Learning disability

In the United States and Canada, the term learning disability (LD) is used to refer to a range of neurological conditions that affect one or more of the ways that a person takes in, stores, or uses information. Learning disabilities are specific, not global, impairments. For example, a person could have an LD which inhibits her ability to understand written information though the same information, delivered orally, might present no problem. People with learning disabilities often have trouble processing information. Therefore, when asked a question, they cannot produce a quick response because it takes them more time to process the question, then find the answer.

The term includes such conditions as dysgraphia (writing disorder), dyslexia (reading disorder), dyscalculia (mathematics disorder) and developmental aphasia.

In the United Kingdom, the term learning disability is used more generally to refer to developmental disability.

Learning disabilities affect all areas of life to the extent that the affected mode is used in that area. They are most often noticed in school settings, where certain learning modes are employed more than others, causing the weaknesses caused by the LD to stand out. Learning disabilities are usually identified by school psychologists through testing of intelligence, academics and processes of learning.