learning disabilities

i've seen light bulbs turn on 3/4 of the way through fifth grade, and it's one of the most rewarding things i've ever witnessed.

i've also seen them stay dark...i agree with vaughn, et al--a student's response to intensive 1-on-3 instruction is a good means of identifying students with LD.

this study reminded me of an article i read about homelessness. the author compared recidivism in homelessness with the troubles the LAPD was having with racial insensitivity in the late eighties, early nineties. it was widely assumed that, statistically speaking, both situations were normally distributed, along a bell curve with a small number of people at both ends, and the bulk of the problems--homelessness and racial prejudices--situated in the middle. ultimately, studies found that a small number of the overall group was actually the problem--that the greatest "activity" was found not in the middle, but at the extremes in both scenarios. it followed a "power-law" distribution, not a bell curve.

LD strikes me quite the same way. with comprehensive reading instruction most students will thrive, but there will always be that small percentage that really do need the intensive, daily attention.