Using Figurative Language to Assess the Stage of Acceptance of Learning Disability as a Springboard for Treatment of Students with Learning Disabilities

doi:10.4236/ce.2013.46054

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Creative Education

2013. Vol.4, No.6, 376-387

Published Online June 2013 in SciRes (http://www.scirp.org/journal/ce) http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ce.2013.46054

Using Figurative Language to Assess the Stage of Acceptance of

Learning Disability as a Springboard for Treatment of Students

with Learning Disabilities

Sara Givon

Education Department, Lifshitz College for Teachers, Jerusalem, Israel

Email: givonsara@gmail.com

Received March 25th, 2013; revised April 27th, 2013; accepted May 7th, 2013

tion License, which permits unrestricted use, dist ribution, and r eproduction in any medium, provided the o riginal

work is properly cited.

In order to examine the emotional and cognitive processes experienced by adolescents with learning dis-

abilities (LD), twenty tenth grade Israeli students were studied over three years. Data gathered through

in-depth interviews underwent an axial-coding process, and a grounded theory model was constructed.

The findings revealed various coping styles adopted by students throughout the process of accepting the

disability. Participants were asked to use figurative language to describe their method of coping with the

disability. Participants’ choice of phrase, metaphor or image characterized the phase of their acceptance

as well as their coping style. This can be served as an effective tool of detection. Identifying the stage of

students’ acceptance and their coping style may promote optimal treatment for students with LD.

Keywords: Figurative Language; Adolescents with Learning Disabilities; Coping Styles; Grounded

Theory

Introduction

Growing awareness among parents and teachers of the need

of students with learning disabilities to acquire education as a

basic requirement towards obtaining a profession and integrat-

ing into society, led to increased commitment to diagnosis of

LD and hence an increase in dispensations and accommoda-

tions granted to students with LD (Margaolit, Efrati, & Da-

nino, 2002). In addition to accommodations, allocation of re-

sources and educational restructuring are also required, based

on understanding the factors that help or hinder the success of

these students in matriculation examinations (Ellis & Larkin,

1998; Ellis & Siegler, 1997; Larkin, 2009). The purpose of this

study was to add to theoretical and practical knowledge of

cognitive and emotional intra-personal and inter-personal pro-

cesses. The study identified the factors involved in both the

emotional and cognitive stages of accepting (and thus coping

with) learning disabilities, distinguishing between various types

of disabilities. Based on grounded theory, a model was cons-

tructed for the purpose of enabling counselors, teachers and

caregivers to match the type of intervention to the specific

needs of each group in order to improve the effectiveness of in-

tervention programs.

Students’ figurative language was shown to assist in identify-

ing the stage where they are at in the process of accepting the

disability. The figurative speech, phrase or image that students

choose for describing their acceptance of their learning disabi-

lity, reveals both the phase in the process and the style of their

coping with the disability. Detection of the stage and the coping

style may help counselors to create an intervention program

tailored to the precise needs of individual adolescents.

Learning Disabilities: Definition and

Characterization

The definition1 of the National Joint Committee on Learning

Disabilities (NJCLD) is generally accepted by the US Ministry

of Education.

This definition refers to a possible source of disabilities-

central neurological dysfunction, i.e. primary disability that aff-

ects the learning ability and the connection between the indi-

vidual and his or her environment. Even in Israel it is now

customary to use this definition in order to characterize and

diagnose students with learning disabilities (Israeli Ministry of

Education, 2003) though this definition is somewhat contro-

versial and has undergone new formulations even in the United

States.

The Relationship between Cognitive and Emotional

Characteristics

Until now, most studies of LDs have focused on the qua-

litative and quantitative aspects of the limitations of students

with learning disabilities and with understanding the reasons

1“Learning disability isa general term referring to a heterogeneous group o

disorders as expressed in significant difficulties acquiring listening,

speaking, reading, writing, conceptualizing and/or mathematical abilities

and the use thereof. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual, and

assumed to stem from a central n eurological dysfunct ion. They may appear

at any point along the life cycle. Although the learning disability can occu

at the same time with other restrictive conditions (sensory damage, mental

retardation,emotional and social disorder) or external conditions (cultural

differences, inadequate or unfit instruction), the learning disabilities a not a

direct result of these conditions” (NJCLD, 1994).

S. GIVON

for their difficulties in functioning. However, clinical ex-

perience has indicated that it is difficult to predict the chances

of adjustment in children with learning disabilities, if the only

aspect related to is their disability level and cognitive disability

(Frith, 1999). In the adolescence years, increased demands from

the environment, along with the need for independence and

building new friendships, raise in adolescents tensions and

feelings of commitment, ambivalence towards school and fam-

ily, plus the desire to belong to their peer group. Studies show

that sub-specific types of students with learning disabilities,

with clear patterns of capabilities and neuro-cognitive short-

comings, show different patterns of psychosocial functioning.

These patterns are evident especially among students with non-

verbal learning disabilities (NLD) who are more likely to deve-

lop emotional problems during adolescence into adulthood

(Court & Givon, 2003; Greenham, 1999; Little, 1999; Rour-

ke,1995). It was also found that the difficulties of students with

NLD increase with age and lead to reduced self-esteem in

adulthood, placing these students at increased risk of introvert

reactions of loneliness, depression, feelings of victimization

and chronic feelings of shame (Little, 1999; Palombo, 2001;

Petti et al., 2003; Pelletier, 2001).

