Disability vs difficulties?

[Whyohwhy99]

Can anyone explain the difference between learning difficulties and learning disabilities please?

I think what they are saying is that you have to have an average iq and not have been classed in the intellectual disability range (iq 69 and below). For alot of conditions such as dyspraxia and dyslexia you have to be of average iq to get the diagnosis. So you could be classed as moderate to severe in that condition even when your iq is in the normal range.

Also the only way they would know your iq is if an educational assessment had been done in the past.

Where did you find these equivalences if you don’t mind me asking?
That moderate learning difficulty = mild learning disability and so on.
I haven’t seen that anywhere else.

I don't know what my IQ is. Im pretty sure it's below average though.. but i think theres a difference between lower than average and very low.

@Whyohwhy99I think it would be really difficult for you to assess the extent and root of your issues yourself. Having grown up with it,and probably found some workarounds to help you cope better in life, your expectation of what is “normal” in comparison will be distorted.

as a child I was noted by the doctors as having learning difficulties, however it transpired I was autistic as an adult and diagnosed then with Aspergers. I was only taught basic maths in school.

Yes 100% agree. I know theres something there i know little bits i have been told. But i also don't know any different. Yes i know people have different iq different levels of understanding and levels if education. I definitely know my education is below average. But I don't know where I sit.

In blunt terms. I could confidently say I can do that 20 min recipe. Other people would have finished on 20 mins. I could still be there an hour later. After saying yepni can do it.... not sure if I'm making sense.

https://archive.datadictionary.nhs.uk/DD%20Release%20May%202024/nhs_business_definitions/learning_disability.html

I've found this on Google, but I was told it during my DD's EHCP review when I queried the level of difficulty they had recorded.

Whats all that mean?:

Thank you very much.
That different terminologies are used really doesn’t help people.

It says that the term ‘moderate learning difficulties’ in an educational setting is equivalent to the term ‘mild learning disability’ in a health setting (rough IQ 50 - 70)
I think you said you had the former, so your learning disability is classed as mild in health terms.

It really is a minefield for the layperson, isn’t it, especially as the terminology in other countries is different again.

So for me. Learning difficulty is moderate.
And that normally fits into mild disability?

Even though there seems be a mix in what disability vs difficulty is. Depending on who you talk to.

Yes, that seems to be it.

Again, it really isn't for you to work out @Whyohwhy99 . As an example, my DD has, since age 5, been diagnosed as having moderate learning disability. Her school recorded her as having severe learning difficulties. But a relatively recent IQ test found that she actually performs quite well on some parts of the IQ test but has a really, really low processing speed which pulls her score down. They can all debate it but in the end it's how she functions that matters, not what the test says.

Ok so my ds has autism and moderate language disorder. Hes in year 7 working at year 1 level. Does that tell me anything about IQ?

Well it tells you that he's 6 educational years behind. He's 11/12 and he's working at the level of a 5/6 year old (depending on birth month). So he's about half his age behind his peers. But it doesn't tell you much about IQ just by knowing that because, for example, he might understand but not be able to demonstrate his understanding. He might not be able to read. He might not be able to understand what is said verbally but could understand practical things very well (e.g. how to build a Lego model from pictures). He could have very good self-care skills but struggle with learning, or he could need help with daily living tasks as well as learning.

It's the whole picture that gives an idea of learning disability, not just one thing.

Learning disability means you have three things going on 1) having a low IQ - an IQ is established with psychological tests that measure intelligence 2) the disability must start in childhood 3) the person has difficulty with daily living skills. Learning difficulty has nothing to do with intelligence, it’s harder for people with learning difficulty to learn because they have neuro or sensory processing differences. If no one has diagnosed you with a learning disability you probably don’t have one and it won’t be written in your medical notes. Diagnosing learning difficulty in people with learning disability is different test, that’s why the ADHD service say they don’t assess people with Learning Disability.

I really don’t know enough to say@Whyohwhy99.

But @Lougle is right, it’s complicated. DS’s report from the educational psychologist showed his testing results divided into four sections. In one he scored higher than 95% of people the same age, but in another (working memory) he scored weaker than 95% of people the same age. They don’t give an overall IQ score then, just a modified one.

For the record he doesn’t have an intellectual/learning disability (I hardly know what to call it now). These ‘spiky’ profiles, as they’re called, are very common in someone who has autism or dyslexia or adhd, and he has all of them. He could not cope with school at all.

Ok so say he was an adult brick layer he may know how to build the brick wall but he can't explain the theory side of it on paper or verbally. But he could build it just as well as the person who can explain the theory?

I don't understand 🫠

He might be able to. Think of brick wall building:

Some people can understand the theory of building brick walls and have the practical skills, so they can build any brick wall.

Some people can understand how to build a brick wall but might not be able to understand all of the theory of planning what brick wall to build. So they would need someone to tell them what to build, then they could build it.

Some people can build only the exact brick wall they've been taught to build. So if it's exactly the same as the last one they built, they can do it, but if it's different, they can't.

Some people can understand how to put the parts together if it's made for them, but can't understand how to make the mortar.

Some people don't understand how building a brick wall works at all.

So you need to know what parts they can do and why they can't do the parts they can't do to know how much or what sort of difficulty they have.

Ok that makes sense. Thank you 😊

Your son would have went through a series of tests, in an educational assessment. If he got that test you would have received a copy of his assessment and there would have been an overall iq score. Iq tests online aren't going to give you an accurate score, that would be recognised by anyone. It has to be done by an educational psychologist. Also if you were told you were below average at some stage, that would mean you haven't got an intellectual disability.

My experience as parent of a child with additional needs is that learning disability tends to mean low iq.

A learning difficulty affects the WAY you learn, not your ability to learn. So someone who is dyslexic or has ADHD may need to learn things in a different way, but they can still learn them.

A learning disability impacts your overall capacity to learn, so even with accommodations you may not have the ability to learn something.

I have several conditions that would be classed under learning difficulties, which means that it took me 3 goes to pass my driving test, and I will not remember anything I’m told verbally unless I can write it down, and cannot retain directions at all, however I also have 4 As at A level, a 1st at degree level and a masters. My son has a learning disability and his brain functions very differently, meaning that he would never be able to pass a driving test because he wouldn’t understand all the processes and systems needed to drive, and wouldn’t be able to make the thought processes necessary for academic exams, however he never forgets a person, and has a sense of direction like a homing pigeon.