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INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF RESEARCH IN LEARNING DISABILITIES
IARLD UPDATES
A Newsletter of the INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY FOR RESEARCH IN LEARNING DISABILITIES
Fall Issue Vol. 11 (1) 2009
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
James Chapman
Greetings everyone! I hope that all
members of the Academy are having a
fruitful year, academically, professionally,
and personally.
I suspect that the current economic
difficulties will have disrupted the research
and travel plans of a number of people in the
Academy. Hopefully, the signs that the
worst of the recession might be over will
allow all of us to continue with our research,
teaching, and clinical activities.
Hopefully, too, as many as possible will be
able to travel to Miami, Florida for the
IARLD conference January 14-16 next year.
I’m sure that the conference programme will
be interesting and stimulating for all who are
able to attend, and I strongly encourage your
participation in the conference.
A major activity in the President’s office
during my term has been to establish a new
Academy website. We recently launched
the “new-look” website and after some
initial glitches, all seems to be operating
well now. If you haven’t already done so,
please take a look at the new site at:
www.iarld.com. You’ll notice that the site
has a “Pay-Pal” credit card function for
conference registration - something
members have wanted for some time.
I am very grateful to my day-job Executive
Assistant, Ngaire Ashton, and Dr Christa
van Kraayenoord for the massive amount of
work they put into liaising with the website
development company. I don’t think any of
us imagined that this development process
would take so long and involve so much
work.
I look forward to seeing as many members
as possible at the Miami conference; this is
the major event in the IARLD calendar, and
provides an important opportunity to share
research on LD with others in the Academy.
All the very best for the remainder of 2009!
James Chapman
President
VISIT THE IARLD WEBSITE
WWW.IARLD.COM
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COMMITTEE REPORTS
Fellows Report: Marshall Raskind
The Fellows’ Committee is comprised of
Marshall
Raskind
(Chair,
Schwab
Foundation), Lee Swanson (University of
California), and C. K. Leong (University of
Saskatchewan).
From March 2009 to
October 2009, we have welcomed two new
distinguished scholars as IARLD Fellow:
Dr. Diane Pedrotty Bryant and Dr. Brian
Bryant.
Membership
Report:
Christa
van
Kraayenoord
The Members’ Committee comprises
Christa van Kraayenoord, Cesare Cornoldi,
Mavis Donahue, and Gad Elbeheri. One
new member was finalised between January
2009 and the end of August 2009: Dr. Olga
Jerman (formally a Student Member), USA,
nominator: Professor Lee Swanson. One
new Associate Member was finalised
between January 2009 and the end of
August 2009: Mrs. Lynne Shaffer, UK,
nominator: Dr. Lindsay Peer.
Student Membership Report: Henry Reiff
Since the last Student Members Report,
unfortunately, we have not processed any
new members.
I think I may speak for my peers, who are
Fellows and Members, by pointing out that
many of us are getting a little long in the
tooth. It's hard to believe that retirement
looms for many of us - inasmuch as current
economic conditions may keep us in the
workforce longer than we planned. The
point of this not-so-subtle reminder is that
student membership is vital to the long-term
well-being of IARLD.
Our Student
Members are the ones who are setting new
research agendas, developing innovative
approaches to pedagogy, and seeing the
world in ways that our generation cannot
fully imagine. I am confident that you work
with students who have the drive, scholarly
passion, and intellect to strengthen and grow
IARLD. Our Student Members are the
Fellows of tomorrow.
I welcome
nominations!
The advantages of joining IARLD for
students:
 You are joining a prestigious group of
international scholars in the field.
 You will receive several publications and
an insider's view of the research in the
field.
 You will find the IARLD conferences
highly stimulating and rewarding.
 You will undoubtedly develop some
wonderful professional and personal
relationships.
 You will put yourself in an advantageous
position to join later as a full member and
possibly as a fellow.
 It looks great on your resume!
Treasurer’s Report: Lynda J. Katz
Membership billing for 2009/2010 took
place in August, 2009 and dues payments
are slowly coming in. Prompt payment,
either by check or credit card is appreciated.
Total membership is 183 members.
The balance in the checking account as of
August, 2009 is $26,198.90. In addition to
the monies in the checking account, there
are two CD’s with balances totaling
$26,122.64. If there are any questions
regarding the payment of dues, please do not
hesitate to contact me
[[email protected]].
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SOLICITATION OF DOCTORAL APPLICANTS FOR GRANT
NEW SCHOLARSHIPS FOR DOCTORAL STUDY AT WVU
IN FALL 2010
Project FastTrack is a leadership preparation project at West Virginia University funded by the
U. S. Office of Special Education Programs to prepare future teacher educators to work in
college and universities with rural service areas.
This funding allows us to offer candidates these BENEFITS:
**$30,000 scholarship as a stipend for living expenses; **full waiver of tuition for all required
courses; and **additional support for conference travel, other expenses.
