The History of Learning Disabilities

Much of what we know about learning disabilities comes from the 20th century. Prior to the 1900s, terms like ADHD and “learning disability” had not existed. What kicks off studies concerning learning differences is a German physician, Rudolf Berlin, who chose to define reading difficulties with the term “dyslexia”. Though Berlin used this term in 1887, the term was not commonly used throughout the United States until a little over forty years later.

Concurrently, Lancet, a British medical journal published a poem called “The Story of Fidgety Philip” in 1902. This publication is considered one of the first mentions of ADHD in a medical journal. Approximately 50 years later, the FDA approves Ritalin, methylphenidate (MAO), as a treatment for depression and fatigue. To better understand how Ritalin works with ADHD, we should first understand how ADHD is currently defined.

ADHD is the poor unfolding of the management systems in the brain. Ritalin is considered to be a mild stimulant to the central nervous system. The drug takes action at the noradrenaline and dopamine transporters by acting as a reuptake inhibitor. This is similar to how depression is treated with SSRIs. Essential by having Ritalin regulate dopamine levels, it helps control which neurons will fire, and thus improves learning by focusing attention. If too many neurons are firing, it's hard to stay on task. By cutting down the amount of neurons firing, we are able to create controlled focus.

So why was Ritalin not being used to treat ADHD in 1955? At this time, ADHD had not been recognized by the medical community. It was only being described as “hyperkinetic” symptoms. In 1963, psychologist Samuel A. Kirk is the first to coin the term “learning disability” at a conference in Chicago. This acts as a catalyst for legislation concerning discrimination of people with disabilities. For example, Congress passed Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 which banned the discrimination against people with disabilities in federally funded programs. In 1975, the Education for all Handicapped Children Act was passed through Congress, which required public schools to provide free education for all students.

Understanding and labeling things proves to be imperative to create reform. We need to understand learning disabilities like dyslexia and ADHD to diagnose, but also treat them. Drugs like Ritalin prove that ADHD is something biological that can be changed and better. By better understanding these learning differences, we can adapt learning to help those affected and create healthy environments where all students can learn and grow.