Without A Home: The National Youth Homelessness Survey

Learning disabilities
Learning disabilities describe conditions that
affect the way one takes in, stores, and uses
information, and can make it more difficult
for young people to keep up with peers in
terms of learning or functioning. Learning
disabilities are not related to intelligence, and
a person with a learning disability may be
of average or above average intelligence. In
our survey we asked a number of questions
related to learning disabilities.
TABLE 4
Tested for a learning disability
Ever tested at school
for a learning disability? % (NUMBER)
Yes 50% (502)
No 43% (430)
Not sure 8% (80)
According to Statistics Canada, 3.2% of Canadian children have a learning disability
(Statistics Canada, 2006). Youth from our sample exceed this benchmark considerably.
While we were unable to measure precisely how many youth had been diagnosed with a
learning disability, we did look at what percentage were tested. We consider this to be a
significant indicator that young people were experiencing challenges in school relating to
learning retention, achievement, engagement, and behaviour. In other words, school staff
believed these youth were suffering in some way.
Survey results
indicate that 50%
of respondents said
they were tested for
a learning disability
while at school.
There are also significant differences based on ethnic,
gender, and racial identities as it relates to the testing of
learning disabilities. Within our sample, 56% of Indigenous
youth reported they had been tested for a learning disability,
and 59% of transgender and gender non-binary youth were
tested. At the other end of the spectrum, youth who were
members of racialized communities were the least likely to
have been tested for a learning disability (28%).
Our study also showed similar findings with respect to
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). According
to the Canadian Mental Health Association, approximately
5% of children in Canada are affected by ADHD (Canadian
Mental Health Association, 2014). The results of our survey
reveal that 41% of the sample had been tested for ADHD
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WITHOUT A HOME: THE NATIONAL YOUTH HOMELESSNESS SURVEY