Learning difficulty doesn’t have anything to do with a person’s intelligence – after all successful people as Walt Disney, Alexander Graham Bell, and Winston Churchill all had learning disabilities.

Nearly 10% of children in each class suffer from Learning Difficulty. The most important task is to identify this at an early stage so that it does not become a nightmare for the child. There are many kinds of learning disabilities each having its own attribute and affecting a child in some or the other way.

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Key solutions with RMCC:

  • Identification of Learning Difficulty through assessment batteries
  • Type and extent (level) of difficulty
  • Unique intervention programs to overcome LD

What are Learning Difficulties (LD)?

At Ramdhar Maheshwari Counseling Centre (RMCC), we describe a ‘learning difficulty’ as a problem of understanding or an emotional difficulty that affects a person’s ability to learn, get along with others and follow convention.

On a day-to-day basis, that can be many things – not being able to concentrate for long periods, getting bored easily, acting impulsively, tripping over things, trying to make sense of what we read or write, living in our own world, losing track of time, forgetting what we have just learnt, being single-minded or extraordinarily talented…

But these are things we perhaps all experience from time to time. It’s when these characteristics become prominent that they turn into learning difficulties.

Today, at least five children in every school class have some form of learning difficulty. These difficulties rarely appear in isolation and frequently co-exist or overlap with other conditions. And they don’t go away, so children with learning difficulties tend to grow up to be adults with learning difficulties. For parents, that can be a frightening prospect – especially as many people confuse learning difficulties with learning disabilities. What to do? Where to go? Who to listen to? Who not to listen to? What rights do you have? How best to guide your son or daughter through life?

At RMCC, we help you find the answers.

How Can You Tell If Someone Has a Learning Disability?

The hallmark sign of a learning disability is a distinct and unexplained gap between a person’s level of expected achievement and their performance. Learning disabilities affect every person differently and they present differently at various stages of development. LDs can range from mild to severe and it is not uncommon for people to have more than one learning disability. In addition, about one-third of individuals with LD also have Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). While LD and ADHD can share common features, such as difficulties with concentration, memory, and organizational skills, they are not the same types of disorder.

Unfortunately, LD is often confused with ADHD and is frequently mistaken as laziness or associated with disorders of emotion and behaviour. A careful and thorough review of concerns, with input from multiple sources (including parents, educators, physicians, psychologists, speech-language providers and, of course, the person themselves) is the only way to rule in or rule out a learning disability.

Learning disabilities can affect a person’s ability in the areas of Listening , Speaking , Reading , Writing , Spelling , Reasoning , Mathematics

Disability Area of difficulty Symtoms include trouble with
Dyslexia Difficulty processing language Problems reading, writing, spelling, speaking
Dyscalculia Difficulty with math Problems doing math problems, understanding time using money
Dysgraphia Difficulty with writing Problems with handwriting, spelling, organizing ideas
Dyspraxia (Sensory Integration Disorder) Difficulty with fine motor skills Problems with hand-eye coordination balance, manual dexterity
Auditory Processing Disorder Difficulty hearing differences between sounds Problems with reading, comprehension, language
Visual Processing Disorder Difficulty interpreting visual information Problems with reading, math, maps, charts, symbols, pictures
Attention – Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Difficulty in Concentration and focus Can’t sit still, loses interest quickly, daydreams

RMCC is providing comprehensive skill development programs and end to end solutions in areas of learning difficulties amongst children. Specifically the services offered are:

  • Identification of Learning Difficulty (LD)
  • Skill Development of Learning Difficulty (LD) students
  • Parent/Teacher Training

LEARNING DIFFICULTY SOLUTIONS AT RMCC

Identification of Learning Difficulties

RMCC provides services to identify learning difficulties in children. A battery of tests modified as per Indian Standards help in identification of the type and extent of learning difficulty. These tests are administered in two settings.

  • Individual Testing – Administered to individual students at RMCC.
  • Group Testing – Administered to group of students at institutional premises.

Skill Development in Learning Difficulties

Based on the identification of type and degree of Learning Difficulty RMCC provides comprehensive skill development programs to address learning difficulties.

Learning Difficulty Solutions FAQ's

The assessment process to help a child with learning disabiltity will be completed within a period of 2-3 days to ensure that the child doesn’t get stressed/ tired during the process in one day and is able to perform their best. However time would vary depending upon the assessmnet/s required.

Post the evaluation and assessment, the report will have recommendations for the teachers in the classroom, home specific recommendations and other therapy support as required based on the type of learning disbability.

Many parents are concerned about getting an assessment for fear of “labelling” their child. In fact, it can be empowering for the child to know and understand their learning difficulties. With the diagnosis, the counselor will also get to know how to help a child with learning disbaility and help them understand that the assessment process is to help the students understand their area of strengths and areas of improvement.

There is no prep work that is required for the assessment. The psychologist will make the student feel comfortable during the session. You can tell the child that the assessment process is to help understand their strengths and their areas of improvement to overcome their learning difficulties.

Please carry academic records of the student of the current and for last 2 years, their notebooks/ classwork worksheets/ homework sheets, stationery and previous psychoeducational/ medical reports if any, so that we can get all the information beforehand and know how to help your child with learning disability accurately..

It is recommended that you do an assessment for a child after every 2 years post continued therapeutic support (remedial/ counseling/ occupational therapy) depending on the specific requirement that the student has. Because children are constantly growing and changing, an updated assessment for their learning disability can help their teacher/ therapists understand their up-to-date learning profile and target areas of growth. This will then help in developing learning goals and possibly developing a new Individualized Program Plan which is a goal-based document that measures your child’s progress in managing their learning difficulty and obtaining various socio-emotional and academic goals in the classroom.

Post the assessment being completed, the psychologist will meet the parents to explain the evaluation and report pertaining to ther child’s learning disability in detail. Based on the evaluation the counselor will recommend Individualised suggestions to be implemented by school/parents for child’s Academic progress.

Learning difficulties are a group of disorders involving significant difficulties in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning or mathematical abilities.

Learning disabilities are disorders that affect the ability to understand or use spoken or written language, do mathematical calculations, coordinate movements, or direct attention.

A learning disability constitutes a condition which affects learning and intelligence across all areas of life. A learning difficulty constitutes a condition which creates an obstacle to a specific form of learning, but does not affect the overall IQ of an individual

There is no cure for learning disability, but treatment and intervention can be very effective. Teaching style, academic structure, and information presentation may need to be tailored to a student’s learning and processing style in order to ensure successful learning.

No. The presence of a learning disability means only that your child processes information differently than his or her classmates, and some accommodations may be required to help him or her master specific subjects and/or concepts. In fact, many influential people have struggled with learning disabilities. There is no doubt that children with learning difficulties have the same potential to succeed as other children without learning disabilities.