Emotional Distress and Depression

The Children with learning disabilities reported more intense

feelings of depression than children without learning disa-

bilities; they also reported negative moods and a sense of sad-

ness and loneliness (Bloom & Heath, 2010; Lackaye & Mar-

galit, 2006; Margalit, Efrati & Danino, 2002). The prevalence

of depression symptoms is higher among adolescents than

among younger children and also higher among girls than boys

(Huntington & Bender, 1993). This is due to the fact that adole-

scence itself is characterized by sharp fluctuations in mood,

hormonal changes, search for identity and a desire to achieve

high social status. Symptoms of depression are more common

in students with NLD than in those with verbal LD (Dorfman,

2001; Petti et al., 2003). Lackaye et al. (Lachaye, Margalit, Ziv

& Ziman, 2006) found that even when students with learning

disabilities get higher marks than their friends because of the

extra help they receive, their social profile is still lower; they

are depressed, lack hope for the future, are lonelier and have

darker moods than their friends. Thus they are less acade-

mically effective because they lack motivation.

Self-Perception and Copying with Learning

Challenges

For a long time researchers thought that students with learn-

ing disabilities would have lower self-esteem than their peers.

This assumption was based on the belief that the continued

academic failure of these students would undermine their self-

esteem (Chapman, 1988; Rogers & Saklofski, 1985). However,

a study which used multi-dimensional tools for the estimation

of self-perception and self-esteem, revealed that self-image is

composed of different sub-perceptions in different areas that

separate gradually over the period of formation of the self-

image (Dyson, 1996, 2010). Therefore, students with learning

disabilities who allocate a special place for their disability are

able to formulate a positive self-concept despite the disability.

The perception of disability (recognizing its existence and

reducing its importance), is another meaningful element in the

overall self-concept of students with learning disabilities (Ger-

ber, Ginsberg, & Gerber, 1994; Madaus, Gerber, & Price, 2008;

Mather & Gregg, 2006). A perception that refers to the limited

issue instead of a global perception can help foster self-esteem

in children with learning disabilities (Rothman & Cosden,

1995). The above research noted that self-image served as an

index to predict academic achievement, while the emotional

block, resulting from lack of awareness and non-acceptance of

the disability, prevents the formation of effective ways of cop-

ing.

Academic Copying of Adolescents with

Learning Disabilities

In interaction with the environment, the individual is subject

to external and internal requirements which oblige him or her to

recruit cognitive and emotional efforts. When these require-

ments exceed the resources at his or her disposal, it is said that

the individual is required to “cope” (Bailey, Barton, & Vignola,

1999). Gramzey and Masten (1991) define “durability” as the

individual's ability to successfully reach the stage of adaptation,

despite challenging or threatening circumstances. Many studies

have shown that an internal focus of control and higher self-

esteem are associated with better ability to withstand stress-

related learning tasks, higher persistence and greater willing-

ness to accept assistance and guidance in school (Abouserie,

1994; Maqsud, 1993; Mooney, Sherman, & LoPresto, 1991;

Sterbin & Rakow, 1996). Therefore, the more the student deve-

lops the sense of comprehensibility, control and meaning, the

more he or she will be able to persist in efforts to succeed. But

how can the student do so when the resources at his or her

disposal are few? The adaptive child, who is also the effective

learner, is an active learner, while the behavior strategies of

children with learning disabilities are characterized by passive

learning; they hold beliefs that attribute their difficulties to

uncontrollable factors and they develop acquired helplessness.

Both erroneous beliefs and passive attitudes affect the student’s

ability to learn and contribute to the creation of academic

problems, low self-efficacy, hopelessness and lack of motiva-

tion (Margalit, 1996).

Ways of Bypassing or Wa ys of Copying

The education system recognizes the special needs of

students with learning disabilities and invests efforts and re-

sources in the advancement of these students. The main ques-

tion in this regard is, whether it is more worthwhile to take care

of the disability itself or to teach the student ways around it. For

many years the prevailing view was that learning disabilities

tend to disappear by themselves. Today it is understood that

learning disabilities do not disappear with age; they are caused

by cognitive-neurological deficiencies, and except for slight

and gradual improvement which is a natural part of growing up,

the disability accompanies the person throughout his or her life

(Gerber et al., 1992; Gerber, 1994; Gregg, 2007; Gregg, Hoy, &

Gay, 1996; Madaus, Gerber, & Price, 2008; Mather & Gregg,

2006; Taymans, Swanson, Schwatrz, Gregg, Hock, & Gerber,

2009). Therefore, students with learning disabilities should re-

ceive learning accommodations. In order to reach the optimal

degree of utilization of those accommodations, caregivers

should listen to the students and learn their wishes and opinions

as to the various types of accommodation methods that are

offered, with reference to the effectiveness of each. This listen-

ing should be done with sensitivity, in an attempt to understand

S. GIVON

the differences that may exist between students with different

types of learning disabilities (Margalit, Efrati, & Danino, 2002).

Figurative Language as a Tool for Diagnosis

and Treatment

Figurative language includes words and phrases that function

in a symbolic or indirect manner, as they are taken from a cert-

ain field and transferred to another one, carrying their original

meaning along with them. Figurative language consists of phra-

ses with an unclear semantic status that illustrates the abstract.

The main kinds of figurative speech are simile, metaphor,

personification, metonymy (“I am not Rothschild”), imagery

and irony. Symbols serve an important role in understanding

the human soul, since they represent an essence which is be-

yond their literal meaning (Young, 1964). Metaphor, as well as

metonymy and image, is a kind of linguistic expression which

can be used to convey an idea using a phrase from another

discipline, sometimes completely different, in order to add

“borrowed” meaning, and better explain the intent of the origi-

nal idea, add another layer of meaning, or “load” additional

meaning that was absent before.

