Stability of arithmetic disability subtypes

Cross-sectional research has identified subtypes of children with learning disabilities who may have distinctive cognitive ability patterns. This stud y examined the stability over 19 months of academic subtyping classificatio ns for 80 children ages 9 to 13 representing four subtypes of arithmetic di sabilities (AD), using three criteria for learning disability identificatio n. Approximately half of the sample retained AD regardless of identificatio n method. Children with pervasive deficits in arithmetic, reading, and spel ling displayed the greatest subtype stability. Only one third of the childr en with the other subtypes, including those with isolated arithmetic defici ts, retained their original subtypes. Thus, drawing conclusions and making recommendations based on academic subtyping at a single point in time may b e unwise.