Teachers’ Knowledge of Late-Emerging Reading Disabilities

Teachers play a critical role in the identification and intervention of students with learning challenges. The decision to request support from the in-school team or recommend a student for psychoeducational assessments is subjective. If teachers are unaware of the warning signs and potential causes of difficulties, the student may not receive necessary support. This study examined elementary teachers’ knowledge of the characteristics of Late-emerging Reading Disabilities (LERDs). 63 teachers from Ontario, Canada, completed a questionnaire that included items about fictional students with unexpected comprehension difficulties in Grade 4. Results found that only 29% of teachers reported prior knowledge of a LERD and only 55% expressed some degree of confidence in identifying a LERD profile. When provided cases, more teachers requested additional information about physical conditions (e.g., vision) and social-emotional status in the monolingual context. In contrast, more information about language ability and home language support was requested in the French Immersion context. Only 20 to 30 percent of teachers indicated that they would consult the in-school team to get additional information. Teachers were able to rate identifying the main idea, inferencing ability and vocabulary knowledge as key concerns when a student has comprehension difficulties. However, only a third of teachers proposed teaching approaches that directly targeted comprehension difficulties when asked about supporting the scenario students. These results suggest that there is need for more professional development opportunities to learning about LERDs and how to support students with comprehension difficulties in the classroom.