We have available FIVE (5) SCHOLARSHIPS for qualified applicants who meet these
CRITERIA:
1) submission of an application for admission with ALL supporting materials by January 15,
2010;
2) approval for admission to the doctoral program emphasis in special education by March
2010;
3) availability for full time intensive study at the WVU campus in Morgantown, WV for
two (2) years consecutive years beginning August 16, 2010 and ending August 15, 2012;
and
4) signature on an agreement to pay back scholarship funds to the federal government if
they withdraw from the program or fail to obtain a faculty appointment within five (5)
years following graduation. Information and application forms may be obtained by
contacting [email protected].
Candidates for these scholarships will be selected on a competitive basis following faculty
review of ALL CREDENTIALS SUBMITTED by JANUARY 15, 2010.
We are seeking applicants who have outstanding academic ability, current classroom teaching
experience, and interest in becoming a teacher educator. Please take some time to share this
information with graduates or practitioners who may wish to take advantage of this unique
opportunity.
Barbara L. Ludlow, Ed.D.
Professor and Chair
Department of Special Education
West Virginia University
[email protected]
Henry B. Reiff, Ph.D.
Dean of Graduate and Professional Studies Professor of Special Education McDaniel College
Westminster, MD 21157-4390
410-857-2525
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NEWS FROM IARLD
MEMBERS
Firth, Nola:
IARLD Member and
Postdoctoral fellow at the Murdoch
Children’s Research Institute, Melbourne,
Australia, Dr. Nola Firth has received a
Churchill Fellowship to visit international
learning disabilities resilience programs and
‘dyslexia friendly’ schools in the United
Kingdom. Her visits will include the
Success Attributes Program at The Frostig
Center in California; the Mindfulness Based
Martial Arts program at The Integra Centre,
University of Toronto, Canada; The British
Dyslexia Association (BDA), and schools
that have earned the ‘Dyslexia Friendly’
BDA Quality mark in Northern Ireland and
England. Dr. Firth has also become a
member of a recently formed national
Dyslexia Forum that is reporting to Hon.
Bill
Shorten,
federal
Parliamentary
Secretary for Disabilities and Children’s’
Services. Two new papers have been
accepted for publication:
Firth, N., Frydenberg, E. & Greaves, D. (In
press, accepted 20/5/09). How do
adolescents
cope
with
learning
disabilities? Australian Journal of
Dyslexia
and
Other
Learning
Disabilities.
Firth, N., Frydenberg, E. & Greaves, D. (In
press, accepted 29/4/09). Coping styles
and strategies: a comparison of
adolescent students with and without
learning disabilities. Journal of Learning
Disabilities.
Jitendra, Asha:
IARLD Fellow, Dr.
Asha Jitendra has published the following:
Jitendra, A. K., Star, J., Starosta, K., Leh, J.,
Sood, S., Caskie, G., Hughes, C., &
Mack, T. (2009). Improving students'
learning of ratio and proportion problem
solving: The role of schema-based
instruction. Contemporary Educational
Psychology, 34(3). 250-264.
Erchul, W.P., DuPaul., G. J., Bennett, M. S.,
Grissom, P. F., Jitendra, A. K., Tresco,
K. E., Volpe, R. J., Vile Junod, R. E.,
Flammer-Rivera, L. M., & Mannella, M.
C. (2009). A follow-up study of
relational processes and consultation
outcomes for students with ADHD.
School Psychology Review, 38(2), 28-37.
Volpe, R. J., DuPaul, G. J., Jitendra, A. K.,
& Tresco, K. (2009). Consultation-based
academic interventions for children with
ADHD: Effects on reading and
mathematics outcomes at one-year
follow-up. School Psychology Review,
38(2), 5-13.
Kataoka, Mika:
IARLD Student
Member, Dr. Mika Kataoka of Kagoshima
University, Japan won an international joint
research grant (approximately US $82,000)
in February, 2009 to do a comparative study
of universal design for instruction (UDI) in
higher education and influences on students
with diverse learning requirements. The
research team for this project includes
researchers from Japan, Dr. Mika Kataoka
(Kagoshima University, Kagoshima), Dr.
Munehisa Yoshitoshi (Okayama University,
Okayama), Ms. Tomoko Kubota (Osaka
Chiyoda Junior College, Osaka), Prof.
Kunihiko Tamamura (Nara University of
Education, Nara); researchers from the
United States, Dr. Steve Fadden and Ms.
Alicia Brandon (Landmark College,
Vermont), and researchers from Australia,
Dr. Donna Couzens and Ms. Shiralee Poed
(Griffith University, Brisbane). Landmark
College, in the United States, is accredited
to exclusively teach students with learning
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disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder and related disorders. This project
will review UDI approaches within each
cultural base, the United States, Australia
and Japan. The aim of the project is to
identify key elements of a higher education
system that are required to effectively
support diverse learners. The research team
recently spent two weeks in September,
2009 interviewing staff and students of
Landmark College about their learning and
teaching experiences in this unique higher
education setting. Similar interviews will be
conducted in December, 2009 with staff at
Griffith University and, in February, 2010,
with staff at Kagoshima University.
Cultural and institutional similarities and
differences will be considered as researchers
from each of these countries report on their
observations and research findings at each
institution. The research project is funded
by the Heiwa Nakajima Foundation from
April, 2009 to March, 2010 (the Japanese
school year).
