Reading and Math Gaps Appear Years Before Learning Disabilities Are Identified
A kindergarten classroom brings together children with a wide range of experiences and abilities. Some recognize letters, connect sounds to letters, or count with confidence. Others begin school with skills that are still emerging. For children who will later identified with specific learning disabilities, these early differences appear to already be substantial starting at school entry.
A 2025 study examined reading and math development from kindergarten through fifth grade following a group of US school children. The researchers found that children identified with specific learning disabilities by fifth grade had entered kindergarten with lower reading and math skills than their peers, on average. Most did not receive special education services until third grade or later .
Following Students From Kindergarten Through Fifth Grade
The researchers analyzed data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010–2011. This nationally representative dataset followed children across elementary school and measured their reading and math performance at multiple points.
The analysis included approximately 540 students who received services for a specific learning disability in fifth grade and 8,650 students who had never received special education services. The researchers used fifth-grade disability status to look back at how both groups performed when they entered school.
The study also considered socioeconomic status, which combined household income, parental education, and parental occupational status. This allowed the researchers to examine how disability status and socioeconomic resources related to academic growth.
Differences Were Visible at Kindergarten Entry
Students who were later identified with a specific learning disability entered kindergarten nearly one standard deviation behind their peers in reading and more than three-quarters of a standard deviation behind in math.
These differences appeared well before most students received formal support. Approximately 70 percent of students in the disability group first received an Individualized Education Program, or IEP, in third grade or later. Only 13 percent received an IEP during kindergarten or first grade.
A child may struggle with foundational reading or math skills for years before an evaluation leads to specialized services. Early screening can help educators recognize persistent difficulties sooner and determine when a student may need closer assessment or targeted instruction.
Students Progressed, While the Gaps Persisted
Children in both groups (those with and those without SLD) improved throughout elementary school. Their progress did not erase the differences present at school entry.
Reading growth followed different patterns. Students without disabilities made faster gains during the earliest grades, slowed during the middle elementary years, and showed renewed growth near fifth grade. Students with learning disabilities made slower, steadier gains that did not close the reading gap.
Math development followed more parallel paths. Students with and without disabilities gained skills at broadly similar rates. Since students with learning disabilities began at a lower level, the initial difference remained through fifth grade, the last data point available.
These findings show why progress alone does not provide a complete picture. A student can learn steadily and still remain far behind grade-level peers. Educators need to consider both individual growth and curricular expectations.
Socioeconomic Status Added Another Layer of Risk
Children from lower-socioeconomic-status backgrounds also entered kindergarten with lower average reading and math scores. These achievement differences remained largely stable across elementary school.
The researchers found that socioeconomic status and disability status acted primarily as independent, additive risk factors. Students who experienced both had an additional disadvantage, yet the combination did not create a fundamentally different developmental trajectory.
Socioeconomic disadvantage does not cause a learning disability. It can shape access to educational resources, early learning opportunities, assessments, and support. The findings reinforce the need for equitable screening and intervention systems.
Why Early Recognition Matters for SLPs
Speech-language pathologists often work at the intersection of spoken language, literacy, and academic participation. An SLP may contribute to assessment, collaborate with teachers and families, and help identify language-based barriers that affect learning.
This study shows why preparation in research, assessment, collaboration, and evidence-based intervention matters. Future SLPs need to understand how academic skills develop and how early differences can affect later learning. Likewise, reading specialists can play critical roles in the assessment and intervention efforts.
Several study authors are affiliated with the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Mass General Brigham University of Health Professions. Their work addresses questions that matter in schools: When do learning differences first appear, when do students receive support, and where can professionals respond sooner?
Turning Early Evidence Into Timely Support
The study has limitations. The dataset did not indicate whether each student had a disability in reading, math, written expression, or several areas. Disability status came from educator reports, and the data ended in fifth grade. Missing data also left some lower-income and historically underserved children underrepresented.
The central message remains clear. Reading and math gaps linked to learning disabilities can appear at the start of kindergarten, long before formal identification. Early academic screening, timely evaluation, and evidence-based support may help schools respond during critical years of development.
Preparing educators and SLPs to recognize these patterns gives students a better chance to receive support when it can make the greatest difference.
About the University Researchers
The research team included five scholars affiliated with Mass General Brigham University of Health Professions: Rebecca A. Marks, PhD, Adrienne D. Woods, PhD, Laura Mesite, PhD, Annie B. Fox, PhD, and Joanna A. Christodoulou, EdD. Their work contributes to a broader understanding of how reading and math skills develop over time and how earlier recognition of learning challenges may help educators and clinicians better support students. Christodoulou, a faculty member in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, also served as the study’s senior author, supervised the research, and funded the work with NIH grant support.
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