Learning Problems and Impairments (international track) (MSc)

Learning Problems and Impairments is one of the nine specialisations of the master’s programme in Education and Child Studies that you can choose at Leiden University.

More than 15% of all school age children have learning problems. They experience severe difficulties in learning one or more basic skills or fail to meet general requirements. Preschools and schools for primary and secondary education need professionals who can define the problems and find evidence based solutions.

During this specialisation you’ll learn to recognize and treat common learning problems such as dyslexia, hyperlexia and dyscalculia, as well as learning problems caused by ADHD, ADD, or speech and language disorders. The training focuses on the knowledge and skills required for research or teaching.

Why choose this specialisation?

The Learning Problems and Impairments programme is intended for you, if you wish to:

• Acquire in depth knowledge about a socially crucial topic. School dropout and low literacy have serious economic consequences, and on a personal level learning problems cause suffering;
• Familiarize yourself with learning processes in children aged 3 to 18, and the factors that may cause learning disabilities;
• Learn about the promises of technology in home and educational contexts delivered via computers, tablets, smartphones or the Internet;
• Design and test action plans;
• Design and test interventions in order to close the gap between high and low achievers at an early stage.

Please note: if you want to work as a teacher or want to work in a clinical setting in The Netherlands. This programme does not prepare or qualify you for this kind of work.

On campus education

Our teaching takes place on campus and not online. You are trained for a social profession, in which interactions with children, parents, educators, teachers, organisations, policy makers and teammates are key. We believe that social skills are honed through extensive interaction with teachers and fellow students during your education. In this way, you learn to cooperate with others and to define your own role in that cooperation. You will work on other important competencies too, such as your ability to extract information directly "live" from lectures, working groups and interviews. We expect professional behavior from you in which you consider not only your own perspective, but also the perspective of the other, such as your teacher, fellow student or participant. All these skills you can later apply in your profession as an educator.