Learning Disabilities in Your Community
Learning Disabilities Affect the Whole Community
By supporting and assisting persons with learning disabilities, we also help their families and friends, and our communities too!
- 35% of students identified with a learning disability drop out of high school. This is twice the rate of non-disabled students.
- A study completed in 2007 by the Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta estimates there are more than 44,000 people in the David Thomson Health Region who have a learning disability. 42% of these people are 24 years of age or younger.
- Approximately 15,000 people in this region are diagnosed with AD/HD, 15-20% of which also have been diagnosed with a learning disability.
- Almost 50% of adolescent suicides have previously been diagnosed as having a learning disability.
- Research has shown that 30-70% of young offenders have experienced learning problems.
- Up to 60% of teens in treatment centres for substance abuse have had difficulty in school.
The Learning Disabilities Association of Canada (LDAC) released a recent report, putting a Canadian Face on Learning Disabilities (PACFOLD) about the impact of learning disabilities on the communities. For more information, please visit www.pacfold.ca
Additional Reading
Bowers. Brent. Dec. 6. 2007. The New York Times. Tracing Business Acumen To Dyslexia
(accessed April 27, 2009)
