driven to understand
the domain in which they have high ability. They display an intense,
obsessive interest and an ability to focus. They are not children who need to
be pushed by their parents. They frequently have a high degree of internal
motivation.

28.  A fourth area in which children who are gifted
excel involves information processing skills.
 Researchers have found that children who are
gifted learn at a faster pace, process information
more rapidly, are better at reasoning, use better
strategies, and monitor their understanding better
than their nongifted counterparts (Davidson &
Davidson, 2004).

29. Students Who Are Gifted
 This definition relies on the professional diagnosis
of children who, by virtue of outstanding abilities,
are capable of high performance or potential in
any one or more of the following areas:
 General intellectual ability,
 Specific academic aptitude,
 Creative or productive thinking,
 Leadership, or visual and performing
arts

30. Nature-Nurture Issue
 Is giftedness a product of heredity or environment (nature-
nurture issue)? Likely both (Sternberg, 2009d). Individuals
who are gifted recall that they had signs of high ability in a
particular area at a very young age, prior to or at the
beginning of formal training (Howe & others, 1995). This
suggests the importance of innate ability in giftedness.
 However, researchers have also found that individuals
with world-class status in the arts, mathematics, science,
and sports all report strong family support and years of
training and practice (Bloom, 1985). Deliberate practice is
an important characteristic of individuals who become
experts in a particular domain. For example, in one study,
the best musicians engaged in twice as much deliberate
practice over their lives as did the least successful ones
(Ericsson, Krampe, & Tesch, 1993).