The use of figurative language may assist in treatment, since

sometimes the student and the educational professional face a

dead-end when searching for a fitting word or definition and

only disengagement from the limitations of language helps in

overcoming and relocating from the verbal channel to the visual,

sensory or emotional alternatives. Using figurative language is

a very common practice in the clinical disciplines for the pur-

pose of treatment, but also for diagnosis, since figurative lan-

guage and images do not bear within them any threat. The user

can stay remote to some extent, and this fact is helpful in

identifying hidden messages (Elitzur, 1986). In a semi-struct-

ured in-depth interview, the access to the patient is direct,

which makes it difficult to discover hidden feelings as may be

expressed by the subjects without self-censorship (Sobel, 2006).

In understanding young people with learning disabilities, meta-

phor may help clarify the relationship between unexpressed

feelings and emotions and the manifest declarations that stud-

ents use to define their disability and describe the hardships of

studying.

Learning disabilities are often related to central cognitive

impairment or deficiency, and may involve the speech center in

the brain (verbal learning disability). Even in the case of non-

verbal learning disabilities, there are indirect effects on verbali-

zation. Metaphorical expression or figurative language is some-

times a solution if a particular idea or explanation that one

wishes to express is too difficult or abstract and a metaphorical

phrase adds the desired meaning.

It is extremely important to hear the views of young people

with learning disabilities who have difficulties in expressing

themselves and to encourage them to find the right way around

words in order to express their thoughts and feelings, to enable

them to receive meaningful assistance. Figurative linguistic

“detours” can help even when the disability is associated with a

deficiency in verbal expression. The ability to think on “bo-

rrowed” meanings and to find alternative images or express-

ions in order to convey their intentions may help youth with

learning disabilities to express ideas which they find difficult to

express. There are cases, especially when the disability is a

result of multi-system impairment, that metaphors and figura-

tive language are the only way to communicate and convey

ideas (Olsen, 2010).

Research Questions

The current study was guided by the following questions:

1) What are the emotional processes that students with diff-

erent learning disabilities undergo during their studying for a

high school diploma?

2) How do students with learning disabilities perceive their

coping with the academic goal of achieving a high school diplo-

ma, and what are the perceptions of students regarding the

difficulties they will face in the future?

3) How does figurative language reveal student’ stage of ac-

ceptance of their disability and their method of coping?

Research Method

This study was based on the testimonies of Israeli high

school students with diverse learning disabilities, with empha-

sis on students with non-verbal disabilities. The study was con-

ducted over three years (grades 10 - 12). In-depth, semi-

structured interviews were conducted during each year of the

study. In the eleventh grade interview, the participants were

asked to describe their coping with disability by using figu-

rative language. In the final interview participants were asked

to describe the process they went through by using an image or

a “linguistic drawing” and also to give a title to their life story.

This was not an intervention; it was a research study. But it

became clear that the conversations that the researchers had

with the students gave the students access to their inner world

in new ways and deepened their understanding of what they

were going through. Once this became clear, we added an

end-of-examinations interview with an additional student, Ofer,

who was interviewed only after the matriculation exams. Ofer

acted as a kind of “control group” since he did not experience

the “intervention” of the interviews.

The theoretical paradigm chosen was a qualitative, grounded

theory approach. After locating the core categories, new infor-

mation was re-assembled, while systematically referring cate-

gories to each other, and the data was axially coded as shown in

Figure 1. In addition, a link to previous theories was made and

finally a grounded theory was constructed, the center of the

model being the central phenomenon under investigation—the

central category around which the theoretical model was de-

veloped (Gibton, 2001; Strauss, 1987). This method is des-

cribed thoroughly in a previous article (author reference, 2008).

Study Par tic ip ants

Out of all the students in ninth grade in a six-year compre-

hensive school in central Israel, 20 students with learning disa-

bilities were selected as a directed sample. The sample consist-

ed of ten girls and ten boys with various learning disabilities,

verbal (VLD), non-verbal (NLD) and with Attention deficit-

hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Data Collection

Semi-structured in-depth interview was a tool to get ac-

quainted with the experiences of the adolescents and listen to

their voices. The interviews were conducted at three time points

related to dealing with matriculation exams: 10th grade, 11th

grade and 12th grade.

378

S. GIVON

Figure 1.

Model of the axial coding that describes the causal conditions and context around the core category led to

select the style of coping , and the coping results.

Research Procedure

In ninth grade, the 20 students with learning disabilities who

were selected underwent psychological and didactic diagnoses.

In tenth grade, the students were interviewed before the first

matriculation exams.

In eleventh grade, the students were interviewed for the

second time before the matriculation exams of that year. During

that interview they were asked to supply a metaphor describing

their coping with disability. After completing the matriculation

exams and at the end of the twelfth grade, students were inter-

viewed for the third time. During the last interview participants

were asked to describe the process of coping during the school

years by using a metaphor and to give a title to their life story.

Findings

Data collected in the interviews helped in establishing thema-

tic connections, while examination of the nature of relation-

ships between the categories helped to re-formulate the know-

ledge and organize it in a model of axial coding around a core

category that includes two key ideas:

In the field of learning—learning difficulties and repetitive

failures caused a feeling of helplessness and lack of control.

In the emotional field—fear of being labeled as incapable; a

sense of threat to the self.

The model shows the causative conditions and the internal

context that contributed to the ways students coped with accep-

tance of their disability—and the outcome—the results of this

coping.

The process of accepting the disability.

We found three stages in the process of acceptance of dis-

ability, starting at the discovery stage and ending at the stage of

reconciliation:

1) Understanding the meaning of the diagnosis, its objective

and importance; understanding the nature of the disability and

its significance.

