Learning Disorder Assessment in Bedford, Nova Scotia
What are Learning Disorders?
Specific Learning Disorders refer to significant problems associated with reading, spelling, mathematics, or verbal ability (i.e., traditional school-related subjects) that cannot be explained by a child’s motivation, intelligence, educational history, or motor disabilities.
It is important to note that Learning Disorders are not due to “laziness” or “stubbornness” – they are neurodevelopmental disorders thought to have a biological origin.
A term often used to describe Learning Disorders is “unexpected underachievement”. Essentially, what this means is that there is large difference between what a child (or adult) has been able to achieve academically…and what we would expect him or her to achieve given their age, education, or intelligence.
Of the various Learning Disorders, impairments with reading ability are the most common. People with reading disorders are also at an increased risk for other academic difficulties (e.g., math), and are more likely to also be diagnosed with ADHD.
It is important to note that Learning Disorders are not due to “laziness” or “stubbornness” – they are neurodevelopmental disorders thought to have a biological origin.
A term often used to describe Learning Disorders is “unexpected underachievement”. Essentially, what this means is that there is large difference between what a child (or adult) has been able to achieve academically…and what we would expect him or her to achieve given their age, education, or intelligence.
Of the various Learning Disorders, impairments with reading ability are the most common. People with reading disorders are also at an increased risk for other academic difficulties (e.g., math), and are more likely to also be diagnosed with ADHD.
Can Learning Disorders be Explained by IQ?
No. In fact, children with Learning Disorders generally have IQs comparable to children who are not diagnosed with LDs, and some may even be intellectually gifted.
What Types of Learning Disorders are Assessed at Bedford Psychologists?
Common Learning Disorders we test for include:
Specific Learning Disorder – Impairment in Reading
Specific Learning Disorder – Impairment in Reading
A Specific Learning Disorder with Impairment in Reading may be diagnosed when reading skills are substantially below what we would expect given a person’s age, educational history, or intelligence. Difficulty with reading skills must be severe enough to significantly interfere with school performance, work requirements / career advancement, or activities of daily living.
Children or adults with a reading disability may read very slowly, require great effort to read, may often guess words, and/or may struggle to sound out unfamiliar words. They may also have difficulties understanding what they have read (i.e., reading comprehension), make frequent errors when spelling words, misunderstand the sequences of events in a text, or miss subtle meanings in what has been read.
Of the various Learning Disorders, impairments with reading ability are the most common. People with reading disorders are also at an increased risk for other academic difficulties (e.g., math), and are more likely to also be diagnosed with ADHD.
Dyslexia refers to a cluster of reading difficulties related to word recognition, phonetic decoding, and poor spelling. Adults and children with dyslexia have difficulty processing the visual information they see when attempting to read a word or sentence. Young children may struggle to understand specific letter sounds, while older children may have difficulties combining multiple letter sounds together when deciphering words.
Children or adults with a reading disability may read very slowly, require great effort to read, may often guess words, and/or may struggle to sound out unfamiliar words. They may also have difficulties understanding what they have read (i.e., reading comprehension), make frequent errors when spelling words, misunderstand the sequences of events in a text, or miss subtle meanings in what has been read.
Of the various Learning Disorders, impairments with reading ability are the most common. People with reading disorders are also at an increased risk for other academic difficulties (e.g., math), and are more likely to also be diagnosed with ADHD.
Dyslexia refers to a cluster of reading difficulties related to word recognition, phonetic decoding, and poor spelling. Adults and children with dyslexia have difficulty processing the visual information they see when attempting to read a word or sentence. Young children may struggle to understand specific letter sounds, while older children may have difficulties combining multiple letter sounds together when deciphering words.
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Early developmental signs of a reading disorder or dyslexia include:
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Specific Learning Disorder – Impairment in Mathematics
A Specific Learning Disorder with Impairment in Mathematics is diagnosed when skills related to numbers, calculation and understanding of mathematical concepts are much below what is expected based on their age, education, or intelligence. Similar to the criteria for a Reading Disorder, these impairments must cause significant difficulties at school, work, or daily living activities.
Children with Math Disorder may struggle to master number facts, may have difficulties understanding math concepts, may fail to memorize multiplication tables, may often make computational errors, and may get lost or confused when they must solve more complicated equations or problems.
Dyscalculia is a brain-based condition that refers to a cluster of symptoms associated with impaired mathematical ability. Some children with dyscalculia have difficulty understanding number concepts and although they may understand what they need to do when explicitly instructed to do so, they may not understand why they are performing the calculations. That is, they having difficulty grasping the logic underlying mathematical concepts. Other child may understand the concepts but may be unable to perform the calculations.
Possible causes of Math Disorder / Dyscalculia include genetics and heredity (parents and children often have similar math issues), brain development (brain imaging tools have discovered structural differences in surface area, thickness, and volume), environment (math issues have been associated with prenatal alcohol exposure, low birth weight, and premature births), and brain injuries.
Early developmental signs (elementary school) of a mathematics disorder or dyscalculia include:
Later warning signs (high school and beyond) include:
Children with Math Disorder may struggle to master number facts, may have difficulties understanding math concepts, may fail to memorize multiplication tables, may often make computational errors, and may get lost or confused when they must solve more complicated equations or problems.
