Focus on Children

A new study may help educators uncover new ways to teach children with learning disabilities.

April 10th, 2017 by: Misty Milioto

According to the National Center for Learning Disabilities, one in five individuals is impacted by language-based learning disabilities — one of the most common is dyslexia. The University of Missouri recently published a study The Structure of Working Memory in Young Children and its Relation to Intelligence, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health, that shows a link between working memory (the small amount of information an individual holds in his or her mind at one time) and how children learn. An example of working memory: If a child is listening to a story, he or she holds onto the beginning sentence or paragraph until the story continues to a point where everything makes sense. Researchers believe that people with language disorders such as dyslexia may have a working memory deficit. Therefore, the link between working memory and how children learn may later help educators uncover new ways to teach children with learning disabilities. One way would be to reduce the amount of information that is given to a child at one time, allowing them to channel their attention onto one task at a time.

Researchers at the University of Missouri plan to continue studying memory and attention, and how they affect language and learning disorders.