Meltzer, Lynn:
Past-president of the
IARLD, Dr. Lynn Meltzer is the chair of the
25th Anniversary Learning Differences
Conference entitled Teaching Students to
Learn HOW to Learn: 25 Years of Theory
and Practice. The annual conference is cosponsored by Research ILD and the Harvard
Graduate School of Education, and will take
place on March 19 & 20, 2010. The 25th
Annual Learning Differences Conference
provides a look back at the past 25 years of
research and practice and a look forward to
the development of novel, innovative
approaches for the next 25 years. The
program focuses on cutting-edge methods
for individualizing the teaching process to
address the diverse needs of students with
learning and attention difficulties. Within
this context, the conference addresses the
recent work on motivation, effort,
persistence, resilience, and executive
function. Other IARLD members who will
be presenting at the conference include
Margo Mastropieri and Don Deshler.
Tannock, Rosemary: IARLD Fellow,
Dr. Rosemary Tannock will be receiving an
award from USA parent organization for
ADHD (CHADD) at their upcoming
conference in Cleveland Ohio, Oct 8-10.
She will be inducted into the CHADD Hall
of Fame. She will also present in one of the
pre-conference Institutes on her most recent
research on neuroimaging of sensory
processing in ADHD, which was published
recently:
Dockstader, C., Gaetz, W., Cheyne, D.,
Tannock, R. (2009). Abnormal Neural
Reactivity to Unpredictable Sensory
Events in AttentionDeficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.
Biological Psychiatry, 66 (4), 376-383
Wheldall, Kevin: IARLD Fellow and
Professor at Macquarie University, Sydney,
Australia. At the fifth annual Macquarie
University Innovation Awards, held on 7
May 2009, Dr. Kevin Wheldall won the
most coveted award in recognition of a
lifetime of improving educational outcomes
for children with learning difficulties.
Professor Wheldall’s induction into the
Innovators’ Hall of Fame – the first to occur
in three years – was based on the success of
his Making Up Lost Time In Literacy
(MULTILIT) initiative.
His recent
publications (2009) include:
Special issue
Wheldall, K., & Madelaine, A. (Eds.)
(2009). Assessment for effective literacy
instruction with low-progress students.
Australian
Journal
of
Learning
Difficulties, 14.
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Edited book
Wheldall, K. (Ed.) (2009). Developments in
educational
psychology.
London:
Routledge.
Book chapters
Wheldall, K. (2009). When will we ever
learn? Or the elephant in the classroom.
In K. Wheldall (Ed.), Developments in
educational
psychology.
London:
Routledge.
Beaman, R., Wheldall, K., & Kemp, C.
(2009). Recent research on troublesome
classroom behaviour. In K. Wheldall
(Ed.), Developments in educational
psychology. London: Routledge.
Beaman, R., & Wheldall, K. (2009).
Teachers’ use of approval and
disapproval in the classroom. In K.
Wheldall (Ed.), Developments in
educational
psychology.
London:
Routledge.
Wheldall, K., & Bradd, L. (2009).
Classroom seating arrangements and
classroom behaviour. In K. Wheldall
(Ed.), Developments in educational
psychology. London: Routledge.
Madelaine, A., & Wheldall, K. (2009).
Teacher
judgment
of
reading
performance. In K. Wheldall (Ed.),
Developments
in
educational
psychology. London: Routledge.
Refereed journal articles
Reynolds, M., Wheldall, K. & Madelaine,
A. (2009). The devil is in the detail
regarding the efficacy of Reading
Recovery: A rejoinder to Schwartz,
Hobsbaum,
Briggs,
and
Scull.
International Journal of Disability,
Development and Education, 56, 17-35.
Reynolds, M., Wheldall, K. & Madelaine,
A. (2009). Building the WARL: The
development
of
the
Wheldall
Assessment of Reading Lists, a
curriculum-based measure designed to
identify young struggling readers and
monitor their progress. Australian
Journal of Learning Difficulties, 14, 89111.
Lee, L. W., Wheldall, K., Beaman, R., &
Madelaine, A. (2009). A conceptual
framework for remedial reading
instruction for low progress early readers
in the Malay language. Asia Pacific
Journal of Speech, Language and
Hearing, 12, 57-70.
Lee, L. W., & Wheldall, K. (2009). An
examination of the simple view of
reading among beginning readers in
Malay. Reading Psychology, 30, 250264.
Wheldall, K. (2009). Effective instruction
for socially disadvantaged low-progress
readers: The Schoolwise program.
Australian
Journal
of
Learning
Difficulties, 14, 151-170.
PLEASE SEND YOUR NEWS
BRIEFS
to the Editor of IARLD Updates,
Olga Jerman
[[email protected]]
Pertinent news includes:
Grants received; current research and
publications; new positions; award or
scholarship announcements; book “briefs”
from members; upcoming conferences;
manuscript submissions.
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LD AROUND THE WORLD
The Case of English as a Foreign Language (EFL)
and Learning Disabilities (LD)
Carol Goldfus, Ph.D.
