IATEFL Inclusive Practices and SENs SIG Coordinator, Varinder Unlu, has been working in ELT for 25 years, teaching students from 6-80 years old. In this new series, Varinder takes a look at different types of specific learning difficulties (SpLDs), identifying what they are and how they can affect students’ behaviour in the classroom.
We have all had students in our classes who, perhaps we have thought of as difficult or slow because they don’t keep up with the class or seem to be lazy and uninterested in whatever topic we cover. Then there are those who seem to be in another world, not paying attention to what’s happening in the lesson, and the ones who just can’t seem to focus for longer than a few minutes. As teachers we want all our students to be happy and learning to achieve their full potential. So what do we do about the ‘difficult’ students, the ones who aren’t happy and learning? Well, more often than not we tend to not know what to do, because we’ve tried every trick to engage them that we learned on our teacher training courses, and none of them seem to be working.
We give up trying as there are other students in our lessons who are engaged and making progress and it’s easier to focus on them. They’re the good language learners…In this series of blog posts we will be looking at how to identify students who may be learning in a different way and need support to ensure that they are included in our classes. For this first article, I will be focusing on different types of learning differences – identifying what each of them is and how they can affect learning. There are a number of SpLDs such as Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, ADHD, Aspergers Syndrome and Dyscalculia which can affect learning. They all have similarities and differences and often co-occur. Below is an outline of each one:
Dyslexia
This is a common developmental difference that is seen mainly in information processing, especially phonological processing – which is the system we use to process basic word sounds. Phonological awareness is a key skill in the development of reading and writing skills. People with dyslexia can also have problems with short term and working memory, verbal processing speed and co-occurring difficulties with organisation, sequencing, co-ordination and concentration. Dyslexia affects all kinds of people regardless of intelligence, race or social class. Causes are unknown; it can be hereditary and there is no cure, but there are many ways we can support our learners in the classroom.
Dyslexia manifests itself differently from person to person. Low self-esteem is often an issue because of not being able to keep up with the constant measuring of progress and testing. Often this behaviour is misinterpreted as not caring or being lazy as the learner becomes good at covering their inadequacies by displaying an uninterested, disengaged attitude.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
ADHD is a common developmental difference that affects those parts of the brain that control attention, impulses and concentration. Common symptoms are short attention span, restlessness and constant fidgeting and being impulsive. People with the condition lack the filters to ignore what is going on around them resulting in a lack of focus. It can occur in people of all intellectual ability and is common in people with learning difficulties. Causes are unknown but it can be hereditary. Medication is often prescribed for ADHD but it also requires the right kind of educational support from teachers and parents. A student with ADHD can be identified as someone whose attention often wanders and is not with the other learners in class, the student who finds it difficult to stay on task or follow instructions and their answers may not be relevant to what is going on in class indicating that they may not be thinking reflectively on what is being done.
Dyspraxia
Dyspraxia is a common developmental difference affecting co-ordination, fine motor skills, articulation and sensory perception. People with dyspraxia lack attention and concentration and have difficulties with speech production. They are often very sensitive to the environment: temperature, light, noise etc, and it their affects spatial awareness. The causes are not fully known.
Dyspraxic learners often have difficulty with handwriting, with hand-to-eye coordination, difficulty in walking in a straight line, and are often bumping into things. They can also have a poor attention span and be easily distracted, do not cope well with change and have poor organisational skills, plus difficulty maintaining friendships and lacking awareness of appropriate behaviour.
Dyscalculia
Dyscalculia is a learning difference in mathematics. People with this condition have problems with memory and problem-solving. It is not an easily diagnosed condition as it often co-occurs with other learning differences such as dyslexia and ADHD. It is a neurological condition and can be hereditary. A learner with dyscalculia will have difficulty with counting and number sequences, telling the time or handling money. They may find map reading and directions difficult and problems differentiating between left and right.
Asperger’s syndrome
Asperger’s is part of the autism spectrum. Different from all of the above as it’s not a problem with memory (in fact, people with this have very good memories). Difficulty with social interaction, difficulty with social imagination, difficulty with changes in routine, people with Asperger’s syndrome often have very narrow and intense interests (perhaps in only one or two areas eg: computers, trains, dinosaurs, animals etc). A learner with Asperger’s Syndrome will exhibit repetitive patterns of behaviour, more so than the average person. They may also have difficulties controlling these behaviours. Unlike Autism, Asperger’s Syndrome does not affect the individual’s language acquisition. A learner with Asperger’s lacks understanding of social cues and subtleties, and find it difficult to engage in reciprocal conversation and to generalize and apply knowledge across different situations. They can have poor fine-motor skills, problem solving skills and organisational skills. In our next post we will be looking at how we can best support students with specific learning difficulties.
For practical suggestions on supporting Dyslexia, why not explore David Valente’s article on using stories to support primary students with dyslexia.
If you’ve enjoyed this post, read all of Varinder Unlu’s articles in this series:
Tips for helping students’ concentration and focus
Supporting students with specific learning differences
How to create an inclusive classroom environment
Managing disruptive behaviour in the classroom