Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Primary School Teachers in Dealing with Learning Disabilities among Children

Learning disabilities are neurologically-based processing problems. These processing problems can interfere with learning basic skills such as reading, writing and/or mathematics. They can also hinder higher level skills such as organization, time planning, abstract reasoning, long or short-term memory and attention. It is essential to realize that learning disabilities can affect an individual"s life beyond academics and can impact relationships with family, friends and in the workplace. The present study aimed at assessing and comparing the knowledge, attitude and practices followed by primary school teachers of government and private schools in dealing with learning disabilities among children. A questionnaire was developed by the investigator to study the demographic characteristics and to assess and compare the knowledge, attitude and practices followed by teachers in dealing with learning disability among primary school children. The sample comprised of 60 primary school teachers, 30 teachers from 4 government and 30 teachers from 4 private schools. The statistical analysis was carried out by applying percentages, mean, standard deviation, chi square and „t" test. The findings of the study revealed that, majority of the respondents (50%) from private schools had moderate level of knowledge, whereas 43.3 percent of respondents from government schools showed inadequate knowledge on learning disabilities. It was found that respondents of government schools in an equal percentage (40 & 40) had unfavorable and moderate level of attitude about learning disabilities whereas, among the respondents of private schools, 46.6 percent of them had moderate attitudes and 36.7 percent of them had a favorable attitude about learning disability in children. It was also revealed that majority of both respondents from private schools (50 %) and government schools (44.4%) had moderate level of practices in dealing with children with learning disability