Compare and contrast the major components of the definitions and criteria for determining learning disabilities and determining ADHD.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answers should include the following information for LD: student does not achieve commensurate with his or her age and ability level in one or specific areas, student participated in, but does not respond adequately to, scientific or research-based interventions, student needs special education services, severe discrepancy between ability and achievement is no longer required. Major components of the federal definition of SLD: difficulty with academic and learning tasks, discrepancy between expected and actual achievement that can be documented through a limited response to intervention, disorder in basic psychological processing, and exclusion of other causes.  

Answers should include the following information for ADHD. These common developmental features distinguish ADHD from mild attention or hyperactivity problems: onset in early childhood, chronic over time, generally pervasive behaviors across situations, deviance from age-based standards, and increased likelihood of having another difficulty such as learning or psychiatric disorders. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders (DSM-5) describes ADHD as a neurodevelopmental disorder with three presentations: predominately inattentive presentation, predominately hyperactive-impulsive presentation, and combined presentation.