2) Readiness to recruit inner resources in order to invest

efforts, and to accept and use accommodations the educational

system provides to assist in learning.

3) Readiness to use the recommendations in full, and insis-

tence on the right to receive accommodations even if this invol-

ves a struggle, exposure or labeling.

Identification of the phase at which the student currently is,

provides a starting point for the beginning of treatment. For this

reason it is highly recommended that school counselors become

acquainted with the model as shown in Figure 1. Our data

indicate that all students undergo a similar process, from the

day they receive the significant diagnosis, to the day when they

understand the meaning of the diagnosis and its importance, are

willing to reconcile with and accept it, and it becomes part of

their self-perception, as expressed by Ofra:

[...] From the moment of diagnosis, all the time it is a

S. GIVON

matterof process. At least for me it was an endless process in

order to accept... You accept yourself every time anew, every

time you step through another phase [...] (Ofra ).

As the process continues over a longer period, from middle

school to the beginning of high school, students go through the

various stages gradually, until they are willing to accept the

disability and reach a kind of reconciliation before the matri-

culation exams. With acceptance they are freed to invest the

bulk of their struggle in dealing with challenges of learning and

with the cognitive difficulty accompanying the matriculation

exams. When the process is prolonged or gets “stuck” in the

initial stage of denial, the students find it difficult to make their

energies available for cognitive tasks and they engage in deal-

ing with the emotions that accompany the problem, as Ofra

explained;

It is very difficult because beyond the fact that you need to

get used to being read aloud to, and all the technical things, for

me the mental process was a very significant thing, a very

inhibiting thing, when I came to the exam with depression and

a specific mental block [...]. (Ofra)

Although the learning disability shows its first signs long

before the diagnosis, when the adolescent faces the diagnostic

results this has an immediate effect and serves as an objective

point of reference. He or she gets the results objectively, from

an outside person, and the immediate result is a sense of loss-

loss of the fact that “I am like all the others.” This important

stage of discovery and coping with the loss is a necessary

condition to moving on to the stages that follow, until one

reaches the stage of reconciliation and adaptation. It seems that

the standard model of coping with a loss is compatible with the

process of acceptance of the disability. One can look at the

moment of diagnosis as the moment from which the process of

coping with the loss begins.

Characteristics of personality include self-perception and the

internal resources with which the adolescent copes with the

challenges she/he faces, particularly the matriculation exams.

These characteristics are influential in how the adolescent

accepts the disability, and the path of progress along the se-

quence the stages of accepting the disability as part of each

student’s self-identity. One girl said: “Once I accepted it, the

society accepted it better as well.” She explained that this did

not come easily. She called it “an endless process” with “steps

that went up and down”, and said that a cynical remark could

throw her back to the starting point of the process.

Copying Styles

How the adolescent first conceives the situation—as a threat

or a challenge—is the main factor in his or her selection of the

response to the stressful situation (Ellis & Larkin, 1998).

Reactions may focus on the problem itself, in an attempt to

channel resources into solving the problem that created the

stressful situation, or they may focus on emotions to ease the

tension.

Our findings reveal two frequently mentioned categories,

fear of being labeled and helplessness in learning, leading to

developing two parallel core strategies for coping. One is di-

rected toward dealing with the emotions that accompany the

difficulty, making the adolescent able to avoid being flooded

with emotions of threat to self and fear of being labeled as

incompetent. The other is aimed at coping with the learning-

cognitive difficulty—in order to overcome the helplessness,

powerlessness and lack of control over learning. The study

found four patterns of coping (these results are related fully in

author reference, 2008). These patterns can characterize a stage

in the process, can be situation-dependent or can even be asso-

ciated with primary features related to the disability, or other

characteristics of the adolescent’s personality.

Abstaining—or avoidance—a defensive pattern that includes

lack of faith in help, unwillingness to cooperate, suppression of

the situation, recessive behavior, tendency to withdrawal, seclu-

sion or excessive dependency on an adult.

Rebellion—a negative and denying pattern, resisting help,

with a tendency to blame others for their situation, rebellious

behavior, lack of acceptance of their situation, bargaining with

the surroundings.

Reconciliation—partial reconciliation with the disability.

Having not yet reached full adaptation, they sigh and cope, feel

limited in some sense, but are willing to cope and invest resour-

ces.

Determination—reconciliation and acceptance of the disa-

bility as part of the self-image. Behavior reflected in the per-

ception of the situation as a challenge and desire to prove abi-

lity despite the disability.

In addition to these four patterns of coping, three adaptive

strategies for coping with the sense of threat to self were iden-

tified. These were perception of the disability and its contain-

ment as part of self-identity, reconstruction of the difficulty and

translation of the threat into something less threatening, and

changing the attitudes of others, a response that creates a

change in the position of the others.

In-depth study of various patterns of coping among sub-

groups of students with learning disabilities sharpens the

differences between the coping styles of students with verbal

and nonverbal learning disabilities (Little, 1999). The descrip-

tion by our participants of their coping patterns indicates that

students with verbal learning disabilities ultimately reach a state

of behavior that is more adaptive, reconciled or even deter-

mined. In contrast, students with non-verbal learning disa-

bilities tend to demonstrate coping styles that are abstaining or

rebellious, and sometimes unrealistically determined, a poor

match for their situation. This is a result of an unrealistic self-

perception of their situation both because of denial and because

of personality characteristics rooted in the disability. This is

why some participants said that they were not going to report

their learning disability at university; they were planning to

start a new page.

