CHALLENGES IN EARLY IDENTIFICATION OF CHILDREN ‘AT RISK’ FOR LEARNING DISABILITIES: A REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Learning disability is a diverse set of conditions that affects an individual's ability to understand language whether it is spoken, written, etc. It affects the neurological development of the brain, as a result of which the ability to learn is hampered. Along with this it also affects a person's ability to stay attentive, remember what was learnt, coordination of movements, etc. Though the IQ is not affected but learning disabilities affect the over-all quality of life of an individual. It has certain types such as- dysgraphia, dyscalculia, dyslexia, etc. It is crucial to note that learning disability develops or emerges at young age, this entails the importance of early identification of learning disabilities among children. The intent for early identification is to find out whether the child is at risk or already has a particular disability. It includes a close observation by the primary caregivers of the child to see what kind of behaviour the child displays, based on its “distinctness” a rehabilitation professionals help is gained. Significant to the identification of children with learning disabilities are the challenges, which cannot be passed over under any circumstances. The process of early identification includes 1) proper screening, 2) observation and 3) evaluation, but it is not an easy process as there are a number of obstacles that the members involved in the process, such as- child, parents, teachers, etc. tend to face. This particular paper tries to study the challenges faced during the process of early identification of children that are at risk for learning disabilities. For the same, existing research articles were perused.