Cluster analysis of children and adolescents with brain damage and learning disabilities using neuropsychological, psychoeducational, and sociobehavioral variables.

The purpose of the study was to employ psychoeducational, neuropsychological, and sociobehavioral (Conners Rating Scale) variables in determining if definable subtypes exist within a diverse population of subjects with learning disabilities (LD) and documented brain damage. The sample of 95 subjects (27% female and 73% male) had been referred for neuropsychological assessment at a large, Midwestern medical center. Mean age was 10.6 years. Brain damage (BD) was documented for 45% of the sample. The first cluster analysis employed neuropsychological, psychoeducational, and sociobehavioral data and revealed four interpretable clusters. A second cluster analysis excluded sociobehavioral data and yielded two interpretable clusters. In neither analysis did a cluster consist exclusively of BD or LD subjects. Results were interpreted as supporting the importance of the sociobehavioral component in LD subtyping, as well as supporting the contention that parallels may exist in cerebral function and/or structure between the LD and BD classifications.     

Conversational engagement of children with learning disabilities

This study was designed to characterize the conversational engagement techniques employed by children with and without learning disabilities while in a dyadic interaction. Engagement was defined and measured in terms of the degree to which utterances provided information and evidenced responsiveness to one's conversational partner. Sixty (30 with learning disabilities and 30 nondisabled) 9- to 13-year-old subjects participated. Analyses indicated that the subjects with learning disabilities (LD) could and did employ engagement-related techniques similar in levels of sophistication to those of their nondisabled peers, although they did so less consistently and frequently. Further, the relationship between affective measures and the engagement-related techniques used by the subjects with LD differed markedly from those of the nondisabled subjects. The results are interpreted from a motivational standpoint and suggest that future research should focus on the knowledge and application of engagement-related techniques of the children with LD, across settings and conversational partners.     

The WISC-R and Woodcock-Johnson tests of cognitive ability: A comparative study

The Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery has become a popular instrument for assessing students with learning problems. Previous research has indicated a possible discrepancy between overall scores on the WISC-R and the congnitive portion of the Woodcock-Johnson with samples of learning disabled (LD) students. The current study, conducted with samples of students not designated as LD, also found significant differences in the mean scores between the two measures. The hypothesis that the difference between measures is a function of grade level was not supported. Other findings of the current study, coupled with previous research, suggest that the congnitive portion of the Woodcock-Johnson may be loaded with verbal factors.     

An investigation of the K-ABC,WISC-R,and W-JPB,part two,with learning disabled children

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC), the WISC-R, and the Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery (W-JPB), Part Two, with children who experience learning disabilities. Correlational analyses were used to examine relationships among the WISC-R, K-ABC Mental Processing and Achievement scales, and the W-JPB Achievement scales. Thirty-four children with learning disabilities (mean age 8–11 years) received all three measures. Correlation coefficients indicated stronger and more consistent relationships between the WISC-R and W-JPB Achievement tests than between the K-ABC and W-JPB Achievement tests. Significant relationships between the WISC-R Full Scale IQ and the K-ABC Mental Processing Composite (MPC) revealed evidence of validity for this learning disabled sample. However, correlation coefficients among the K-ABC Achievement subtests and the W-JPB Achievement clusters indicated both convergent and discriminant validity. Thus, it is suggested that both the K-ABC MPC, for assessment of cognitive abilities, and the W-JPB Achievement clusters could be employed in discrepancy formulas for special education placement of children with learning disabilities.     

Self-perceptions, motivation, and adjustment in children with learning disabilities: a multiple group comparison study

This study examined the self-perceptions, motivational orientations, and classroom adjustment of children with learning disabilities (LD), matched-IQ non-LD, randomly selected non-LD, and low achieving children. Elementary-age children (N = 148; 37 from each group) completed domain-specific measures of their self-concepts, perceptions of control, and motivation. Teachers rated children on motivational and competence indices and classroom behavioral adjustment. Comparisons among groups indicated that children with LD were lower in perceived cognitive competence and academic self-regulation relative to the nondisabled control groups, but were comparable to the low achieving children. Children with LD were most likely to perceive academic outcomes as controlled by powerful others. No group differences were found for general self-perceptions of control or competence. Teacher ratings of children with LD were more discrepant from those of comparison groups than were self-ratings of children with LD. The results suggest the need for matched-IQ and low achieving control groups in research on children with LD. The origin and role of both environmental inputs and self-perceptions in the adjustment of students with LD are discussed.     