Head, Adam Research Center for Language Abilities and Multilingualism
Levinsky College of Education, Tel Aviv
Introduction
Can pupils who have dyslexia learn a
foreign language or should they be given an
exemption? This question posed in many
articles about learning a foreign language, is
not relevant in Israel where English as a
Foreign Language is a requirement both at
the school leaving - and at the higher
education level. It is compulsory for pupils
in Israeli schools to pass English in order to
receive a matriculation certificate, and
reaching an advanced level of reading
academic texts is the requirement in order to
graduate at a tertiary education level.
Therefore, the choice of whether to learn
and teach English as a Foreign Language
does not exist in Israel.
The difficulties that the typical pupils
grapple with are exacerbated in those
populations
where
mother
tongue
proficiency has not been attained as, for
example, in those pupils with dyslexia. I will
be relating to the pupils in the mainstream
and not in special education. The majority of
children with learning disabilities in Israel
are in the regular system.
Background: EFL an international issue
Mastery of English is becoming essential.
Indeed, it is generally recognized as the
lingua franca, and, accordingly, foreign
language teaching, which has often been
placed on the backburner as the 'stepchild' of
education (Swaffar, 2003), can no longer be
regarded as a peripheral issue but, has taken
its place at centre stage. Around the world,
monolingualism seems to be the exception
rather than the rule. Countries such as
England, Luxembourg and Canada have
become multilingual, and, of course,
multiple languages can also be heard in the
schools of these countries. Geva (2005)
notes that cities like New York, London, and
Toronto, now provide services to children
from as many as twenty-seven different
language groups.
The increasing number of English Language
Learners (ELL) (Alfred Barletta, &
Klingner, 2006) in the schools as a result of
migration has created a new group of
learners whose presence in turn requires
rethinking aspects of teacher education
(Costa, McPhail, Smith & Brisk, 2005). In
the European Union, for example, some
countries have made provision for the
teaching of EFL at the primary school level,
while others are in the process of making
important
decisions
regarding
the
introduction of foreign languages into the
curriculum (Raya, Faber, Gewehr, Peck,
2001). Literacy acquisition in the twentyfirst century includes more than just learning
to decode; language acquisition demands
complex reading and writing skills in order
to function and literacy, the buzzword in
education, includes the knowledge of
English - hence the importance of acquiring
English as a foreign language has intensified
throughout the world.
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As early as the early 1970 seventies,
Dinklage, (1971) pointed out that the foreign
language problem was as much a problem of
pedagogy as it was a learning difficulty. In
recent years, teaching a foreign language to
students with language learning disabilities
has been called the "ultimate foreign
language
challenge"
(DiFino
and
Lombardino, 2004; Sparks, Schneider and
Ganschow, 2002). The reason has to do
with the ways in which instruction of second
language learners and of children with
language learning difficulties are handled in
schools.
Although
alternative
multi-sensory
approaches such as the Orton Gillingham
method, from Alpha to Omega, the Hickey
method, and the LCDH all relate to teaching
learning-disabled students how to decode,
and research has shown that students with
learning disabilities learn how to decode by
using
a
multi-sensory
approaches
(Ganschow and Meyer, 1988; Goulandris,
2003), learning disability experts are rarely
prepared to teach foreign language and
foreign language instructors are rarely
prepared to address the problems that are
associated with learning disabilities. Hence,
foreign language instructors often have
difficulty teaching those learning-disabled
students who are in their classrooms. As
DiFino and Lombardino, (2004:391) write,
"an enormous void exists in this area
particularly with respect to the development
of alternative methodologies for facilitating
the success of students with learning
disabilities in learning an L2.”
In this short paper, I will focus on the
situation in Israel regarding those
populations and our attempts at trying to fill
the void. In all cases, I will be talking about
those pupils in mainstream education and
not those in special education.
Ministry of Education
Israel has a centralized Ministry of
Education. As such EFL/LD concerns the
Chief Inspector for English in the
mainstream. There is also a national
counselor who advises the inspectorate on
English and learning disabilities, and who is
directly involved in giving accommodations
in English to those pupils who have been
diagnosed as learning disabled.
These
accommodations
include
all
pupils
particularly those who are sitting for the
matriculation
examinations.
These
modifications may be, for example, time
extension, listening to the examination on
tape, and, in the case of those with severe
dyslexia, the pupils are given the right to be
examined orally. The national counselor also
advises educational counselors and teachers
regarding the results and recommendations
of an educational assessment and advises
them regarding each individual pupil.
Courses in Teacher Education
There are many courses in EFL/LD at
Colleges of Education to train and sensitize
in-service teachers and pre-service students
so as to develop a new cadre of teachers
who are able to cope with diverse
populations in a multilingual/ multicultural
setting. Most of these courses provide
training in teaching decoding and beginning
reading at the elementary level for those
pupils who have difficulties. In some cases,
the methods that are used in teaching EFL
have been adapted for Hebrew and in some
cases, even for mathematics. Over the last
fifteen years, EFL/LD is a field that is taught
in all the teacher education colleges and
some of the universities have included
courses in understanding the difficulties of
those pupils with difficulties and how to
meet the needs of the pupils.
