ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with discussion of longstanding debates about defining and treating specific learning disabilities (SLDs). It aims to defining, identifying, and differentially diagnosing SLDs-written language (WL) and teaching affected individuals with SLDs-WL. Analyses of language profiles of developing writers in cross-sectional studies of typical language learners in elementary school showed intra-individual differences in relative strengths and weaknesses across these cascading levels of language on word tasks, sentence tasks, and text tasks. V. W. Berninger et al. differentiated between lower-level Executive Functions and higher-level Executive Functions. Recent research supports a conceptual framework in which multi-component Working Memory supports the language learning mechanism that underlies development of aural language, oral language, reading, and writing and their interrelationships. Given the importance of Working Memory (WM) in understanding SLD-WL performance, there is a question as to whether WM can be trained directly. Historically, most cognitive training interventions for children with learning disorders to improve memory functions focus on teaching memory strategies.