There is great importance to the way the disability is defined

on the day of the diagnosis and the feedback conversation that

follows. If the definition and conversation are done correctly,

they have the power to positively motivate the process of ac-

ceptance of the disability. Intervention in the process to enable

the student’s advancement should be done by identifying the

stage where he or she is, the emotional or cognitive coping style

that he or she chooses and the factors that influence this choice.

Creating a personalized program tailored to the student on both

the emotional and cognitive levels helps him or her reach the

stage of adaptive behavior.

This study shows that most students have the ability to make

appropriate choices for the future when selecting further educa-

tional paths, realistically distinguishing between the desired and

the possible options and the unattainable and unrealistic ones,

while demonstrating academic initiative and efficacy. One par-

ticipant spoke of his desire to become a doctor, and said that if

380

S. GIVON

he cannot study in Israel because of his low grade-point average,

he would go to study in another country but won’t give up, a

behavior that tends to indicate a determined style. The choice,

at the end of which stands the desire to advance and develop,

reinforces the impression that the prolonged experience of

difficulties and the continuous struggle that most participants

undergo, can be turned into both a spurring and an immunizing

factor, unifying all the personality elements toward being capa-

ble and withstanding difficulties in future studies. This is

evident from their answers to the question whether they will use

the academic accommodations in the future. As Ofra answered:

“No doubt. I know that otherwise I cannot succeed at the

university; it will affect me very much. This is something I need,

without someone reading the questionnaire aloud to me—I’m

lost.”

Using Figurative Language to Identify Students’

Stage of Acceptance of Their Learning Disability

In order to detect the inner feelings of the participants, they

were asked to use figurative language to describe the difficulty.

The goal was to explore the relationship between emotions that

were not expressed and the open declarations that were part of

their definition of the disability and description of their diffi-

culties in school. The question was asked of participants in

eleventh grade and again in twelfth grade. In the second inter-

view in eleventh grade, when they were well into the process of

acceptance of the disability, students were asked to find an

image that defined their difficulty by completing the sentence:

“For me, studying for tests with a learning disability is like …”

The second time, at the end of senior year, after concluding the

matriculation exams, the question was asked in the past tense:

“For me, coping with the matriculation exams was like …” In

the eleventh grade interview not all participants responded in

imagery, some due to their cognitive difficulty in creating a

figurative image of an emotional, abstract situation. These stu-

dents they gave concrete answers, descriptions of the difficulty

itself. Others found it difficult to give an image due to their

ongoing denial of their situation, and claimed that they had no

difficulty at all. But most students presented graphic and co-

lorful images taken from their inner world, opening a window

into their hidden feelings through a mechanism that allowed

them to be less controlled by rational criticism and self-

censorship.

In eleventh grade seven students said they did not know how

to give an image. Some of them claimed to have no learning

difficulty. Batya said: “No. I do not have any difficulty, it does

not bother me.” Na’ama said: “I do not know. Studying is not

hard for me, but doing tests is hard for me.” Adam said: “It (the

difficulty) is not as high as the clouds, it’s not that hard.” And

Sara said: “It’s just pressure, pressure caused by the need to

complete all th e material.”

Describing their experience in concrete terms, some partici-

pants saw dealing with the difficulty as part of coping with

difficulties in life. Eli said: “This is another stage in life—it

will pass.” Michael said: “This is one more difficulty in life one

must pass.” Zohar explained: “It’s like dealing with life itself,

when you learn from your experience and improve.” Nir said:

“It’s all the time persevering with the difficulty, but it’s only a

difficulty related to school.” Tali did use an image when she

defined disability as a feature: “It’s a weak side to deal with”,

adding “It’s like wanting to lose weight.” It should be noted that

Tali’s use of the image of losing weight may be revealing of an

emotional problem related to weight. Due to drastic reduction

of her weight she had to work hard to gain weight back, in

order to return to normal weight.

Nine of the twenty participants did express themselves in

images, some of which were focused on the difficulty and some

on the process. Those images focused on the difficulty concen-

trated on the disability, the restriction and being exceptional.

Ofra said: “It’s like hanging out with another five gallons on

your back, for nothing.” Later in the interview she described

her difficulty in day to day coping: “I feel like a person with

one hand tied behind her back.” Chaim said this, too: “It’s as if

my hands are tied” and added, “Yes, when someone is a special

person he is so special because of a unique feature, perhaps he

is wise in a way, perhaps he is very strong, any kind of special

advantage [...] it’s just that his hands are tied because of the

framework, because of the technical conditions, because of the

framework, just a person with tied hands”. Michal emphasized

the emotional aspect: “It’s like a man with a hole in his heart.”

Aviya defined learning as “an endless war.” Martin said: “It’s

like running 2000 meters without stopping, it’s tough.” Two

girls described the pressure as a state before explosion. Odeya

said, “It’s like a box inside the brain that’s going to explode

soon.” Zohar also described it in this way: “It’s a pressure

cooker about to explode.” Meira described the process as

“extremely difficult, like building a house, something like that.”

To the question of how she would build the house, she replied:

“Gradually, step by step, that’s the way it, like, has to be done,

really consistently.”

At the end of the matriculation exams, in the final interview,

all twenty students took up the challenge of describing in

images the difficulties they faced. It may be that they were

more mature at this time and felt it was easier for them to look

back and “draw” their coping retrospectively. The descriptions

and images given by students in the twelfth grade can be

characterized by the fact that these images revealed the whole

process they had undergone as well as their current situation.

Some focused on the difficulty, some focused on success and

some on the process or the transition from difficulty to success.

Although there were differences between the students regarding

their ability to “draw” images or even to give a concrete “flat”

description, they all admitted that they had difficulties.

