Learning disorders

Question 1

What are treatment approaches to dyslexia?

Answer 1

Drilling in phonics-based approach to reading, extra time on written exams, do not downgrade spelling errors

Question 2

Attentional dyslexia

Answer 2

Naming a letter is harder when it is accompanied by other, irrelevant letters

Question 3

1987 definition of learning disorder

Answer 3

Disorders manifested by significant difficulties in the acquisition & use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, or mathematical abilities, or of social skills Intrinsic to individual and presumed to be due to CNS dysfx

Question 3

According to Pennington’s model of LDs, damage in spatial reasoning is associated with

Answer 3

Math/handwriting deficits (posterior RH)

Question 4

Rourke & other theorists treat LD as a disorder of

Answer 4

Information processing

Question 4

Insight/judgment/comportment disorder (Rourke)

Answer 4

Disruption of thought, judgment, comportment (‘conduct disorder’); may reflect deficient development of frontal networks

Question 5

According to Pennington’s model of LDs, damage in social cognition is associated with

Answer 5

Autism spectrum (limbic, orbital, RH)

Question 6

According to Pennington’s model of LDs, damage in long-term memory is associated with

Answer 6

Memory disorder/amnesia (hippocampus, amygdala)

Question 7

Nonverbal learning disorders

Answer 7

Problems with math, handwriting, social, visual spatial functioning

Question 8

Four categories of symptoms of learning disorders according to Pennington’s model

Answer 8

Primary (core symptoms, universal specific, persistent) Correlated (same etiology/affect different brain systems) Secondary (consequences of primary or correlated symptoms) Artificial (appear associated but not causally related)

Question 8

Visual processing model of dyslexia

Answer 8

Posits that the maagnocellular visual system fails to appropriately inhibit the parvocellular system during saccades, resulting in a prolonged afterimage that interferes with reading

Question 9

According to Pennington’s model of LDs, damage in phonological processing is associated with

Answer 9

Dyslexia (L perisylvian region)

Question 11

Nonverbal processing disorder (Rourke)

Answer 11

Disruption of ability to perceive or produce nonverbal info; reflective of dysfx in neurocognitive networks of RH

Question 12

Surface dyslexia

Answer 12

Read by well-established phonological rules; trouble with nonwords and visual aspects of word recognition; difficulty reading irregular words Direct lexical route is impaired, depend on indirect route

Question 13

Attention deficits disorder (Rourke)

Answer 13

Disruption of arousal-attention-concentration; assoc. w/ dysfx in RH and or B dysfx and/or RAS

Question 14

Deep dylexia

Answer 14

Read familiar words well (esp. nouns) but make many semantic paralexias in oral reading (i.e., say “sheep” for “mutton”)rely on imageability, concreteness, & word frequency

Question 16

Neuropathological studies of dyslexia have shown

Answer 16

Planum temporale symmetry, neuronal ectopias & dysplasias, disconnection of angular gyrus with other reading-related regions, decreased activation of posterior brain regions that encompass both visual & language areas w/ increased anterior activation

Question 17

Developmental course associated with dyslexia

Answer 17

May have speech delay, articulation difficulties, problems learning letter names or color names, problems remembering phone #s/verbal sequences; remain slower than peers

Question 18

Verbal processing disorder (Rourke)

Answer 18

Disruption of language skills in auditory or visual modality, assoc. w/ dysfx or frank damage to language networks in LH

Question 20

According to Pennington’s model of LDs, damage in executive functions is associated with

Answer 20

ADD (prefrontal region)

Question 21

Rourke feels that there is quite an overlap between NVLD and what other disorder?

Answer 21

Asperger’s (considers autism to be a separate entity)