Parents' and Teachers' Perceptions of Personality Characteristics of Children Selected for Classes for the Learning Disabled

Abstract

Clinical observation of children in classes for learning disabled raises the suspicion that children are selected for such a class not only because of their learning problems but also because they are regarded as hard to manage. Evidence from this study of 43 disabled children suggests that their teachers (n = 8) and their parents focus not only on academic performance but also on activity level, impulse control, attention span, and freedom from distractibility in nominating children for such classes. Moreover, these teachers did discriminate emotionally disturbed children from learning disabled children.