Aviad, Uri and Zohar said it was like overcoming any dif-

ficulty, and stressed the overcoming. Sarah and Michal said it

was “like coping with something very big, difficult and impor-

tant that is very crit i c al in your life.”

Six students, when describing the process, focused on the

difficulty, but found it difficult to give a figurative description

and only said that it was like “a thing that had to be done”.

David said: “It was like a difficult thing that needed to be done

and there was no choice”. Na’ama said: “It was hard, like

dealing with a tough characteristic.” Michael said: “It was like

a difficult and annoying thing bothering you all the time.”

Adam said it was like “the feeling of showing everyone that I

can, like when you want to scream in order to silence

everyone.” Odeya said: “Like recruiting forces when there is a

desire to reach a certain destination.” Tali, when describing the

entire process said: “[It was] like everything that is at first

difficult and then easy.” She gave an example: “Like a puzzle

with many parts [...] It’s difficult at first, then everything works

out and it’s easy” Figurative descriptions that describe the

process were given by seven participants. Ofra said: “Like the

S. GIVON

exodus from Egypt.” Eli: “Like climbing up the stairs.” Aviya:

“Like learning to drive a car.” Meira : “Like a long run and then

you finally reach the finish line,” moving her shoulders forward

in a motion as if she were touching the finish line (Meira is an

acclaimed runner and athlete). Nir at first described the diffi-

culty of the process as like a man recently weaned from smok-

ing being shown a cigarette, but then corrected himself and said:

“There is nothing that can compare to it (the difficulty) [...] It

was very difficult [...]”. Then he added, “Perhaps like a horse

and rider, the horse always feels it is being spurred and wants

the rider to get off his back and yet keeps going on and on,

something like this. Although you accept the contradictions and

all the difficulty you continue, like, to try things” (It is import-

ant to note that he imagines himself as the horse, not the rider).

He saw his story as a story of overcoming despite enormous

difficulty that nothing else can be compared to. Batya, who in

twelfth grade agreed to take the exams orally, and managed to

succeed, said that the exams were “like a corrective experien-

ce.” Danny said it reminded him of “the Bar Mitzvah fears,

when you are called to the Torah and have to read in front of

everyone and it's difficult [...] but as the Torah portion went on

and on it became easier and I was encouraged. It’s just like

that in the matriculation exams; at first I had difficulties and

then as it progressed I felt it became easier.”

Ofer described the coping process as being “like climbing up

a mountain [...] to reach its summit at the end, a spot from

where you see everything well, you have all of it behind you,

you can see that you went through it all”. To the question how

he felt after it all, he responded: “I feel good, I feel that I

arrived at the mountain okay, not completely exhausted, no,

and that way I knew where to exhaust myself hard and where

not to. (Ofer)

These descriptions show that students, even if at first they

denied the difficulty and claimed that it did not exist, admitted

at the end of the examinations that there was indeed a difficulty,

but they overcame it. Some saw their learning disability as a

restriction, a handicap, and stressed the necessity of coping

with a “restriction” or “a difficult feature,” a highlighting that

characterized the students who were still deep in the difficulty,

in the middle of the process. Those who internalized the disabi-

lity and accepted it, described a situation of “transfer from diffi-

culty to success”, “overcoming difficulty” their descriptions

showing flow, motion, riding, a long run without stops, or

climbing stairs. The difficulty was mentioned in all the descrip-

tions, but also the finish line or summit, and the pride that was

felt when looking back at the results. The great upheaval was

felt in what Batya said, when in eleventh grade she said angrily,

“No! I have no difficulty” when asked if she thought that she

had difficulties. In twelfth grade she said that matriculation

exams were basically like a “corrective experience”. She came

to terms, moderately, with the difficulty and correctly accepted

her learning disability as part of her growing up and her self-

perception. This is what she said in the final interview, at the

end of the end of the twelfth grade:

“If I need (accommodations) why not [take them]? It’s like

why should I feel ashamed of it or something... I was really

ashamed at first, really. I was really, really ashamed at first but

now when I think about it I say, like, what was I ashamed about,

it is like what we learned in civics, it is “affirmative action.”

(Batya)

Batya’s words show that she made the transfer from a

conception focused on difficulty to a conception that expresses

reconciliation, acceptance and a feeling of higher self-esteem.

Even the titles students gave to their life stories reveal the

stage they were at, since the titles were in accordance with the

previously chosen images and show whether they were still

focused on the difficulty or had moved to focus on the process

of acceptance. This insight could help educators match the

treatment to the student’s needs. The data is presented in Table

The Story of My Life

In the final interview at the end of twelfth grade students

were asked to give a title to their life story. Some students were

still focused on diffi cu lty. These are the names they gave:

Ofra: The never-ending story

Tali: Here it all started but it did not end

Michal: The difficult years

David: The three difficult years

Adam: The war of survival

Other students were focused on the process of coping and

overcoming difficulty. These are the names they gave:

Danny: Descending for the need of ascending

Odeya: A descent with an ascent at its end

Batya: The story that started badly and ended well

Eli: Overcoming—the story of an unidentified child

Uri: Overcoming the difficulty

Martin: A child who overcame, or, A story of overcoming

Nir: Overcoming

Chaim: Overcoming in spite of everything

Aviya: From exile to redemption—a process of self-dis-

covery

Zohar: The success that followed the failure

Two students were focused on success:

Michael: A story of success

Aviad: A story of success

Three students gave a name that shows a conclusion they

reached or an insight for life:

Na’amah: The way to life

Sarah: Do no t despair

Offer: The art of education

Discussion

During this study an attempt was made to outline the journey

of the individual in his or her passage through the educational

system. Early detection and identification of learning disability

and the emotional problems that may accompany it, as well as

appropriate intervention, are essential for arming young people

to effectively cope with learning disability during high school

and beyond.

