Our Labeled Children: What Every Parent and Teacher Needs to Know About Learning Disabilities

Rating:
Summary: Questioning falls short of what education field needs
Review: After one reads Sternberg and Grigorenko's OUR LABELED CHILDREN, one gets the impression that the hope of future readers is tainted with the muck of politics and scientific research that barely stratches the surface of reading and learning. In the style of Gerald Coles (READING LESSONS), the authors of this book attempt to question increasing trends of labeling children as having learning disabilities by showing how educational practices, sociological pressures, and political and cultural values create a situation where professionals label students with having a sometimes-mythical learning disability.

Where Sternberg and Grigorenko fall short is about halfway through this text. The writing is convincing, and the evidence is plentiful; however, the authors shift in their attempt to reform by depending on scientific "brain" research that tells us less than we can infer from evidence in the classroom. Then, the sales pitch begins. Just when you think the authors are making a case for reformation in the classroom, they hold tight to the phonics-first approach to reading instruction. Compared to Magaret Moustafa's BEYOND TRADITIONAL PHONICS, Sternberg and Grigorenko follow an opposite path, which, in my opinion, does not fully realize the efforts and skills of beginning readers, or what kind of instruction they need.

The beginning of this book sets up some interesting and enlightening arguments against the current system. The authors, then, discredit themsleves in the latter part of the book by using scientific evidence that does not quite reach the standard that the authors, themselves, demand. Be critical when reading this book because there are some great ideas and some not-so-great ideas.

Rating:
Summary: A great book on different levels...
Review: Sternberg has done a good job on different levels in this book. It's very readable and interesting. The only boring part of the book (and unconvincing to me) is the chapter on biological differences among the brains of people who have an LD. There's simply too many kids diagnosed with an LD to fit everyone under one causation.

Sternberg talks about the culture of LD, the politics of being labeled "LD", the dangers of using discrepancy formulas for assessment, and effective pedagogical intervention. This is not an "anti-LD" book; instead Sternberg strikes me like Dr. Diller (author of Running on Ritalin) as a "radical moderate."