Dyscalculia is a brain-based condition that refers to a cluster of symptoms associated with impaired mathematical ability. Some children with dyscalculia have difficulty understanding number concepts and although they may understand what they need to do when explicitly instructed to do so, they may not understand why they are performing the calculations. That is, they having difficulty grasping the logic underlying mathematical concepts. Other child may understand the concepts but may be unable to perform the calculations.
Possible causes of Math Disorder / Dyscalculia include genetics and heredity (parents and children often have similar math issues), brain development (brain imaging tools have discovered structural differences in surface area, thickness, and volume), environment (math issues have been associated with prenatal alcohol exposure, low birth weight, and premature births), and brain injuries.
Early developmental signs (elementary school) of a mathematics disorder or dyscalculia include:
- Difficulty learning to count
- Difficulty making the connection between number symbols and number words (e.g., “8” and “eight”)
- Difficulty understanding number patterns
- Delay in ability to sort objects by size, shape, color, etc.
- Difficulty recalling basic addition and multiplication facts
- Difficulty with concepts such as “less than” / “greater than”
- Difficulty learning to tell time
Later warning signs (high school and beyond) include:
- Difficulty using math in everyday life (e.g., making change, estimating percentages, etc.)
- Struggling to understand information presented graphically or in charts
- Inability to find more than one way of solving math problems
Specific Learning Disorder – Impairment in Written Expression
A Specific Learning Disorder with Impairment in Written Expression is diagnosed when a child or adult’s writing skills (for example, spelling, grammar, punctuation, ability to organize thoughts and express oneself using written language) is significantly impaired compared to expectations given his or her age, education, or intelligence. The problems with writing ability must significantly interfere with academic performance, occupational skills, or everyday living.
Individuals with a Writing Disorder may add extra letters when spelling relatively simple words, may omit letters, or may frequently substitute incorrect letters. When writing longer passages, they may struggle to organize their thoughts on paper (or more likely, at a computer), may make numerous grammatical errors, and may have difficulty expanding on thoughts, ideas, and written content in general.
Writing Disorders are rarely diagnosed in isolation. Most often they accompany other learning issues - especially those related to reading.
Individuals with a Writing Disorder may add extra letters when spelling relatively simple words, may omit letters, or may frequently substitute incorrect letters. When writing longer passages, they may struggle to organize their thoughts on paper (or more likely, at a computer), may make numerous grammatical errors, and may have difficulty expanding on thoughts, ideas, and written content in general.
Writing Disorders are rarely diagnosed in isolation. Most often they accompany other learning issues - especially those related to reading.
How are Learning Disabilities Assessed?
Learning Disorders are not diagnosed on the basis of a single test, and quite frankly, there is disagreement among mental health professionals about how they should be assessed.
At Bedford Psychologists, we take great care to avoid “false positives” (concluding that a Learning Disorder exists when in fact it does not) and “false negatives” (concluding that Learning Disorder is absent when in fact, it does exist).
We believe that a comprehensive approach to Learning Disorder assessment is absolutely necessary. A single test or interview simply isn’t enough and the consequences of an incorrect diagnosis are obviously very serious. A proper Learning Disorder assessment will minimally include IQ testing, standardized academic / achievement testing, an interview with parents and the child, a review of academic records, as well as targeted parent and teacher questionnaires. An assessment may also include measures of executive functioning, memory, or other tests as necessary.
Even if you ultimately decide not to work with us (please see How We Are Different) and choose another psychologist in Bedford or Halifax, always make sure that:
At Bedford Psychologists, we take great care to avoid “false positives” (concluding that a Learning Disorder exists when in fact it does not) and “false negatives” (concluding that Learning Disorder is absent when in fact, it does exist).
We believe that a comprehensive approach to Learning Disorder assessment is absolutely necessary. A single test or interview simply isn’t enough and the consequences of an incorrect diagnosis are obviously very serious. A proper Learning Disorder assessment will minimally include IQ testing, standardized academic / achievement testing, an interview with parents and the child, a review of academic records, as well as targeted parent and teacher questionnaires. An assessment may also include measures of executive functioning, memory, or other tests as necessary.
Even if you ultimately decide not to work with us (please see How We Are Different) and choose another psychologist in Bedford or Halifax, always make sure that:
- They have clearly described their approach towards a LD assessment
- They have answered your questions before testing
- You feel comfortable with their plans for the assessment
Ready to find answers?
Is your child frustrated in school? Does he or she have difficulties with reading, mathematics, verbal or written expression, or some other academic issue? If so, a psycho-educational assessment at Bedford Psychologists (see Assessments FAQs) may be able to identify why he or she is struggling so that a plan can be made to help them demonstrate their true potential.
If you have any questions about assessments and how we can help you, please contact us or fill out the confidential contact form below.
If you are considering an assessment but would like to discuss your concerns with us first, we are happy to offer a free, no-obligation, 30-minute consultation. Please note that you must specifically request the free 30 minute minute consultation if you are interested in this - otherwise we can just proceed with the formal assessment.
If you have any questions about assessments and how we can help you, please contact us or fill out the confidential contact form below.
If you are considering an assessment but would like to discuss your concerns with us first, we are happy to offer a free, no-obligation, 30-minute consultation. Please note that you must specifically request the free 30 minute minute consultation if you are interested in this - otherwise we can just proceed with the formal assessment.
