On Being L.D: Perspectives and Strategies of Young Adults

The number of people categorized as learning disabled has mushroomed in the past two decades; learning disabilities now represent the most prevalent handicapping condition in the nation. What is the experience of the many students so labelled? Dr Murphy has culled the recollections of 49 young adults diagnosed - many of them while still at the elementary school level - as learning disabled; at the time of the interviews all were then attending or had graduated from two- or four-year colleges. Their first-hand accounts in On Being LD afford a unique view of the psychological and practical implications of the label, including the strategies these students developed for handling their social relationships, school requirements, job interviews and demands. The inside perspectives of these interviewees, many of them remarkably similar, raise important questions not only about the methods used for assessing learning disabilities, but also current educational practices and policies concerning learning disabled students.