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Modifications and accommodations
There
are
modifications
and
accommodations provided at all levels from
the elementary school through the secondary
school and even at the university level.
However, no standardized EFL readingrelated assessments have as yet been
developed, although this is an area which is
being researched and assessment tools are
currently being researched and normed. I
am involved in the only program training inservice teachers in bilingual assessment and
we are currently carrying out research to
develop tools so that the teachers can not
only assess the difficulties, but can also
provide intervention programs which are
tailored according to the needs of the
particular pupil in at least two languages.
High stakes tests and the LD population
As stated previously, finishing secondary
school successfully depends on passing the
EFL examination. This is true, too, of
entrance to the university. No one can study
at the university without having passed
English as a Foreign Language examination
at the highest level. Furthermore, as most of
the academic texts required in all courses are
in English, courses are provided at the
universities to enable the students to reach
the level of reading proficiency which gives
them an ‘exemption’ which is equivalent to
the psychometric examination cutoff
required for admission to the universities.
Needless to say, those students who have
learning disabilities find great difficulty in
coping with this requirement. Recently, a
battery of tests and a diagnostic system
based on them for the diagnosis of
university applicants' learning disabilities
and those of students have been developed
and implemented at most universities in
Israel. These tests relate to Hebrew as a
mother tongue and not English as a Foreign
Language (Ben Simon, 2001). No one can
graduate without the ‘ptor’, attaining the
exemption level of EAP, nor can anyone
continue to a second degree without this
requirement.
Support Centers
All universities in Israel have support
centers and some colleges do so too. More
and more teachers are being trained in
multisensory methods and these are
constantly being developed and adapted for
the needs of the pupils in the classroom.
However, classes are over-crowded with as
many as forty pupils in a class and the
number of pupils who need and require
attention and direct teaching is also
extensive. In many cases, the teachers
providing the support are unable to cope
with the numbers and demands of those in
need of services. As we are referring here
specifically to a foreign language, many
problems arise and in some cases it is
difficult to separate the learning disabled
difficulties from those with foreign language
difficulties.
However, more and more
private schools are being set up which are
geared to the learning -disabled populations.
These schools are geared particularly to the
needs of the older, adolescent learners,
where the environment, smaller classrooms,
individual tuition and social framework is
more conducive to learning.
In recent years, special classes have been set
up at the junior high and secondary school
level which have a high proportion of pupils
with learning disabilities and the teachers
work differently. Great emphasis has been
placed on differential teaching. However,
teachers feel that they do not have the tools
for teaching these populations of pupils;
they want magic tools which are,
unfortunately, not always available. Thus
much research at this stage is being carried
out at the teacher education level.
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Assistive Technology
The use of technology has been shown to be
effective in a wide range of areas (Ashton,
2005; Edyburn, 2004; Okolo, Cavalier,
Ferretti, & MacArthur, 2000) in all
populations of students. It has also proved
effective in assisting LD students perform
better and more accurately, gain knowledge
and confidence, gain independence in
performing tasks, achieve better.
Many teachers are beginning to use assistive
technology in order to help these students
meet the foreign language requirement at the
college level (Goldfus & Gotesman,
forthcoming). And using AT has just begun
to enter the school system to provide support
for LD pupils in the classrooms from
elementary through to secondary school.
Intervention Programs
Intervention programs based on the Hickey
method have been adapted and developed in
Israel. These, however, only provide a
solution to teaching decoding through
multisensory teaching and mainly within the
elementary schools and the teachers who
teach the younger learners. Meeting the
needs of the adolescent learners is still a
problem and one that is being currently
research and not many programs exist
(Goldfus, 2001).
Current research
I would like to conclude with a summary of
some of the work that has been done in the
field of the development of assessment tools
for EFL young and adolescent learners
(Kahn-Horwitz, 2004), through to the
development of diagnostic reading tests for
the whole class identifying at-risk pupils
(Deutsch, 2004)). Many students who study
English as a foreign language for a number
of years do not acquire sufficient literary
skills in English to function in a regular
heterogeneous classroom. An efficiently
administered reliable and valid assessment
tool must be readily available to identify
these at-risk students. Three levels of
'diagnostic' reading tests whereby whole
classes can be effectively tested in a general
classroom lesson, using a standardized test
and administered by the classroom teacher
have been compiled and are being
researched as an efficient alternative to the
educational assessment carried out on a oneto one situation.
Once the identification of the at-risk learner
has been done, the teacher must intervene
effectively so that the pupil will be able to
cope with the demands of the system. The
principles of a multisensory decoding
program adapted for English as a foreign
language has been developed and found to
be highly successful. This intervention
program enables the dyslexic learner to
acquire beginner EFL text comprehension,
which is effective both in a one-to-one
situation as well as in an inclusive
heterogeneous classroom setting Roffman,
2004).
