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A specific cognitive profile, not a general weakness
A learning disability does not reflect an intellectual limitation. It involves one specific area of cognitive functioning, while other abilities remain average or above average. This dissociation is the central feature of the diagnosis and what distinguishes it from other clinical profiles. When high intellectual potential coexists with a learning disability, the profile corresponds to twice-exceptionality, and the assessment is adapted accordingly.
Learning Disabilities Assessment in Montreal
Understanding what slows down learning.
Dyslexia, dysorthographia, and dyscalculia are neurodevelopmental disorders that affect specific areas of learning without explaining the whole cognitive profile. Assessment distinguishes between them, documents them, and opens the door to accommodations that make a real difference.
Clinical Definition
Learning disabilities according to the DSM-5
A learning disability is a specific neurodevelopmental disorder that affects mastery of particular academic skills, such as reading, spelling, or math. Diagnosis requires that the difficulties have persisted for at least six months despite appropriate support, that they exceed what would be expected for age and grade level, and that they are not explained by an intellectual disability, a sensory impairment, or unfavorable educational circumstances. The DSM-5 refers to specific learning disorder and distinguishes dyslexia, dysorthographia, and dyscalculia.
The three specific disorders
Dyslexia, dysorthographia, and dyscalculia
Each of the three learning disabilities affects a specific academic skill and presents a distinct clinical profile. They can appear on their own or in combination.
Dyslexia
A specific reading disorder. It shows up as slow decoding of written words, persistent reading errors, and reading comprehension that is often affected by the effort decoding requires. Dyslexia is the most well documented of the learning disabilities. It persists into adulthood.
Dysorthographia
A specific spelling disorder. It shows up as persistent errors in writing words, including standard spelling and grammatical spelling, that resist typical instruction. It is often associated with dyslexia, to the point that the two diagnoses frequently coexist.
Dyscalculia
A specific disorder of calculation and mathematical reasoning. A lasting difficulty understanding number sense, memorizing numerical facts, performing operations, and reasoning about quantities. It is identified less often than dyslexia, even though it carries significant academic and professional consequences.
Signs that call for an assessment
What can prompt an assessment for a learning disability
Here are signs frequently reported by parents, teachers, or adults themselves that can justify an assessment.
- Persistent delay in learning to read, write, or do math despite regular support
- Slow, laborious reading that exhausts the child or leads them to avoid reading tasks
- Frequent spelling errors that resist correction and learning the rules
- Lasting confusion with number concepts, operations, or solving math problems
- A marked gap between the effort invested and the results achieved in the subjects concerned
- Loss of academic confidence, anxiety around homework, or refusal to go to school
- In adults, persistent difficulties at work or in higher education that suggest a disorder that went unidentified during school years
Academic accommodations
What a diagnosis opens up in terms of accommodations
A formal diagnosis of a learning disability provides access to a range of academic and professional accommodations recognized in Quebec. In elementary and high school, the clinical report supports the creation of an intervention plan or a personalized action plan, which can include extra time, assistive technology tools, adapted assessment methods, or individualized support measures. School teams generally have this framework in place and work with parents to implement it.
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Accommodations at CEGEP, university, and work
The clinical report is also the reference tool for obtaining accommodations at the college, university, and workplace level. At Quebec CEGEPs and universities, adapted services recognize formal diagnoses and grant measures such as extra time on exams, access to reading or spell check software, and personalized support. In the workplace, the report can support a request to adapt a position or task. The report is a lasting deliverable that can be used at several stages of a person’s academic and professional path.
The Assessment in Practice
What a learning disability assessment includes
The assessment combines multiple sources of clinical data to document the precise nature of the disorder and rule out other possible explanations.
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Clinical interview and academic history
Developmental history, a timeline of academic difficulties, a review of interventions already in place, and a cross-check with parent and teacher observations. The interview also documents signs of a possible comorbidity such as ADHD or giftedness.
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Assessment of Intellectual Functioning
Administration of an age-appropriate Wechsler scale, the WISC-V for youth or the WAIS-IV for adults. This measure helps situate general cognitive abilities and confirm that the learning difficulties are not explained by an intellectual disability.
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Tests specific to academic skills
Targeted assessment of reading, spelling, math, or mathematical reasoning depending on the reason for consultation. Results are compared against age and grade norms to quantify the gap observed.
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Integrated Analysis and Report
Integration of the observations to confirm or rule out a diagnosis, specify which form or forms are present, document any comorbidities, and formulate recommendations for the school team, adapted services, or the workplace.
Before you consult
The Most Frequently Asked Questions About the Assessment
If your question isn’t on this list, reach out directly to discuss it.
Dyslexia affects reading, dysorthographia affects spelling, and dyscalculia affects calculation and mathematical reasoning. Each of these is a distinct diagnosis in the DSM-5, although dyslexia and dysorthographia very frequently coexist. A clinical assessment clarifies which one, or which ones, are present in the person being assessed.
A formal assessment is usually possible starting in Grade 2, once formal learning of reading, writing, and math is established enough for a significant delay to be objectively measured. Before this age, certain observations can point in a direction, but a formal diagnosis requires a minimum amount of exposure to instruction. In adults, the assessment can be done at any age.
The process begins with an in-depth clinical interview and the collection of information from the school or workplace. It continues with an assessment of intellectual functioning using a Wechsler scale, along with tests specific to academic skills. The clinical report is presented during a results meeting held by video conference.
Yes. A learning disability frequently coexists with ADHD, and less often with ASD. When it coexists with high intellectual potential, the profile corresponds to twice-exceptionality, which can mask both profiles for a long time. The assessment documents the different dimensions at play at the same time.
Yes. A formal diagnosis of a learning disability is recognized by the disability services offices at Quebec CEGEPs and universities. The clinical report can be used to request accommodations such as extra time on exams, access to support software, and personalized assistance. In the workplace, it can also support a request for accommodations.
Most private insurance plans partially or fully cover assessments carried out by a psychologist who is a member of the Ordre des psychologues du Québec. Fees are eligible for the federal and provincial medical expense tax credit. The exact terms vary from plan to plan and should be confirmed with your insurer before the first appointment.