Characteristics of Pubescent Specific Learning Disabled Children Who Suffered Anoxia At Birth.

Abstract

There is a dearth of research on the characteristics of learning disabled children as they enter adolescence. For the most part, what research that does exist suffers from two shortcomings: methodological issues of subject selection and measurement procedures, and examination of characteristics without regard to possible behavioral changes imposed by puberty. The problem of the effects of adolescence on learning skills of specific learning disabled children was approached in this study from two perspectives. First, three behavioral correlates of plasticity were examined in order to determine if organically caused learning disability lessened during the peripubertal change period. Second the study searched for developmental patterns in the learning skills of specific learning disabled children as they passed through the five Tanner stages of pubertal development. The study entailed a cross-sectional, three-part, pre- and post-test, using a sample of thirty-two white children between the ages of nine and sixteen. The sample was chosen according to three criteria: documented proof of perinatal anoxia, inclusion in special education services, and physical examination. All children were chosen from the same educational system, attended the same special education classes, had the same I.Q. level, and came from the same socio-economic backgrounds. Instruments used to assess the children's behavior included the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery (Passage Comprehension Subtest and Visual Matching Subtest), the McCarron Assessment of Neuromuscular Development (Rod Slide Subtest), and the Tasks of Emotional Development. Children were tested twice: near the beginning of the school year and at the end of the school year. Medical screenings were completed mid-interval. The statistical analysis consisted of a multisample extension of the Sign Test, in order to determine relative differences in the amount of change for three developmental groups: Tanner Stage 1, Tanner Stage 2, and Tanner Stages 3-5. A one-way analysis of covariance using age as the covariate did not result in significant findings for any of the fourteen variables examined, indicating that chronological age was not a factor in the changes observed. None of the hypotheses regarding neural compensation and behavior change during the pubescent period (Tanner Stage 2) was supported. However, a univariate T-Test performed on medical data revealed the existence of non-normal patellar reflexes in the sample. This finding was significant at the .0001 level. In addition to statistical analysis, there is a discussion of clinical features of the sample's projective test responses. Three clinical characteristics were noted: telegraphic speech, incongruent affect, and misinterpretation of cues. Three design flaws seriously influenced the outcome of the study. First, the sample chosen was inappropriate for the purposes of looking at change during Tanner Stages 3-5. Second, recent research indicates that an important feature of maternal labor and delivery was omitted from consideration when determining sample selection criteria (Mirsky et al., 1979). Finally, the sample size was inadequate to test for statistical significance, given the large inter-subject variation that characterizes samples of learning disabled children.