National Research Center on Learning Disabilities established at Peabody College

by Princine Lewis

A national center devoted to learning disabilities research is being established at Peabody College, thanks to a five-year, $3.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs.

The center, a joint project with the University of Kansas, will explore alternative methods for identifying students with learning disabilities. The U.S. Department of Education estimates there are 2.9 million students in America who are identified as having some sort of learning disability.

Peabody's Department of Special Education will lead the project, conduct research and provide technical assistance to states and local school districts. The University of Kansas will offer professional development for general and special educators coordinated with the center's research. The U.S. Department of Education grant was made to Vanderbilt, which has a subcontract with the University of Kansas.

"We have a top-ranked special education department that is recognized for its research and advocacy for people with disabilities. I am extremely excited that we can increase our contribution to the important discussion of how special education is handled in this country," said Camilla Benbow, dean of Peabody College.

The most common method of determining whether a student has a learning disability is whether there is a significant discrepancy between a student's measured intelligence or IQ and his or her learning achievement. Federal special education guidelines are based on this model of identification, and states' application of the federal guidelines varies.

A portion of the center's research will include studying the variations in state policies and practices on identifying and assessing students with learning disabilities that may be related to differing incidence levels and outcomes.

"There has been a lot of discussion about the high numbers of students being deemed as having special education needs. Our concern is less about the numbers, but about the appropriateness of student classification, " said Dan Reschly, chair of the Department of Special Education at Peabody and co-director of the new center.

In addition to trying to develop more accurate means of student classification, center researchers will explore the impact of systematic educational instruction, such as early intervention reading programs, on the incidences of student classification.