Providing intervention programs for the
struggling adolescent learners has not yet
been adequately addressed. Tools are being
developed and researched to provide an
evidence base for educational practice in the
field of bilingualism and dyslexia among
adolescent learners (Goldfus, 2001; 2006;
submitted)
Conclusion
I have summarized some of the main issues
in EFL and LD in Israel. Some of the
challenges of this new field dictated partially
by globalization have been addressed.
There still remains a tremendous amount of
work ahead. We have only just begun to
relate to the challenges of learning a foreign
language in those populations of students
who find learning a language difficult.
11
References
Alfred, J.; Barletta, L.M.; Klingner, J.K.,
(2006). English Language Learners who
struggle
with
reading:
language
acquisiton or LD? Journal of Language
Disabilities, March, 2006
Ashton , T.M. (2005). Students with
learning disabilities using assistive
technology in the inclusive classroom.
In D. Edyburn, K. Higgins, & R. Boone
(Eds.), Handbook of special education
technology research and practice (pp.
229–238).
Whitefish
Bay,
WI:
Knowledge by Design.
Ben Simon, A. (2001).Learning Disabilities:
A Psychometric Perspective.
Paper
presented at the 27th Annual IAEA
Conference, Rio de Janeiro.
Costa, J., McPhail, G. Smith, J., & Brisk,
ME. (2005) The challenge of infusing
the teacher education curriculum with
scholarship on English language
learners. J Teacher Education 56:104118.
Deutsch, R. (2004). Diagnostic Reading
Tests for Identifying At-Risk Students .
Symposium: From FL Decoding to Reading
Comprehension: Research and Practice.
BDA International Conference, England
DiFino, S.M. and Lombardino, L.J. (2004).
Language Learning Disabilities: The
Ultimate Foreign Language Challenge.
Foreign Language Annals, Volume 37,
no.3.
Edyburn, D. L. (2004). 2003 in review: A
synthesis of the special education
technology literature. Journal of Special
Education Technology, 19(4), 57–80.
Faber, P., Gewehr, W., Raya, M.J., & Peck
A.J. (Eds). (2001). Effective Foreign
Language Teaching at the Primary
Level. P. Lang, Germany.
Ganschow, L. and Myer, B. (1988). Profiles
of frustration: Second Language
Learnerswith
specific
learning
disabilities. In J. Lalande (Ed.), Shaping
the Future of Foreign Language
Education (pp. 32-53). Lincolnwood, IL:
National Textbook
Goldfus, C. & Gotesman, E. (forthcoming).
The Impact of Assistive Technologies
on the Reading Outcomes of College
Studetns with Dyslexia.
Goldfus, C. (2001). Reading Comprehension
and EFL Adolescent Students with
Diffficulties: Exploring a Cognitive
Processing Model. Unpublished doctoral
thesis: University of Birmingham,
United Kingdom
Goldfus,
C.
(2004).
Reading
Comprehension: Taking the Dyslexic
Students one step further. Symposium:
From FL Decoding to Reading
Comprehension: Research and Practice.
BDA International Conference, England
Goldfus, C. (2006). Teacher Education in
English as a Foreign Language:
Responding to a Changing Context.
Proceeding
from
international
conference. Preparing Teachers for a
Changing Context. University of
London, United Kingdom
Goldfus, C. (submitted). The New
Professionalism of the Foreign Language
Teacher
Goulandris, N. (2003). Dyslexia in Different
Languages:
Cross
Linguistic
Comparisons. London: Whurr
Geva, E. (2005). Keynote speaker at Third
International
Multilingualism
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The Development of Literacy skills in
Normally developing and At-risk L2
Learners: From Research to Practice
Communications of the ACM, 48(7), 97-101.
Kahn-Horwitz, J. (2004). Predictors of
Successful EFL Learning. Symposium:
From FL Decoding to Reading
Comprehension: Research and Practice.
Proceeedings from BDA International
Conference, England.
12
Okolo, C. M., Cavalier, A. R., Ferretti, R. P.,
& MacArthur, C. A. (2000). Technology
literacy and disabilities: A review of the
research. In R. Gersten, E. P. Schiller, &
S. Vaughn (Eds.), Contemporary special
education research: Syntheses of the
knowledge base on critical instructional
issues (pp. 179–250). Mahwah, NJ:
Erlbaum.
Raya, M.J.; Faber, P.; Wolf, G.; Peck,
A.J.(Eds). Effective Foreign Language
Teaching at the Primary Level. Peter
Lang, Germany
Roffman, N. (2004). A Multisensory
Decoding Program Adapted for EFL
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Symposium: From FL Decoding to Reading
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Proceeedings from BDA International
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Swaffar, J. (2003). Foreign languages: A
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35:20-2
IARLD NEW MEMBER
INTERVIEWS
IARLD Fellow – Brian R. Bryant
Affiliation:
Meadows Center for
Educational Risk, The University of Texas
at Austin
Research Position:
Program Manager,
Three Tier Mathematics Project
Nominated by Dr. Marjorie Montague (October
2009).
What are your current research interests?
Research interests involve all matters of
psycho-educational assessment of people
with disabilities, and service provision for
individuals with learning disabilities and
mental retardation, particularly with regards
to reading, mathematics, and assistive
technology applications throughout the
lifespan.