Use of the woodcock language proficiency battery with culturally variant learning-disabled students

The Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery (WLPB) was administered to 18 learning-disabled adolescents from a culturally variant population in rural southern Louisiana and to a matching group of normal achievers. ANOVA results revealed that group status (learning-disabled vs. normally achieving) had a significant effect on cluster scores (Oral Language, Reading, and Written Language), p < .001. Significant effects for cluster scores were not discovered; however, the significant interaction (p < .05) between subjects and cluster scores was determined to be the result of group differences on all cluster scores. Kolmogorov-Smirnov Z-test results indicated that all WLPB cluster scores for the learning-disabled group were significantly lower (p < .001) than the test's means for each of these clusters; but, for the achieving group, only the Oral Language Cluster mean was significantly lower than the WLPB mean, p < .001. Additional t-test investigation revealed that the learning-disabled group means were significantly lower than the achieving group means on all subtests except for Picture Vocabulary. A modified contrastive linguistic analysis did not uncover the existence of test bias for semantics when error responses were evaluated. The results of this study suggest that the WLPB may be a useful tool for culturally diverse students when interpretation is based on a community norm perspective.     

Patterns of performance on the Stroop Color and Word Test in children with learning,attentional, and psychiatric disabilities

The study presented here investigated the performance of children with learning, psychiatric, and attentional disabilities on the Stroop Color and Word Test. Forty‐three children diagnosed with a full battery of tests as learning disabled (LD [reading]) in grades K through 6 were matched on age, gender, ethnicity, and grade with 43 normal controls. They were also matched with groups of 43 children with psychiatric disorders and 43 children with attentional problems. All subjects were given the Stroop test, which took about 4 minutes per subject. The results indicated clear differences between the groups, with the LD and the psychiatric/attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) groups generating unique profiles different from the normal controls. The children with LD showed slower reading speed and less interference, while the subjects with ADHD and diagnoses showed impairment only on the Color‐Word score. A discriminant analysis using the three basic Stroop scales was able to significantly differentiate the LD group from the non–learning‐disabled (NLD) group (89%) and the LD group from a joint Psychiatric/ADHD group (86%). However, results were poorer for differentiating a joint LD/ADHD group from the NLD group (68%) and the LD from the ADHD group (59%). © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) in the assessment of learning disabled children

The authors of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) assert that, in addition to a discrepancy between learning potential and academic achievement, learning disability is characterized by poor sequential relative to simultaneous processing skills. The present study was designed to determine whether the K-ABC could discriminate between learning disabled and normal children on the basis of these characteristics. Forty-three LD pupils from 7 to 12 years of age and 20 normally achieving children of similar age were administered the K-ABC. Results indicated that, for both the LD and the normal children, scores on the Sequential Processing Scale were significantly lower than on the Simultaneous Processing Scale. In addition, the aiscrepancy between Simultaneous and Sequential scale scores was similarly distributed in both groups. The LD group scored lower and the normal group higher on the Achievement Scale than on the Mental Processing Composite. The results, therefore, indicated that the K-ABC differentiated LD from normal children in terms of Achievement relative to M.P.C. scores; however, it failed to reveal a unique profile pattern related to simultaneous vs. sequential processing skills for the LD group. Further analyses of the relationship between K-ABC processing scale scores and WISC-R scores, as recategorized by Bannatyne, revealed significant correlations between measures, indicating similar underlying theoretical constructs.     

Fathers' coping resources and children's socioemotional adjustment among children with learning disabilities

This study examined a cumulative model of vulnerability and protective factors at the individual level (children's attachment relationships with father and children's sense of coherence) and at the family level as manifested by fathers' coping resources (fathers' sense of coherence, fathers' active and avoidant coping strategies) in helping to explain differences in socioemotional and behavioral adjustment among children at the age 8 to 12 years with learning disabilities (LD) and or with typical development. The sample included 205 father-child dyads: 107 fathers and their children having LD and 98 fathers and their children with typical development, from the same public elementary schools. Preliminary analyses indicated significant group differences on all the children's measures as well as on fathers' avoidant coping strategies. Path analysis examined the multidimensional risk model for the LD and non-LD groups. The study found a high fit between the theoretical model and the empirical findings as well as a different pattern of relationship between the model's components for the two populations studied. Discussion focuses on understanding the unique value of vulnerability and protective factors at the individual and family levels on children's well-adjusted functioning.     

Segmenting student markets with a student satisfaction and priorities survey

A market segmentation analysis was conducted on students at a large midwestern urban university using two forms of hierarchical cluster analysis on student characteristics: an agglomerative procedure using a matching-type association measure and a divisive chi-square-based automatic interaction detection (CHAID). The resulting segments were compared for their ability to distinguish among students according to six satisfaction scales and measures of students' priorities for college study derived from a general satisfaction survey. As expected, the CHAID clusters discriminated better among students according to their several measures of satisfaction, one of which was the criterion variable for the analysis. However, both procedures produced differences across only two of six satisfaction scales. The matching-type measure clusters resulted in significant differences on 11 of 18 college study priority items compared to only 6 of 18 for the CHAID clusters. Final discussion describes the usefulness of market segmentation strategies for planning, evaluating, and improving academic and student support programs.Presented al the Thirty-Fourth Annual Forum of the Association for Institutional Research, New Orleans, LA, May 29–June 1, 1994.     

