Questions for practitioners to consider:
Based on the information presented, what are your impressions for potential
learning disabilities? Do you need to gather more information before you can
make the decision? What is your rationale for your observations?
Interpretation of the information gathered through the screening process
Regardless of the screening tool used, the following three key questions
should be answered to gain insight to learners' situations:
- Why do they not achieve as expected? Do they lack intellectual
ability?
- Have they been taught the basic skills necessary for progress?
- Are there affective or motivational issues that are hindering the
learning?
The following was noted, using guidelines to interpret observations and
gathered information:
- Tom does not appear to have an intellectual inability. He is able to
express himself; he has been able to maintain employment; and he
was able to obtain some high school credits with average marks. He
has most likely been taught basic skills through his elementary
school experience.
- An auditory processing disability and short-term memory problem
may be present based on some of Tom's characteristics such as:
- Tendency to interrupt without realizing it
- Difficulty verbalizing some words
- Forgetting initial question when he provides detailed
explanation
- Poor spelling
- Doesn't like to read material that contains a lot of
information
- Possible difficulty hearing and recording information based
on his experiences with the telemarketing job.
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