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Jennifer Krawec Receives 2011 DLD Dissertation Award

The Division for Learning Disabilities of the Council for Exceptional Children is pleased to announce that Jennifer Krawec is the recipient of the 2011 DLD Dissertation Award. This award recognizes individuals who have conducted outstanding doctoral-level research in the field of learning disabilities.

The award will be presented at the annual business meeting of the Division for Learning Disabilities (DLD) at the convention of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) in Baltimore in April 2011. It includes $500 and an additional $500 for travel to receive the award, a free one-year membership in CEC and DLD, an opportunity to present the research at the CEC Annual Convention in 2012, and an invitation to submit the research for publication in the Division journal, Learning Disabilities Research & Practice.

Now an assistant professor at Missouri State University, Professor Krawec received her Ph.D. in 2010 from the University of Miami. Her study, titled "Problem Representation and Mathematical Problem Solving of Students of Varying Math Ability," examined differences in math problem solving among students with learning disabilities (LD), low-achieving (LA) students, and average-achieving (AA) students. The primary interest was to analyze the problem representation processes students use to translate and integrate problem information while solving math word problems. She assessed the paraphrasing, visual representation, and problem-solving accuracy of eighth-grade students with learning disabilities (LD; n=25), low achievement (LA; n=30), and average achievement (AA; n=29) using a version of the Mathematical Processing Instrument created for studying these issues. Results indicated that problem-solving accuracy was positively correlated with relevant information and negatively correlated with irrelevant information. Further, students with LD differed from LA students in that they paraphrased less relevant information. Paraphrasing and visual representation accuracy each accounted for a statistically significant amount of variance in problem-solving accuracy. Finally, the effect of visual representation of relevant information on problem-solving accuracy appeared to depend on ability.

The Division for Learning Disabilities, one of 17 special interest groups of CEC, has been dedicated to improving educational outcomes for individuals with LD since the early 1980s. Supported primarily by volunteers, DLD strives to serve its members through a variety of activities that include print publications, grants and awards, and this Web site. In addition, DLD supports subdivisions in many states. The Division for Learning Disabilities is a tax-exempt non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization.