Learning disorders can be a rather frustrating problem for parents, teachers and children and can cause a great deal of distress for them. Children with learning disorders show the inability to perform well in academics with marked errors in speech, language, math and spellings. This becomes apparent when the child is asked to read or is given a spelling test. The reading abilities of these children are extremely slow and they tend to make a number of errors. They may omit some of the words, pronounce them incorrectly or add certain words on their own. One of the characteristic features of learning disorders is that they are not the outcome of any neurological disorder, mental retardation or pervasive developmental disorder such as autism.

It is estimated that more boys are affected by learning disorders than girls but this can vary depending on a number of circumstances. Learning disorders become apparent when the child is unable to perform well in school activities gets extremely poor scores in various subjects such as Mathematics, Language, Reading, Writing and Spellings. These children show an IQ that is in accordance with the average intellectual scale set by the authorities and has no emotional or psychological problems. Moreover, the child is motivated to perform well in academics and wishes to please his/her parents and teachers.

Causes of Learning Disorders:

CNS Impairment: Central nervous system impairment is considered to be one of the most prominent reasons for the development of these disorders. It can result in immaturity, insufficiency or deregulation limited to specific brain functions that are responsible for enhanced learning skills in normal children. Typically, language and learning skills are linked with a failure of the brain to develop in an asymmetrical manner in relation to the right and left hemispheres, specifically the portions of the left hemisphere that is responsible for the development of learning skills.

Brain diseases: Learning disabilities can also be the outcome of certain brain diseases such as epilepsy, severe head trauma cerebral palsy etc.

Neurological Dysfunction: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan of certain individuals with learning disorders has indicated that the disorder may occur due to a deficiency of physiological activation in the brain center involved with rapid visual processing.

Phonological processing deficiency: This means that children with learning disorders have difficulty in understanding certain words or parts of words known as phonemes correctly as units of sound. Thus, they are unable to read the words and phrases correctly.

Some researchers also believe that the various forms of learning disorder or vulnerability to develop them may be genetically transmitted.