Different Difficulties in Learning Children - Essay Example

?Benchmark Assessment Part I According to Race (2006), a learning disability impacts the way in which an individual processes information from his immediate environment and as a result is unable to learn from these experiences. While learning disabilities are generally attributed to learning difficulties especially among children, such inabilities can be found in any area of life, even among adults. While many parents believe that a child with perceived learning difficulties must try harder and be constantly motivated to perform better, many experts such as Grant (2005) explain that a child with such difficulties is largely unable to perform many things on his own, let alone learn much of the stuff by himself. In fact, he elaborates that such children need help in learning to do their own chores or paying closer attention to something important. Gates (2008) provides a more practical explanation to learning disability by saying that children with such difficulties cannot understand, learn, and communicate in comparison to other children. The normal procedure in which our brain processes information is extremely complex. In situations such as viewing an image or speaking, the brain has to process several tasks including retrieving information from memory, recognizing the data to transmit and processing the information to either store in memory or invoke the auditory parts for communication. Most of these activities occur at various locations in the brain, sometimes in a simultaneous fashion. The task of linking up and associating these various segments is the responsibility of our brain. In the case of people with learning disabilities, the only difference is with regards to the different manner in which their brains process information unlike the case with other individuals. Thomas (2003) says that people with learning disabilities are not handicapped or lazy. Instead, he contends that they tend to have at least an average level of intelligence. Their difficulties simply arise from the different ways in which their brains process information. A broader scientific explanation to this phenomenon is explained by the four stages of information processing (Input, Integration, Storage and Output) under which learning disabilities are categorized. While people with input disabilities have problems with visual and auditory perception, individuals with integration difficulties are unable to categorize and interpret information from the input stage based on previous learning. Some learning difficulties occur in the later stages due to issues in retaining long-term memory. Several cases of learning disability occur much later during the information-processing scenario due to factors like muscle inhibition and lack of necessary motor skills. Part II This section discusses some of the key aspects of learning disabilities in a student named Jessica. The subject is a first-year student at a community college and suffers from multiple learning disabilities. She has issues with maintaining attention over long periods of time and has a short attention span. As a result, she is easily distracted during classes at the slightest disturbances and has a hard time focusing on her lectures. Moreover, she suffers from memory loss and is known to frequently forget her assignments and books for classes. She also often forgets her class schedule and arrives late for lectures (Race, 2006). As a result, she has had to rely extensively on her calendar to ensure that she does not forget any important tasks. Further, Jessica has known issues with reasoning and perception and has faced difficulties in establishing realistic goals in her life. As a result, she feels depressed and underachieved. Specifically, Jessica is unable to solve problems in Mathematics or Science and finds it difficult to remember most of the formulas that are crucial for both subject areas. Despite her difficulties with the sciences, Jessica has demonstrated her talent at creativity and music on numerous occasions. While she has difficulties with the verbal-based academic pursuits, she seems to have a unique talent in visual-spatial capabilities. In fact, Jessica has begun to spend more time at learning music and perceives her creativity in this field as a blessing in disguise. Kerr (2007) notes that this is a common occurrence among students with learning disabilities and explains that lack of certain academic skills enhances some fresh perspectives in such children that leads to better creativity and uniqueness that is often not the case in regular students. Due to her disabilities, Jessica does suffer from a lack of self-confidence and is quite sensitive to attitudes among her fellow classmates. Jessica often feels the need for additional lectures notes but is reluctant to request for one given these inhibitions. She also fears that requesting additional help might lead to perceptions of stereotyping and preferential treatment, which further restrict her from approaching her teachers. This has led Jessica to turn into an introvert forcing her to remain secluded from external relationships. Part III As discussed in the preceding section, Jessica has issues with memory retention and is often distracted during lectures. Treating this learning disability requires close teacher and parent cooperation using techniques like memory games. The ‘memory games’ method has proven to be a useful technique in enhancing working memory. ‘Working memory’ refers to the capability to store and process information over short periods of time. Students such as Jessica have a poor working memory and require methods such as ‘memory games’ to improve their concentration. Memory games can be introduced as effective training methods in a series of individual stages that are listed below (Rennie, 2009): Planning: Instructors and parents can devise a simple reward system that seeks to encourage students with learning disabilities to persevere in improving their working memory. Training: subject plays audio-visual games on a daily basis, often with growing complexity. Rewards: At the end of each assessment period (often every week), students are rewarded based on their performance over the duration. Instructors devise plans for the subsequent period based on the students’ current performance and status. The ‘memory games’ method is rather unique as it involves teaching through both audio and visual methods that seek to explore and encourage every sense and perception of the student (Kerr, 2007). The method has also proven successful at adjusting itself automatically based on the current learning curve of the student. Besides being a highly personalized system, this technique also serves to motivate students on a constant basis and thus sustain their memory skills over the long term. References 1. Gates, B. (2008). Learning disabilities. London: Elsevier Health Sciences. 2. Grant, G. (2005). Learning disability: a life cycle approach to valuing people. New York: McGraw Hill. 3. Kerr, D. (2007). Understanding learning disability and dementia: developing effective interventions. New York: McGraw Hill. 4. Race, G. (2006). Learning disability: a social approach. London: Routledge. 5. Rennie, J. (2009). Learning disability: physical therapy treatment and management : a collaborative approach. Chicago: John Wiley. 6. Thomas, D. (2003). Working with people with learning disabilities: theory and practice. Toronto: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Read More