Learning difficulties and the role of society

It is estimated, worldwide, that 20 per cent of students have learning difficulties, but that less than 2 per cent have a diagnosis that draws resources and support from governments and educational authorities. Here, if you don’t already know, is a summary of our three most rampant specific learning difficulties.
Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, is not an illness, but a neurological development disorder, or a neurodivergence, that is a consequence, according to researchers, of genetics, birth complications, or older parents. It affects how an individual on the spectrum sees their world, communicates and interacts with others, while also generally taking longer to process new information. Every autistic person is unique in their sensitivity, particularly how they respond to extremes of light, sound, textures and smells.
They are usually intense, with such intensity clear in their need for routine, order, and structure, and in their behaviours, will often exhibit repetitive actions or gestures, while at the same time having trouble with finer motor skills, and appearing uncoordinated. Characteristically, they communicate and interact socially with difficulty, as in initiating and maintaining conversations, due to their inability to interpret social cues, understanding and expressing emotions. They also get tired easily, may appear disinterested quickly and will often ‘fade out,’ or step back from socially intimate situations.
On the other hand, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is, as the name suggests, indicative of its active nature, and being characterised by established patterns of behaviour which can be at the extremes of sociality, such as on one hand having difficulty staying on task, being organised, or being attentive for any length of time. At the other end of the scale, their hyperactivity is evident in their being restless, impatient, in excessive movement and needing to be active, talking too much, and on random topics are common symptoms. Again, conversation and interaction are difficult with impulsive interruptions and intrusions, and an unwillingness to await their turn is evidence of social clue deficits.
ADHD is common among children, and often occurs in conjunction with sleep problems, anti-social behaviours, anxiety, depression, and commonly results in learning difficulties from a young age, classroom and societal disobedience. Significant anti-social behaviours in and out of school, poor grades, and diminishing ‘care factors’ in terms of meeting familial and societal norms will strain relationships.
Of the three main issues facing education, dyslexia is the third, and is different, as its diagnosis extends mainly to education and work, but for life, and though neurobiological by nature, it is not likely to compromise intellect, but rather to cause frustration until order can be found among the chaos of learning. It is likely to have significantly less outward demonstrativeness than ADHD or autism. Commonly, it affects reading, writing and spelling the most at school; mathematics can suffer if insufficient order is shown.
It is often evident in slow reading and confusing words and letters, though coloured paper and overlays have significantly improved the learner’s experiences in reading. They will also be hesitant to read aloud due to issues of phonological awareness, the recognition and manipulation of the very sounds of speech. All in all, dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty, as opposed to being a disability, and those diagnosed with it are commonly still effective learners and achievers, as they tend to commit to the daily challenges of their condition and prove successful in most walks of life.
Statistically, an estimated 1 in 10 children and adolescents globally, or around 800 million, have dyslexia, equally among males and females. Albert Einstein had dyslexia, and half of the current Nasa workforce has it, so clearly it is not harmful, intellectually. Similar statistical analysis finds that around 180 million have autism, while the US Census Bureau’s last estimate was that worldwide, 129 million of that age group (86 million males and 43 million females) have ADHD.
Those figures are staggering! Read and absorb this information and then ask yourself, in a world governed by balance sheets and billionaires, how do global educators support and appropriately resource learners who can barely pronounce these conditions, let alone recognise them, manage them, and still live a full life? Maybe you have the answers... I don’t.