There have been a few blogs lately in The Lounge that focus on the joys and challenges of working with students who may have special needs and/or learning disabilities. Our instructors, as with ourselves, are not necessarily experts in diagnosing and working with such circumstances in adult learners. Often, a learning disability may have even gone undiagnosed, yet there are visible challenges in the way a student approaches, processes and comprehends information. 

As we work with our faculty in this area, perhaps one of the most significant ideas is to encourage instructors to vary the way that they deliver concepts and applications in the classroom or lab as well as the way they assess student outcomes and progress. Varying teaching styles and assessment methods helps to reach students with different learning styles and, in turn, particularly helps students who may have special needs in the learning process.

Additionally, adult learners who know that they have special needs may be willing to address them privately and professionally with their instructors so that, collaboratively, the best learning environment surfaces. This is not an accommodation, but an assistance, so that adult learners can build blocks to career success knowing that the workplace is far less forgiving than the classroom.

So as we help our faculty work with the diversities of adult learners, it is imperative for us to remind them, and ourselves, that we have far surpassed the traditional way of "I talk and you listen so that I can teach you what you need to know." as one of our bloggers recently stated, "Listening to our students.......is as important as the information we are trying to teach them."