The impact of resource programs upon the self-concept and peer acceptance of learning disabled children

The purpose of the study was to measure the impact of resource interventions upon the level of peer acceptance and self-concept. Subjects were 82 children from 5 elementary schools in central Pennsylvania. The Experimental group (N = 41) consisted of learning disabled children in regular classes with resource room interventions. The Control group (N = 41) consisted of nonlearning disabled children stratified by sex and classrooms. All subjects were group administered a self-concept measure and a peer acceptance measure early in the school year and again at the end of the school year. Separate 3-way analysis of variances with repeated measures revealed that the LD children were significantly lower in self-concept scores and peer acceptance ratings at both testing occasions than were the nonLD children. The resource based program did not result in significant changes in either self-concept or peer acceptance after one year for the LD group.     

Impact of instruction on behavior disordered and learning disabled students' creative behavior

Ninety-eight pupils from intermediate-level behavior disordered and learning disabled self-contained classrooms served as subjects. The Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking were used as pretests and posttests to measure the effect of creativity instruction on the creative thinking skills of the subjects. For 14 weeks the Purdue Creative Thinking Program was used to stimulate the behaviorally disordered (BD) and learning disabled (LD) experimental group's creative behavior. Subjects in the BD and LD experimental group made significantly greater scores than did the control groups on the verbal and figural subtests of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking.     

Stimulus gender and emotional difficulty level: their effect on recognition of facial expressions of affect in children with and without LD

The ability to recognize emotions that were easily identifiable and those that were more difficult to identify, as expressed by male and female faces, was studied in 48 nondisabled children and 76 children with learning disabilities (LD) ages 9 through 12. On the basis of their performance on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test and the Benton Visual Retention Test, the LD group was divided into three subgroups: those with verbal (VD), nonverbal (NVD), and both verbal and nonverbal (BD) deficits. A shortened version of Ekman and Friesen's Pictures of Facial Affect, including pictures of both men and women, was the measure of ability to identify facial expressions of affect. Children of both genders in all three groups of children with LD, as well as their normally achieving peers, were more accurate in identifying expressions of affect from female faces, notwithstanding differences in sensitivity to such emotional communication in favor of the nondisabled and VD groups. However, a significant interaction was found between gender and emotional recognition difficulty level, with female faces being more expressive for emotions that were difficult to recognize.     

Story grammar and comprehension and production of narrative prose by students with learning disabilities

This study investigated both quantitative and qualitative differences between subjects with and without learning disabilities (LD) across three grade levels on two tasks requiring active processing of story grammar. There was no evidence, for either task, of developmental differences in relation to either story comprehension or production. However, there were significant differences between students with LD and normally achieving students in the amount as well as the type of information included in the retellings and written stories. The results provide support for the hypothesis that students with LD have acquired a rudimentary but not fully developed schema for narrative prose.     

Behavior and achievement relationships with emotionally disturbed children: An applied study

Reciprocal relationships between on-task behavior and certain academic performance targets have been demonstrated in a number of short-term applied behavior analysis studies. These studies have not had emotionally disturbed or behavior disordered (ED/BD) children as subjects, and are generally not carried out over sufficient intervals to measure effects on standardized tests of achievement. Studies of ongoing programs over longer periods of time have shown inconsistent results when comparing levels of on-task behavior with standardized achievement gains. The present study questions the hypothesized relationship between on-task behaviors and standardized achievement with ED/BD children. Further, it seeks to determine significant relationships between certain specific on-task behaviors (e.g., completing assignments) and standardized achievement. Forty ED/BD children participated in a token economy over the course of an entire academic year. Minimal pre-post achievement gains (p < .01) and a high level of on-task behavior (84%) were noted, but there were no significant relationships between on-task behaviors and measured achievement. The results are discussed in the context of similar findings from other ongoing programs with ED/BD students. Suggestions are offered for investigating other classes of behavior (e.g., academic engaged time) with these children, in order to discover more consistent behavior-achievement relationships.     

