Monday February 11, 8:07 am Eastern Time
Press Release
Outcomes for Children With Learning Differences Improve When Parents Have
Appropriate Information, Guidance and Support
SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire/ — By reducing the timeframe
between a mother’s initial misgivings about her child’s difficulty
learning and the point at which she actively seeks and receives
information and assistance, children with learning differences can
receive early intervention and gain skills that will enable them to
become successful learners and maintain self-esteem, new research
shows.
Released today, Navigating the LD Journey: A Study on the Experiences
and Needs of Mothers of Children with Learning Differences
demonstrates that there is a pressing need to address the challenges
mothers face in raising a child with learning differences in order to
effectively accelerate both understanding and intervention. The
research was conducted by Schwab Learning, a service of the Charles
and Helen Schwab Foundation.
While medical professionals and teachers are partners in the process
of understanding and identifying learning disabilities (LD) in
children, parents are ultimately responsible for helping their
children understand how LD impacts their learning, nurturing their
self-esteem and finding the resources they need to be successful.
Even when both parents share equally in child-rearing, the research
revealed that mothers carry the primary responsibility of the child’s
education, finding information for herself and locating resources for
her child.
The study, which utilized innovative market research to understand
the needs of parents raising a child with learning differences,
determined that there is a commonality of experience among mothers
that begins with the first “gut feeling” that their child’s
development or learning is different in some way. This experience is
characterized by six key areas where mothers demonstrated the
greatest need for information, guidance and support:
— Initial Awareness: Mothers know instinctively that something is
different with their child’s learning, yet they experience emotions
that make it difficult to take decisive, appropriate and timely
action.
— Seeking Information: Mothers seek information from a variety of
sources, but find little or no guidance as to how to apply the
information to their daily lives or how to evaluate contradictory
approaches.
— Pursuing Identification: Mothers often experience difficulty
getting help for their children — frequently being told to “wait and
see” by family members, pediatricians and even when trying to
initiate an assessment process within the school.
— Gaining Confidence: Mothers initially lack confidence in their
own instincts, and are unable to question the opinions of
pediatricians and teachers. With information, guidance and
experience, however, they become more assured that their instincts
are valid.
— Learning How to Manage: In helping their children manage the
challenge of learning differences, mothers experiment with a variety
of strategies. The resulting “trial and error” frequently causes
personal frustration and family stress.
— Building Self-Esteem: Finding ways to build self-esteem in
children who often become discouraged by their learning differences
is an overriding concern and challenge for mothers.
Mothers in the study identified information as a critical need, but
with clear caveats. They need information written in language that is
easily understood; information presented in a context that they can
compare to the age and stage of their child; information that is
credible — based on validated, independent research — and free of
any commercial agenda.
Mothers also cited a need for guidance that is immediate and
practical, such as tips and strategies to help improve their child’s
learning skills and concentration, to foster social and behavioral
development, and to alleviate spousal and family tensions.
Finally, mothers expressed a need for support from both professionals
and other moms of children with LD who can understand and address
their fears, questions, concerns and frustrations.
The study concludes that accessible and credible information fosters
a mother’s confidence to take action when she first suspects a
learning problem with her child. This confidence is a significant
factor in the effectiveness of her interaction with family members,
teachers and medical professionals. Informed guidance creates a
strong network of support and leads to improved outcomes for both the
child with a learning difference and the mother.
To receive a copy of Navigating the LD Journey: A Study on the
Experiences and Needs of Mothers of Children with Learning Differences
please contact Cathy Dawson at 650-655-2647 or visit the press room
at www.SchwabLearning.org.