children s health issues
Learning Disorders
Diagnosis of Learning Disorders
Educational, medical, and psychologic evaluations Established criteria Children who are not reading or learning at the level expected for their age should be evaluated. Doctors examine children for any physical disorders that could interfere with learning, including doing hearing and vision tests. Hearing and vision disorders should not be mistaken for a learning disorder. Children take a series of intelligence tests, both verbal and nonverbal, and academic tests of reading, writing, and math skills. Often these tests can be done by specialists at the child’s school, at the parents’ request. In the United States and other nations, schools are required by law to provide testing and appropriate accommodations. A psychologic evaluation is done to determine whether the child has emotional problems, such as anxiety or depression, or a developmental disorder, such as ADHD, because these disorders often coexist with a learning disability and can make the disability worse. Psychologists ask about the child's attitude toward school and relationships and assess the child's self-esteem and self-confidence. The following areas are evaluated, and these criteria are used to help determine whether a child has a learning disorder: Reading Understanding the meaning of written material Spelling Writing (for example, using proper grammar and punctuation, expressing ideas clearly) Understanding what numbers mean and their relationship to one another (in older children, doing simple calculations) Mathematical reasoning (for example, using mathematical concepts to solve problems) Children who are significantly below the level expected for their age in at least one of these areas for 6 months or longer despite treatment may have a learning disorder. Doctors also do tests to make sure the difficulties are not caused by Intellectual Disability or other neurodevelopmental disorders. 