Comparison of Students’ Achievement: Deaf, Learning Disabled, and Deaf With a Learning Disability

Description

Approximately half of students who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) have a co-occurring learning disability (LD). Although assessing and diagnosing LDs is particularly difficult in this population, it is important to properly identify students who may be eligible for academic interventions or accommodations. This study analyzed national samples of students who are (a) classified as having an LD, (b) being DHH without an LD, and (c) being DHH with an LD. The three groups of students were compared in terms of their performance on a standardized measure of academic achievement. The results of this exploratory analysis suggests that math calculation skills and classroom grades are useful in classifying students who are DHH and have an LD. The authors discuss the implications of these findings, limitations to the dataset, and areas for further research.

Citation

Caemmerer, J. M., Cawthon, S. W., & Bond, M. (2016). Comparison of students’ achievement: Deaf, learning disabled, and deaf with a learning disability. School Psychology Review, 45(3), 362-371. doi:10.17105/spr45-3.362-371