GOALS WITHIN THE IARLD
To increase the visibility, impact, and
sphere of influence of the Academy by:
1) Increasing our membership through
ongoing membership drive initiatives.
2) Encouraging IARLD Fellows and
Members to list the IARLD as an additional
affiliation on all publications in journals,
books, and newspapers.
3) Encouraging IARLD Fellows and
Members to list the IARLD as an additional
affiliation on all conference presentations.
How did you hear about the IARLD? What
made you decide to join?
Marjorie Montague would bring flyers to
PCRC, and we attended the Toronto
conference and enjoyed the people, the
dialogue, and the travel.
13
Would you tell us something about your
professional background and what you are
doing now?
After teaching special education students for
3 years in Maine, 2 years in Grades K-8, and
1 year in Grades 9-12, I moved to Texas to
work on my doctorate at The University of
Texas at Austin. While a student, I served
as Dr. Donald Hammill's Research Assistant
at a fledgling company (at the time) called
Pro-Ed. After graduating in 1984, I stayed
on as the Director of Research at Pro-Ed. I
also have served as an adjunct faculty
member at The University of Texas at
Austin and Florida Atlantic University, and
served an interesting year as the Director for
the Office for Students with Disabilities at
Florida Atlantic. I've also been a Research
Fellow at The University of Texas' Vaughn
Gross Center for Reading and Language
Arts. I have served on three editorial boards
(Diagnostique,
Learning
Disability
Quarterly, and the Journal of Learning
Disabilities), and I've also been invited to
serve as guest editor for several other
journals. I've made over 100 presentations
at state, local, and international conferences,
and have over 100 publications (journals,
books, and book chapters).
What are your personal hobbies or special
interests?
Family mostly; we have four kids and three
grandkids and we enjoy doing the
grandparenting things.
We also enjoy
dancing, going to the movies, eating out, and
I've been known to lose my share of golf
balls over the years. And, of course,
attending UT sporting events. We have
season tickets for football, baseball, and
men's and women's basketball; and we are
ardent fans.
IARLD Fellow – Dianne P. Bryant
Affiliation: University of Texas at Austin
and the Meadows Center for Preventing
Educational Risk
Research Position: Research Professor
Nominated by Dr. Marjorie Montague (October
2009).
What are your current research interests?
My current research areas of interest include
the development of assessment measures to
identify students who are at-risk for early
mathematics difficulties and the validation
of early mathematics interventions. I serve
as the Principal Investigator for an Institute
of Education Sciences-funded Goal 2 grant
involving
the
development
and
implementation of early mathematics
interventions for Tier II and Tier IIIidentified students in the primary grades. I
am also interested in the development and
testing of interventions which include
instructional design components that
potentially can improve the learning
trajectories of older students with
mathematics disabilities and related
cognitive processing deficits.
How did you hear about the IARLD? What
made you decide to join?
I heard about IARLD through colleagues,
Dr. Marshall Raskind and Dr. Marjorie
Montague. I was very impressed with the
scholarly nature of the meeting last summer
14
and the international
learning disabilities.
perspectives
of
Would you tell us something about your
professional background and what you are
doing now?
I am a Professor in the Department of
Special Education, a Fellow in the Cissy
McDaniel Parker Fellow Fund, a member of
the Board of Directors for the Meadows
Center for Preventing Educational Risk,
principal investigator of a response to
intervention grant from the Institute of
Education Sciences, project director for the
3-Tier Mathematics Project, and the
coordinator of the assistive technology lab in
the College of Education. I have worked in
the area of assistive technology on various
projects including writing book chapters,
maintaining a state of the art AT lab, and
working with doctoral candidates on AT
studies. I have published numerous articles
on instructional strategies for students with
learning disabilities in refereed journals such
as Learning Disability Quarterly, Journal of
Learning Disabilities, and Remedial and
Special Education. I am the co-author of
three textbooks and three tests. I am the coauthor of Teaching Students with Special
Needs in Inclusive Classrooms (2008, Allyn
& Bacon). Most recently, I have been
involved in research studies involving the
neuropsychological aspects of mathematical
learning disabilities, the development of
assessment measures to identify students
who are at-risk for early mathematics
difficulties, and the validation of early
mathematics interventions for Tier II & Tier
III-identified students in the primary grades.
I am currently investigating response to
early
mathematics
instruction
in
kindergarten, first, and second grade diverse
classes.
What are your personal hobbies or special
interests?
I am learning salsa dancing and enjoy
remodeling projects around the house.
IARLD Member – Irina Tzoneva
Affiliation: University of the Fraser Valley
Research Position: Instructor
Nominated by Dr. Maureen Hoskyn (November
2008).
What are your current research interests?
Memory development, intervention for
children at risk for academic difficulties,
learning disabilities in children, international
perspectives of learning disabilities,
computer-supported learning. academically.
How did you hear about the IARLD? What
made you decide to join?
I heard about IARLD from Dr. Bernice
Wong during my first year of doctoral
studies at Simon Fraser University. I could
not wait to have completed my course work
and comprehensive exams so I could join
IARLD and collaborate with other
researchers in the field of learning
disabilities.
