| The objective of the present study was to construct and estimate a structural model in order to explain academic achievement of adolescents with and without learning disabilities (LD). Although academic achievement is a primary component of the federal definition of LD, there have been no research efforts to investigate factors that influence it.;The study utilized data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study. Sample sizes for the various groups used in the analyses are as follows: 318 African-Americans, 243 Asians, 375 Hispanics, 4644 Whites, and 269 Whites with LD. The model accounted for 75% of the variance in academic achievement across each of the five groups. After prior achievement, student's expectations had the strongest direct impact on achievement. The greatest indirect effects derived from the perception of parental expectations. The comparison between the groups of Whites with and without LD showed that the most important factors were the same for both groups, suggesting that the model worked in similar ways for the populations with and without LD. Implications of the various findings are discussed.;The theoretical model placed an emphasis on parental attitudes, the student's perception of them, and certain psychological and academic characteristics of the student. |
