Guide · Understand International
Specific learning disorders: what the word "specific" means
The most important word in "specific learning disorder" is specific. It does not mean "particular": it means the difficulty is explained NEITHER by intellectual disability, NOR by an uncorrected sensory impairment, NOR by inadequate teaching. Understanding that spares a child a great many unfair conclusions.
Key points
- "Specific learning disorder" is the generic term; it covers dyslexia, dyscalculia and disorders of written expression among others.
- "Specific" means the difficulty is not explained by intellectual disability, uncorrected sensory impairment, or inadequate instruction.
- The criteria require at least six months of persistence DESPITE interventions.
- Prevalence estimates vary very widely depending on the criteria used.
- A specific learning disorder does not prevent learning: it changes the route and the cost.
What the main terms cover
- Dyslexia
- A specific learning disorder with impairment in reading: persistent difficulties in word reading accuracy, reading fluency and reading comprehension that cannot be explained by intellectual disability, uncorrected sensory impairment or inadequate educational instruction.
- Dyscalculia
- A pattern of difficulties marked by deficits in processing numerical information, learning arithmetic facts, and performing accurate or fluent calculation.
- Disorders of written expression
- Persistent difficulties with spelling, grammatical accuracy or the organization of written work, beyond what age and teaching received would lead you to expect.
- "Despite interventions"
- The criterion that separates a disorder from a simple delay: the difficulty persists although ordinary support has already been put in place. It is also why early identification does not skip that step.
Why the figures vary so much
Depending on the source you will read that these disorders affect 3 to 5% of children, or 5 to 15%, with for instance 4 to 9% for reading disorders and 3 to 7% for dyscalculia. Wider estimates circulate too.
The spread does not reflect disagreement about whether the phenomenon is real, but about thresholds: at what level of difficulty does one speak of a disorder, and with which instrument is it measured.
So a single figure quoted without its criteria means little. What matters for a given child is the gap between what they produce and what is expected, and what it costs them.
What you can observe
- The gap between what the child understands when spoken to and what they manage to read or write.
- How long a task takes, as much as the final result.
- The tiredness produced by a short exercise.
- What changes when the instruction is read aloud.
- What persists despite the support already in place.
What helps day to day
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Separate what is being assessed from what gets in the way: reading a maths question aloud does not give away the answer.
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Give time rather than lowering the demand, when time is what is missing.
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Reduce the amount of writing without reducing the content: orally, on a keyboard, or scribed by an adult.
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Do not ask a child to copy out what can simply be provided.
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Name what the child succeeds at in that subject: self-doubt sets in fast here.
Go further with AtyKids
Official sources
- PubMed Central · Specific Learning Disorder: Prevalence and Gender Differences
- PubMed Central · Prevalence of Developmental Dyslexia in Primary School Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Information reviewed on August 20, 2026.
Practical AtyKids guidance, distinct from official information. When in doubt, refer to the official source and to the professionals following your child.
AtyKids supports the adult, without ever making a diagnosis or replacing professionals.