Developmental Disabilities and Learning Objectives

According to the World Health Organization, in high-income countries, learning and developmental disabilities affect up to 20% of children. Services for these children as well as support and education for their families are essential. Generally, community-based approaches tend to work best, but the types of support needed depend on the specific diagnosis, age and individual needs of the person. Learning objectives will vary depending on these factors as well.

By Diagnosis

• Developmental disability refers to a wide range of disorders that occur in childhood. These span from mild learning disorders to mental retardation to severe autism. These types of disabilities can affect many areas of functioning including thought, behavior and speech and sensory development. Learning objectives vary by diagnosis; for example, for someone with autism, objectives will include increasing socialization skills; while for someone with mental retardation, objectives may include developing specific job skills.

In the Community

• Community-based approaches range from group-home living to living in a semi-supervised setting to living completely independently. For someone living in a group home, learning objectives may include mastering activities of daily living via household tasks. They may also include monitoring certain behaviors in order to get along with others. These objectives will be different for someone living in the community with support, who may be getting assistance learning how to balance a checkbook and pay bills. By contrast, a high-functioning person with a developmental disability may live fully independently in the community, work and even attend college.

At Home

• Many of the learning and developmental goals for children with these types of disabilities are similar to those of other children but need to be modified depending on the individual needs of the child. Due to the nature of developmental disabilities, normal developmental milestones, such as playing with others in organized games or gaining increased independence from parents, may not be met at the same time as other children. Nonetheless, it is healthy for these children to be given learning objectives similar to other children such as upholding household responsibilities, socializing and having the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities if these goals, as well as academic goals, are made with consideration to the child's specific needs and the child is given the specific types of assistance and support that will help him develop his abilities.