Leaning Disabilities and Substance Abuse
Essay title: Leaning Disabilities and Substance Abuse
LD and Substance Abuse
Substance abuse has always been a major problem in this country. Drug use amongst children has been a growing dilemma that the government has not been able to deal with adequately. With the constant development of new drugs and medications it is difficult to suggest that the drug problem will ever be eradicated. A study conducted in 2002, found that among 8th graders in the United States: 47% drank alcohol, 31% smoked cigarettes, and 19% used marijuana (
The term substance abuse is defined as “A destructive pattern of substance use leading to clinically significant (social, occupational, or medical) impairment or distress”(
Many researches have asserted that LD’s may lead to behavioral disorders, which can then lead to substance abuse (CASA, 2000). Firstly, I would like to stress that an LD is not in any way an indication of deficit in mental capacity or impairment of the senses and should not be confused with mental retardation or any others mental disability. ADD and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are the most common forms of learning disorders and subsequently are the most frequently studied as well. ADD usually can be acknowledged by a person’s inability to concentrate or by an individual’s impulsive actions. Researchers today are currently trying to develop a relationship between LD and substance abuse through the effects of behavioral disorders but there has not been ample research to support this potential relationship.
The cost to educate a LD child is becoming overwhelmingly expensive due to the necessary requirement of special attention for most LD children. Special yeshiva programs are being established to help these special needs children. One example of a special education program is the Ptach program. The Ptach website claims that “The costs (of supporting a LD student) run in excess of $20,000 per year per child. The fee for resource room services is in excess of $3,000 per year per period (over and above the regular school tuition)” (
One of the most common reactions to untreated LD is poor academic achievement. The frustration that builds in an untreated LD child’s futility in attempting to learn or understand something is unparalleled to any other frustration a child can academically experience in school. A LD child must find a way to release all the festering anger and frustration and in the course of doing so, he or she can be disruptive in class or be destructive to property or people around him or her. As an avenue for dealing