Page 133 - DEDU506_SPECIAL_EDUCATION_ENGLISH

Unit 18: Learning Disabilities: Prevention and teaching strategies

Psychostimulants may bring about improvements in the behaviour of the LD child, but their effect on Notes
improving the learning of such children is not clearly established by research findings. Psychostimulant
drugs can have a positive effect on a child’s classroom behaviour, in reducing his activity level and
making him more manageable and teachable but we cannot always count on them to remediate the
child’s learning problems. In addition to psychostimulant drugs mega-vitamin therapy and diet
management are inconclusive. What is needed therefore is a behaviouristic approach or a psycho-
educational approach which relies on the teacher’s effectiveness in working with such children,
motivating them and providing appropriate instruction to them.
(2) Psycho-Educational Approach : The psycho-educational approach views the LD children not as a
patient but as learner waiting to be taught. From the psycho-educational perspectives, the LD children
are to be identified early, assessed medically and psychologically to arrive at a correct diagnosis of
their difficulties and weaknesses and provided with appropriate instruction and training in regular
schools, resource rooms, special classes or special schools depending upon their degree of disability.
There are various approaches for the education and training of LD, Children. All these approaches
fall under five categories such as :
(1) Process training approach
(2) Multisensory approach
(3) Environmental approach
(4) Cognitive training approach
(5) Other special approach
(1) Process Training Approach : Process training is based on the contention that learning academic
subjects requires understanding the underlying psychological processes. Learning disabled
children have a disorder in the psychological processes which underly in understanding or
using speech, in reading, writing, arithmetic, etc. Thus it may be of value to train the LD child in
the psychological process which underly various academic subjects.
(2) Multisensory Approach : Multisensory approach is based on the assumption that the child will
be more likely to learn if more than one of his sense is involved in the learning experiences. One
such method is called the VAKT method (V stands for visual A stands for auditory, K stands for
kinesthetic and T stand for tactual). For example, the teacher asks the child to tell a story. The
teacher writes down the words of the child to tell a story. The teacher writes down the words of
the story on the blackboard. These words serve as material as the child learns to read. In learning
the words, the child first sees the word (visual). He hears the teacher say the word (auditors).
He says the word (auditory). Finally the child traces the word (kinesthetic and tactual).
(3) Environmental Approach : learning disabled children are usually destructible and hyperactive.
For such children an environmental approach is sometimes recommended by some educators.
Environmental approach emphasises reducing the irrelevant stimuli in the classroom
environment which might distract the child’s attention from the learning task. The classroom
environment may be modified in the following ways as far as possible and as per necessity to
make it free from unnecessary distraction :
1. Sound-proofing of walls and ceilings.
2. Carpeting
3. Opaque windows
4. Enclosed book cases and cupboards
5. Limited use of bulletin boards
6. Use of cubicles, three-sided work areas
7. Removing the pictures, calenders and other hanging objects from the walls.

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 127