Would you tell us something about your
professional background and what you are
doing now?
My background is in Speech Language
Pathology and Educational Psychology.
Currently, I am in the final stages of my
doctoral studies.
What are your personal hobbies or special
interests?
My personal hobbies are reading, listening
to world music, traveling, hiking and skiing.
15
MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSIONS
THALAMUS is the official journal of the
IARLD.
Thalamus contains primarily
articles contributed by the membership (and
colleagues) and focuses especially on issues
related to learning disabilities in a global
context. In 1994, after the death of IARLD
Founder, Bill Cruickshank, the IARLD
initiated the Cruickshank Memorial Lecture
at conferences and began publishing the
keynote address in Thalamus. For further
information about submission guidelines,
contact
Dr.
Nicole
Ofiesh
[[email protected]] or Dr. Charles Hughes
[[email protected]].
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
FOR
34RD IARLD CONFERENCE
JANUARY 14-16, 2010
Don't miss the 34th Annual IARLD
Conference! It will be held in Miami
Florida, USA. The program will include
three presentation formats: interactive
posters,
symposia,
and
roundtable
discussions. Stay tuned to the IARLD and
conference websites for further information.
[www.eenz.com/iarld09]
DOCTORAL AWARD
COMPETITION
Doctoral students will have an
opportunity to participate in
IARLD doctoral award
competition that will take place
in Miami, Florida in January
2010. The awardee would
present his/her paper at that
conference.
16
Editor’s note
Addendum to News from IARLD Members
The following piece of news was inadvertently omitted from the recent edition of IARLD Updates
Vogel, Susan A.: IARLD Fellow and Past President, Distinguished Research Professor Emerita,
Northern Illinois University. Dr. Vogel has licensed four online questionnaires to AHEAD (The
Association on Higher Education and Disabilities). They are called the Assessment of Campus
Climate to Enhance Student Success (ACCESS) and were developed to gather information
regarding faculty, administration, staff, students with disabilities, and students without disabilities'
knowledge, practices, and attitudes regarding students with disabilities. The questionnaires, a
manual for administration, and an accompanying CD-Rom are available from AHEAD. The
following articles describes the development of ACCESS and related research:
Vogel, S. A., Holt, J. K., Sligar, S., & Leake, E. (2008). The assessment of campus climate to
enhance student success. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 21(1), 15-31.
If you are interested in learning more about ACCESS or distributing the questionnaires on your
campus, go to http://www.ahead.org/resources/access-questionnaire or email
[email protected].
Editor’s note
Correction to Member’s Committee report
Correction was made to Member’s Committee Report (page 2). The
last paragraph should read: “In addition, the Committee determined
that one individual who had self-nominated would not be accepted
as a member of the International academy for research in Learning
Disabilities at this time” instead of: “In addition, the Committee
determined that individuals seeking membership must be nominated
by IARLD member. They can no longer be self-nominated.”
I apologize for my misunderstanding of the provided information
17
IARLD President
James Chapman [[email protected]]
Massey University, Palmerston North
NEW ZEALAND
Publications
Janette Klingner, Chair
[[email protected]]
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO
UNITED STATES
Immediate Past IARLD President
Lynn Meltzer [[email protected]]
Institute for Learning & Development and
ResearchILD, Lexington, MA
UNITED STATES
Olga Jerman, Editor – IARLD Updates
[[email protected]]
The Frostig Center, Pasadena, CA
UNITED STATES
Vice President and President-Elect
Judith Wiener [[email protected]]
University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario
CANADA
Rosemary Tannock, Assistant Editor – IARLD
Updates
[[email protected]]
University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario
CANADA
Vice President for Fellows
Marshall Raskind [[email protected]]
Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation,
San Mateo, CA, UNITED STATES
Vice President for Members
Christa van Kraayenoord
[[email protected]]
University of Queensland, Queensland
AUSTRALIA
Nicole Ofiesh, Editor – Thalamus
[[email protected]]
Notre Dame de Namur University, Belmont, CA
UNITED STATES
Charles Hughes, Editor – Thalamus
[[email protected]]
Penn State University, University Park, PA
UNITED STATES
Vice President for Student Members
Henry B. Reiff [[email protected]]
McDaniel College, Westminster, MD
UNITED STATES
John McNamara, Web Manager
[[email protected]]
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK
CANADA
Vice President for Conferences and
International Development
Malka Margalit [[email protected]]
Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv
ISRAEL
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Secretary
Lynda Price [[email protected]]
Temple University, Philidelphia, PA
UNITED STATES
Treasurer
Lynda J. Katz [[email protected]]
Landmark College, Putney, VT
UNITED STATES
Paul Gerber [[email protected]]
Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
UNITED STATES
Carol Goldfus [[email protected]]
Levinsky College of Education, Tel Aviv,
ISRAEL
Marjorie Montague [[email protected]]
University of Miami, Flordia
UNITED STATES
Hana Tur-Kaspa [[email protected]]
Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv
ISRAEL