Just what is a “learning difference?” Why are people so reluctant to be specific?
This ambiguity is used by both writers and family members when referring to an individual who has some sort of cognitive or information processing disability.
The term learning differences creates questions when one is reading about the subject individual or watching a segment about them on TV or YouTube.
Proponents of this overly-broad and sometimes misleading term might say that perhaps the family members don’t want the specific diagnosis disclosed.
But by concealing the specific diagnosis and instead being vague, such family members are contributing to the stigma that having a cognitive disability is a taboo topic that must be tiptoed around.
JUST SAY THE DIAGNOSIS. This is part of normalizing that people come with all abilities.
Hiding it behind this euphemism does the very opposite of what family members and other advocates want to accomplish: more acceptance.
It’s almost as though they feel some level of shame or embarrassment. It can come across that way even if that’s not true.
Many journalists have jumped on this bandwagon that didn’t exist years ago when stories about people with various cognitive handicaps were told.
If we want to get more literal or nitpicky, we can say that a gifted child – one who academically is several grades ahead of his or her peers but otherwise typical in other aspects of function – has a learning difference as well.
Yes, that’s true. If Abbigayl is 12 but taking high school level classes, she clearly has a learning difference!
If the child’s or adult’s “learning difference” is ADHD plus information processing disorder, then why not just say that?
If it’s autism combined with an intellectual disability, why not reveal that in the story? Why leave readers and viewers wondering?
If the issue is a brain injury from a childhood head trauma, why not say that?
Why not disclose that Joshua has dyslexia and dyscalculia instead of referring to the struggle as a learning difference?
It takes nominal time to explain what these two diagnoses mean. “Learning difference” will leave the reader or viewer totally in the dark.
- Dyslexia: A dyslexic individual may have difficulty recognizing and remembering written words, connecting letters with their corresponding sounds, sounding out unfamiliar words or spelling words accurately.
- Dyscalculia applies to numbers and mathematical concepts. The affected person may have trouble recognizing numbers, understanding quantities, remembering basic math facts, doing calculations, understanding mathematical symbols, working with money or figuring out the steps needed to solve a math problem.
The euphemistic labeling is counterproductive. Just say the specific diagnosis and stop treating the condition like something that should be hidden. This is not the road to inclusion.