Students classified as LD and the college foreign language requirement: a quantitative analysis

This study was conducted to determine whether students classified as learning disabled (LD) who were permitted to substitute courses for the college foreign language (FL) requirement at one university would display significant cognitive and academic achievement differences when grouped by level of discrepancy between IQ and achievement, by discrepancy between achievement according to different measures, and by level of performance on phonological-orthographic processing measures, on the Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT), and in FL courses. Results showed that there were no differences among students with different levels of discrepancy (i.e., < 1.0 SD, 1.0-1.49 SD, and > 1.50 SD) on MLAT and American College Testing (ACT) scores, graduating grade point average (GPA) or college FL GPA. Results also showed that among students who scored below versus at or above the 25th percentile on phonological-orthographic processing measures, there were no differences on measures of IQ, ACT, MLAT, and GPA, as well as most measures of academic achievement. Implications for the use of the LD label to grant FL course substitutions or waivers, use of the MLAT in the diagnostic and course substitution/waiver process, and the validity and reliability of traditional criteria for the classification as LD are discussed.     

Helping students with LD to succeed: the role of teachers’ hope,sense of coherence and specific self-efficacy

Teachers play a critical role in facilitating the academic achievements of students with learning disabilities (LD). The personal resources of teachers, such as sense of coherence (SOC) and hopeful thinking, may predict self-perception of the competency and efficacy they possess to help students with LD acquire needed learning skills. Several studies have shown the importance of SOC and hope to the success of students with LD, but research has not focused on how the hope of their teachers may help these students succeed in inclusive classrooms. The goal of the current study was to identify profiles of teachers, based on their personal resources of SOC and hope, and to examine their self-efficacy (SE) in helping students with LD acquire learning skills. The sample consisted of 624 teachers (567 females and 57 males) from inclusive classes; 143 teachers in this sample had special education training. Using cluster analysis four distinct clusters were identified suggesting that both SOC, as a global personality measure, and hope, as a measure of future expectations, contributed to the SE of teachers: their belief in their ability to help the students with LD acquire learning skills. In each cluster, teachers with special education training had higher levels of hope and SE. The results highlight the important role of teachers’ personal resources in predicting their belief in their professional ability to help students with LD.     

Neuropsychological stability and prognosis of subgroups of children with learning disabilities

A sample of 74 Finnish children with mild learning disabilities (LD) and 57 controls was followed from the third grade (Study 1) to the sixth grade (Study 2). In the initial study, the sample had been grouped into five valid subgroups (Normal, General Language, Visuo-Motor, General Deficiency, Naming) utilizing a cluster analysis. In both studies a battery of 12 neuropsychological, reading, and writing tests was administered, and teacher ratings were obtained. The results indicated that the general neuropsychological profiles of the subgroups were maintained, but some changes, consistent with the progress in reading, were noted. The developmental rate of some neuropsychological functions from Study 1 to Study 2 in the subgroups of children with learning disabilities more closely approached that of the Normal subgroup. At follow-up, 64% of the original LD sample continued to have marked reading and/or writing problems. The Naming subgroup had a more unfavorable prognosis than the other subgroups, especially in reading, and the General Deficiency subgroup in writing (spelling), respectively. Some possibilities for using the results to improve remedial teaching are discussed.     

A review of states' criteria and procedures for identifying children with learning disabilities

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether (a) states have altered their definitions and/or eligibility criteria for learning disabilities (LD) since the last review; (b) states have specified-IQ cutoffs below which a child would not be eligible for LD services; (c) the types of methods states use to quantify an ability/achievement discrepancy vary; and (d) an increase in the number of children identified as LD is related to the method or criterion used to quantify an ability/achievement discrepancy. States' guidelines and/or information obtained from state directors of special education were analyzed for all states and the District of Columbia. Results of the review revealed that 40% of states had revised their guidelines between 1988 and 1990; 76% of the states specified a method for determining an ability/achievement discrepancy and the method recommended most frequently was the standard score comparison method. No significant differences were obtained between type of discrepancy method employed by a state and its yearly increase in LD. However, a significant relationship existed between magnitude of a state's ability/achievement criterion and its yearly increase in LD from 1987-88 to 1988-89. The review also revealed an increase in the number of states that specified an IQ cutoff below which a student would not qualify for LD services.     

A study of handwriting in written stories of normal and learning disabled children

Written stories of normally achieving and learning disabled children in grades one through three were compared, using a Handwriting Evaluation Scale designed for this study. The subjects also were given tests for receptive language, figure copying and spelling. The Non-LD and LD groups differed on figure copying, spelling and written productivity, but not receptive language. The Non-LD grade level groups differed significantly on two components of the handwriting scale (Letter Size and Control), while the LD grade level groups differed on three components (Letter Formation, Alignment and Spacing, and Letter Size). The most pronounced differences between the LD and normally achieving children were on Formation and Size. A separate analysis of the third grade stories revealed that handwriting was less related to productivity than spelling and visual-motor skills. Nevertheless, the results indicated that many LD students have weak visual-spatial-motor skills. Implications for intervention are discussed.