This research demonstrated that students’ perception of the

situation, as either a threat or a challenge, is a main factor in

their selection of coping style—coping with the learning diffi-

culty itself and with the feelings that accompany the difficulty.

The selection of coping strategies is related to a variety of in-

gredients. The main ingredient is the stage of acceptance of the

disability and processing the sense of loss that accompanies

diagnosis. It is important to look at the student’s feelings,

which are natural to loss or grief, as well as other factors such

as personality structure, family system, social environment and

school system.

It appears that the day of the significant diagnosis, the speci-

fic day that a student receives th information about the disabi- e

382

S. GIVON

Table 1.

How figurative language reveals the stage of acceptance of learning disability and methods of copying: from diagnosis to acceptance.

Stage Response and

Action Characteri stics of

Figurative Language Examples Directions for

Intervention

Denial, blaming

Inability to provide an

image; negative words

about the disability;

images of a criminal

dossier

I have no difficulty; it’s not hard for me; I don’t

have a learning disability; I have n o idea how to

give an im age because I don’t have a problem; it’s a

whole bunch of things that got thrown at me ; lik e a

file they created on me in order to categorize me, a

label they stuck on me

Developing

self-awareness: defining

the disability and presenting

the idea of recruiting

resources t o deal with

difficulty

Stage 1:

The shock of

diagnosis: Denial

and lack of

understanding of

the disability Disregarding the

disability

Comparison with coping

with other di f f i culties in

life

Not relevant; like any difficulty; jus t another one of

the difficulti es one has to cope with; another stage

of life; like coping with life

Developing academ i c

competenc e: realistic

understanding of the

disability and its

implications

Focus on the

process

Flow, running, endless

galloping movement;

path with no exit;

ascending and climbing

to no destination

Like running 2000 m. without stopping; endless

war; going up and down stairs and never g etting

anywhere; like learning to drive; like a horse with a

rider spurring it – the horse wants the rider to ge t off

but it goes on and on

Setting re alistic goals and

providing effective

strateg ies: realistic

dispersal of pressure and

investment in the correct

places

Stage 2:

Adaptation:

Understandi ng the

nature of the

disability; partial

readiness to

recruit inner

resources to ward

cognitive a n d

emotional cop-

ing

Focus on the

difficulty

Being stuck, obstruction,

lack, limit, difficult

characteristic, heavy

burden, war before

explosion

Like walk in g around with 5 gallons on your back;

like a man with his hands tied behind his bac k; li k e

a man with a hole in his heart; like a dim screen that

you have to get by with; like s omething in your

brain that is about to explode; a pressure co ok er

about to explode

Breaking through

emotional barr ie rs and

being “stuck” at the

difficulty: emotional

support for the passage

from the fe eling of threa t t o

learning challenge, and

belief in ability to defend

one’s self

Focus on coping

with the

difficulty

Difficulty of the passage

itself from difficulty to

success

Overcoming difficulty; a difficult thing that you

have no choice but to do; a difficult and frustrating

thing that i s always there; coping with a difficult

thing that is holding you back in life; something that

is difficult in the beginning and the easy; like a

puzzle with lo ts of pieces – it’s difficult at the

beginning and then as it be gins to fit together it gets

easy

Inclusion of the disability

as part of self-image:

emotional support and

“straight talk” about t h e

nature of the difficulty ;

narrative therapy whose

goal is freeing the stude n t

toward complete

acceptance; realistic coping

with difficult y; identifying

the difficulty as one

characteristic that is part of

a positive self-i mage; con-

structing a positive

self-image

Stage 3:

Complete

acceptance

of the disability;

readiness to

accept and use

accommodations

the educational

system provides

and insistence on

the right to

receive them Focus on

success a nd

thoughts about

the future

Finish line, reaching the

summit and looking back

with satisfaction, good

experience, redem ptio n

Like a long road and you finally reach the finish

line; something that requires you to marshal your

resources toward a specific goal; like climbing a

great peak an looking back at where you came from

and saying, “I did that”; like reading the Torah at

your bar m itzvah, it gets easier as you go along an d

in the end it’s a corrective experience; like the

Exodus from Egypt

Setting directions and

goals for the future:

effective preparation for

university studies;

recruiting determination to

realize realistic goals f o r the

future

lity that he or she has, is an important turning point. If delivery

of the information is done properly and accompanied by the

right emotional assistance, it has the potential to motivate the

process in a positive direction and bring it to the stage of

reconciliation and the attribution of appropriate meaning to the

situation, such that the student learns to contain the disability as

one part of self-perception and treat it as a particular feature,

one that makes normal learning more difficult, but something

that she/he has the power to cope with. Recruiting and mobili-

zation of forces depends on the place that the student allocates

to the learning disability within his or her personal world. This

study indicates the need to hear the voices of students, learn

from them about the ways to cope, what helps them succeed

and what drives the process be tter so th ey can re ach the st ag e of

reconciliation. In order to understand where and how to inter-

vene properly, educators must take into account all the factors

involved, such as fear of labeling, personality characteristics,

cultural norms and different styles of coping. Proper inter-

vention tailored to the stage of acceptance of the disability

which the student is at, and to the coping style, will help in

S. GIVON

deve- loping optimal intervention program.

