A comparison of teacher and parent expectations for learning disabled and normal elementary school children in selected Newfoundland elementary schools.

Barnsley, Paula Elizabeth (1973) A comparison of teacher and parent expectations for learning disabled and normal elementary school children in selected Newfoundland elementary schools. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

This study was undertaken to investigate teacher and parent expectations for achievement of middleclass learning disabled boys as compared with a control group of middle-class boys of similar age, grade and potential for achievement. The learning disabled children had been diagnosed at the Learning Center, Memorial University and recommendations for the remediation of their specific learning problems had been made to their teachers. Although these children had not completed their remedial instruction at the time of the study, teachers and parents were informed that these children should achieve at a level congruent with their intellectual ability once they overcame their disabilities with special training. -- Teachers and parents of learning disabled and control group children were asked to complete a questionnaire designed to measure long- and short-term expectations for achievement. The number of subjects for whom both parents and teachers returned usable questionnaires were 30 out of 54 for the Learning Disabled Group and 33 out of 51 for the Control Group. Three of the control subjects were dropped because of non-average IQ ratings. From the rating scales included on the questionnaire, eight variables were selected to represent rated past achievement, rated potential and expectations for the present grade, and future success in reading and other academic subjects. It was observed that learning disabled children were rated significantly lower than control children by both parents and teachers for all of these variables. For all subjects parent ratings were higher than teacher ratings except for potential ability for reading achievement. For the other variables, parent and teacher ratings were similar for control children but teachers rated learning disabled children significantly lower than did parents. On the basis of these results, it was argued that teachers' and parents' attitudes regarding a learning disabled child's potential for academic success should be changed. Areas in which subsequent research would be valuable were suggested.

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