Learning difficulties - their causes and consequences.

Learning difficulties - their causes and consequences.

School is simply not their favorite pastime. Every adult will be able to remember their own school days. Doing homework and lounging for the next class work is often done under pressure rather than with your own motivation. However, this is rarely due to the children's unwillingness or lack of commitment, but rather to different learning difficulties. Children who are able to absorb new knowledge very quickly and with little effort often even enjoy learning. It is a dream for many parents. Unfortunately, however, this is the exception. It usually looks different. The children seem to be under pressure to start doing their homework and to learn.

But why do children no longer enjoy learning?

After all, learning and especially the question of why was very present at a young age, so that the “thirst for knowledge” could be a bit annoying for the parents. And suddenly there is no longer any interest in “imparting knowledge” - in learning?

In the first or first class it is usually the case that many children are having fun. This then diminishes more and more over time and makes school and learning itself something negative over time. There are many reasons for this. Basically, our school system is not exactly designed to motivate our children. However, this rarely has anything to do with a learning disability at this young age. The reasons for such a problem lie much more outside of our school system. But no matter what the reason: children can (again) enjoy learning. However, this requires some changes, and in many cases these are not exactly easy to implement. First of all, it is important to analyze the cause of a learning disability and to counteract it with appropriate measures. Before that, however, we really need to be sure that there is such a learning disability.

Learning difficulties or just a few difficulties? 

So that learning problems are not erroneously overregulated in every short phase, some prerequisites must be met: First, the problem must exist for at least three months in order to be diagnosed as a learning disability. Secondly, the child does not have to have any or very little success, even when it is really hard. If a child just needs longer, this is not necessarily a learning disability. Maybe it's just using the wrong techniques or it's kinesthetic. With such a predisposition, it does not learn, for example, like most children through visual and auditory stimuli, but through touching and performing actions. Such a child can e.g. B. learn to draw in no time, but it will probably not do very well in a test on drawing. This is absolutely not a bad thing, just another way of understanding the world. The only problem is that this type of learning behavior is hardly taken into account in our schools. Therefore, caution should always be exercised when a person with learning difficulties has been or is to be diagnosed. In our world, things that deviate too far from the norm are unfortunately quickly described as pathological, although it is often not the case. If you take a critical look, you can also say: learning disability sounds good somehow. It gets the touch of a "diagnosed illness" and is very comforting for many parents. Yes, an excuse for the child not being able to do something (writing, reading, calculating, concentrating, …). A learning disability has often arisen - for a variety of reasons. Basically every child, every adolescent, every adult is capable of learning. However, (early childhood) negative experiences have worsened this ability to learn. Would you like an example? Too much criticism causes discouragement, the child comes to the realization that "I can't do that anyway". Over time, it will become less and less confident and the problems with learning will increase. The later learning weakness is determined, but can you still find out the many small causes that led to it?

Social, psychological or physiological reasons.

It is always difficult to find out exactly how this problem originated. There are many possible causes. The reason can be psychological, social or even physiological difficulties. For example, it can happen that psychological reasons are diagnosed, even though they are physical. Or a physiological reason can be found, but the main reason for the problem was actually a psychological one. In any case, you should always get a second opinion and preferably a third one. There are simply too many variables to be able to quickly diagnose a learning disability.

Dyslexia, dyscalculia and ADHD.

The symptoms of dyslexia (poor literacy), dyscalculia (poor literacy) or ADHD can be very similar. The problem with the first two is usually in neurological deficits, which can be more or less reduced by targeted measures. Medicine has not yet agreed on AD (H) S. There is the possibility of a genetic predisposition, but this does not mean that it must also come to light. AD (H) S is also often found in kinesthetic children. Overall, this diagnosis must be handled very carefully, but unfortunately it is often made very lightly. After all, it's the easiest way to keep children calm with pills. It is much more difficult to fathom and solve the psychological problems. Of course, there are also cases where it is really a neurological disorder. As a result, treatment with medication may be necessary, but at least a suitable therapy must be worked out.

Psychological causes.