One fruitful method that can help in detecting the stage of

acceptance of disability and the style of coping is open dialogue

with the student and the suggestion that students describe their

experiences by using figurative language. Figurative language

gives expression to overt and hidden feelings that help the edu-

cational professional focus on what is needed to help a student

emotionally as well as academically. Promoting the emotional

process is key to breaking through the obstruction that delays

progress during complex academic learning.

Optimal treatment-intervention and optimal emotional ad-

vancement, as opposed to just promotion of learning in high

school students with learning disabilities, will help them in the

future in adaptive integration into university, in order to turn

their future understanding of higher education from threat to

challenge.

Conclusion

This study found that Figurative Language is an important

and effective tool for identifying learning-disabled adolescents’

stage of acceptance of their disability. It also helps to identify

the coping style chosen by the adolescent to manage the disa-

bility. Accurate identification of the stage and coping style can

be a Springboard for Treatment and can help strengthen the

student emotionally and academically. It is therefore recom-

mended that the tool be used in schools for detection and treat-

ment with learning disabled students. One limitation of the stu-

dy is the narrow age range researched. Future studies should

examine other age groups such as elementary and junior high

school students, in order for the tool to be used for detection

and preventive care before students reach high school. Pretreat-

ment will help adolescents cope better with the challenges of

high school.

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Appendix

Guide to Interview 1: semi-structured in-depth interview

conducted for participants in the tenth grade before matri-

culation exams:

I’m interested in the life stories of the students taking their

matriculation exams while using accommodations. Please tell

me the story of your life since you recall to this day.

Specific Questions (According to the Subjects that

Students Bring Up)

History of education:

First signs of difficulty, the response of the surrounding and

the coping.

Who located the difficulty, in what grade and how?

What did you use as educational assistance - how effective

was it?

Replies of the family, friends and teachers at the various

stations at school.

What grade did you formally started using the accommo-

dations and how did the surrounding respond?

How did the transfers between educational frameworks affect

you, in the context of learning difficulties?

Concept of learning disability and its effects:

When were you diagnosed (the full diagnosis), what were

you told and how did your parents react?

Can you define the difficulty and what is it like?

How did friends react and when did you, decide, if ever to

share the information with them?

Describe positive and negative experiences in the context of

the disa bi lity.

How do you cope today with learning and with responses

from the surrounding?

What do you do at leisure—do you have other occupations?

Vision for the Future

What is your chance of success in matriculation exams?

How do you see yourself in future practice?

What will you advise another child who started high school

and is in your sit uation?

How will the difficulty affect your choice of profession?

What would you like to do “when you grow up”?

Interview Guide 2: Semi-Structured In-Depth

Interview for Eleventh Grade Students before

Matriculation Exams

An Open Question

A year has passed since we met the day before Passover last

year. I’m still interested in what goes on with students who

struggle with matriculation exams while using the accommo-

dations. Please tell me what happened since we parted until

today.

Specific Questions (According to the Subjects That

Students Bring Up)

Description of cognitive coping with matriculation exams;

How do you prepare for the tests/and what are the support

systems you use within and outside the school?

Describe the test event and what you thought before/after it.

Describe your daily routine during the tests.

Describe how to cope, in your learning and emotionally, with

academic stress.

Describe a situation where you felt a change in your attitude

towards yourself and towards the school.

Support of parents, teachers, family—who helped you par-

ticularly?

Friends’ attitude—social coping—social activities outside of

school and in leisure.

Description of the way the accommodations were used, their

effectiveness, how the school organized for that and the

response of the surrounding.

Describe difficulties - what is difficulty un learning? Give an

image to the difficulty: for me to study for the matriculation

exams is like…

Describe the experience of coping with learning - how it puts

you in compare of the others?

Implications for the Future

Results against expectations—what is the feeling? Are the

grades so far compatible with the expectations?

Description of an event—the day when he/she received the

results and his/her personal response/reaction of the surround-

ing/parents.

Thoughts about the continued success in matriculation exams

and the extent of investment required.

Thoughts about the chances of success in adulthood.

Tips to another child who has difficulties and is in the be-

ginning of the way.

Plans for the future and how learning disability will affect the

choice of profession.

Message to the school and teachers.

Interview Guide 3: Semi-Structured In-Depth

Interview with Students in the Twelfth Grade

An Open Question

A year has passed since we parted the day before Passover

last year. I’m still interested in what goes on with students who

struggling with matriculation exams while using the accom-

modations. Please tell me what happened since the day we

parted until today.

Specific Questions (According to the Subjects that

Students Bring Up)

Description of experience and difficulties:

Description of test preparation, support systems and daily

routines.

Compare 10th grade, 11th grade and 12th frade (senior year

in terms of emotional and cognitive coping.Use of the accom-

modations, the attitude of teachers, friends and estima- tion of

the extent of effectiveness and organizing.

Observing the experience—a description of things that have

changed/if cha nged:

The attitude of the society, parents, teachers.

The role of counselor/psychologist/diagnosist.

Self-Perceptions

I as compared to the others—self-perception in relation to

peer group.

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S. GIVON

Perception of disability and its impact on coping with learn-

ing.

Are the results consistent with expectations so far?

New Insights and Vision for the Future

Thoughts of the future—how difficulty will affect occu-

pational or profession choices.

How will the difficulty or what you learned from your coping

on your future and your life?

Will you use accommodations out of school, in future

learning?

Thinking back—what was most helpful to you?

What is the message to school, and what advice will you give

to a child with a learning disability in the beginning of his way?

Give an image to your coping: For me, to pass the matri-

culation exams, was like: _________________

What would you like/want to contribute to others from your

experience?

Plans for next year and their connection to what you went

through.

The process you went through—Name the story:

Choose a name for yourself: