Abstract
Research Findings: The presence of Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) increases the risk of scholastic failure. According to the literature, a successful relationship with the teacher can lead to greater participation, raise the pupil’s motivation in school activities and have a positive effect on learning outcomes. Hence the aim of this study: to investigate teachers’ perception of the relationship with primary school pupils in Years 2 and 3 who have SLD (n = 38) and to compare it with that of pupils without SLD, with an achievement level that is the same as (n = 38) or the opposite from (n = 32) the achievement of their peers diagnosed or considered as having specific learning disabilities. Teachers’ perceptions of relationships were examined using the Student Teacher Relationship Scale (Fraire, Longobardi, Prino, Sclavo, & Settanni, in press; Pianta, 2001). The teachers perceive a higher level of Dependency for pupils with SLD (F = 14.252; df = 2; p < .001), in particular for those who do not yet have an official diagnosis (t = 2.529; df = 62.367; p < .05). This research has enabled a start to be made on an issue that in the Italian context has yet not received the attention it deserves.
Highlights
The nosographic category of specific learning disabilities, conventionally identified with the acronym Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD), is related to the developing clinical condition and excludes acquired learning pathologies.The disabilities analysed interfere significantly both with the learning exercises done at school and with the activities of daily life involving reading, writing and arithmetic
The results of the analyses suggest that the difficulties caused by the learning disability should be seen as the reason for the high scores on Dependency given to pupils with SLD, since their medium-low achievement level alone does not appear to have a significant effect
This conclusion was reached by comparing the data concerning relationships with experimental group (EG) pupils with relationships involving pupils without SLD but having the same achievement level as the EG group
Summary
The disabilities analysed interfere significantly both with the learning exercises done at school and with the activities of daily life involving reading, writing and arithmetic. In order to make a diagnosis of SLD, the DSM-IV TR states that the achievement level in reading, writing and arithmetic tests is far lower than the level expected in terms of intellectual development and schooling. This highlights the criterion of the gap between the abilities that appear to be compromised, general intelligence and achievement cutoff points
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