Scholastic Competence subgroups among high school students with learning disabilities

Adequate and inadequate self-concept subgroups of high school-age students with learning disabilities were formed on the basis of their self-reported ratings on the Scholastic Competence subscale of Harter's Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents (1988). The Adequate subgroup had statistically significant higher grades, teacher ratings, Athletic Competence, and Global Self-Worth. Notably, the subgroups did not differ in the areas of socioeconomic status, intelligence, achievement, age at classification, extent of participation in special education, locus of control, and school attitudes. It was concluded that adolescents with LD who attain Adequate Scholastic Competence are more likely to have achieved modest academic success combined with compensatory personal strengths in nonacademic areas. Guided by these findings and prior research, a tentative model of Adequate Scholastic Competence among students with LD is offered.