The reason for a learning disability often lies in subconscious behavior patterns and fears. For example, exam anxiety is a big topic. There are cases in which this is only very slight. On the other hand, there are students who start to sweat before work and become more and more restless. When they were studying, it was like this: the head was like a sieve, nothing wanted to get caught in it. The reasons for such learning difficulties are often to be found in a subtle exam fear. The corresponding approaches exist for many, but for some they take on a pathological dimension permanently. This makes learning for an exam almost impossible. The fear of the exam is often caused by early experiences, e.g. For example, fear of failure, criticism from parents, etc. In short: Anxiety about exams always has causes that have arisen at some point. Another big problem is motivation, because without motivation many people don't do anything at all. Both problems are the result of a very specific environment with little support. In many cases, a learning disability is psychologically due to education. But the parents can't do anything about it, because they only do what they themselves have learned. Therefore, there should be a lot more help for parents, who give well-founded tips and indicate the correct educational measures. Children are always influenced by their parents. If they make unknowingly serious mistakes, a psychological problem quickly arises, for example in the form of a learning disability. The worst thing parents can do is put pressure on them. Since children usually want to please their parents, they do everything that is required of them. However, if a failure occurs again and again, this inevitably leads to corresponding fears. If children don't count on help, but punishment or even contempt after a bad grade, then the fear increases from time to time. At some point it becomes so large that it creates a real reluctance to learn, out of fear of renewed failure. Another problem is the lack of appreciation. If a child writes a good grade and gets no praise for it, it leads to the same result. It is often said that a three or even two is not enough. The child comes home with a 2+ and then it is criticized that it has not become a one. Instead of rejoicing for and with the child and praising him as it should be, he is supposed to make a mistake. Now the child begins to interpret good grades as bad and the learning problem begins. Not only does this lead to a learning disability, it also gnaws at the child's self-confidence. This in turn leads to social problems and other uncertainties. A spiral of problems begins.

Social and physiological causes.

The opposite way is also possible: learning problems develop from social problems. If a child is struggling with serious ongoing problems at school and is barely socially active, then parents and teachers should definitely pay attention. Furthermore, a learning disability can also easily come about through physical impairments. A child does not know what is normal and what to tell its parents. Sometimes children are afraid that something may be wrong with them and therefore say nothing. So z. B. Problems with sight and hearing ensure that the child does not understand the teacher correctly or that it is difficult to recognize tasks in books or on the blackboard. In order to rule out such perception problems, an ear, nose and throat doctor or an ophthalmologist should be consulted if in doubt. It would therefore be too one-sided to look for the causes of problems only in the psychological area. An impairment of perception can also be considered.

The consequences of learning disabilities .

The consequences have already been touched upon. The learning disability is often a result of fears, lack of recognition, wrong ambition of the parents, which causes fears (fear of failure, fear of criticism) or discouragement in the child. The child no longer believes in learning. So a smorgasbord of opportunities that then lead to a learning drop and lead to an alleged learning disability. The further consequences are then: the child withdraws, deals with other things where it is successful (computer games, sports), or with young people often alcohol, drugs and cliques, where they spend their free time. School & learning is often a red cloth. The child / young person considers himself "stupid", "less clever". Self-esteem drops. Young people can of course hardly admit this and try to hide their insecurity and despair about themselves through coolness.

What can parents and educators do? 

It is important for parents to keep a close eye on everything. Perhaps the learning disability is only a phase, but if it lasts longer, then you should take a closer look. If it is then quite certain what the problem is, it must be made clear to the child that he is not responsible for it (many parents make the mistake here and say "The child is lazy". But that is not the case. Rather, the child has give up because a lot of things went wrong in advance.) Instructions must be given to deal with the situation as well as possible and to master the challenge. It is also important to always support and encourage the child in addition to understanding. Educators can also make their contribution. The most important thing to recognize here is that there is a problem. Children often manage to hide something like this from their parents. It is therefore equally important that teachers make such assumptions about the parents. A school psychologist may also be helpful. If there is a diagnosis, this problem must of course be taken into account in such a way that the child in question does not feel excluded. Just as children with poor eyesight are allowed to sit right at the front, children with learning difficulties must be treated accordingly, possibly by being transferred to a special class or - in severe cases - to a special school.

Conclusion: 

Attention! Learning difficulties can have many causes In summary, it can be said that great care should be taken when presuming a learning disability. It could be anything, an illness, a psychological or social deficit or a perception problem. Extreme caution must be exercised not only because of this great diversity, but above all because of the possible consequences. Learning is one of the most important functions for a happy life, so it must not be hindered. Otherwise affected children could have great difficulties in the future. And if the child receives the "diagnosis of learning disability" due to dyscalculia, ADHD etc. etc. - and if this is also said, this can also cause discouragement in the child: "I am sick", "I can never learn that anyway ". From this diagnosis, too, a possible and so-called “learning disability” can be reinforced. The child then feels labeled "less clever". And who would like to be labeled as "stupid", "less clever", as "not capable of learning"? That must inevitably trigger something negative in every person's feelings. So I would be very careful in this regard.