Raymond,
this is a great idea & means that I must be engaging with my students in conversations & demonstrating my willingness to help them.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Finding what works best for them to succeed
Jennifer,
and this can be difficult to do so we need to make sure we demonstrate an openness & willingness to help them.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Ensuring that students inform me of their disability and what has helped them in the past.
Adult learners with disabilities may not feel inclined to discuss their disability or bring it to attention. I have found students would rather not say or seek out help/support.
Jan,
this is a good idea (to review your policy) & also remember to make yourself available & approachable to the students so they will be encouraged to discuss their struggles with you.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
This has been a great course in helping to identify the instructional challenges in working with students with learning disabilities. The greatest challenge for me will be to properly identify students facing these challenges and then open the lines of communication in such a way that will safely promote modifications that benefit learning for each individual. As a new instructor, I've made a note for myself to carefully review our institutional policy in this area.
I believe the greatest challenge is not being able to understand what they are going through. Second, the greatest challenge it to help them, while still keeping it fair for everyone in the class. For this second reason, I believe that setting up the accommodations at the beginning of the class is very important. If they are set up at the beginning, there is no confusion, and there is no appearance of unfairness.
Mia,
there is definitely a balancing act that must take place in these situations.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Teaching a student with a learning disability can be difficult, instructions to the student may differ from the rest of the class, using different techniques may take away from the rest of the classroom instruction. It may be difficult to determine what the student must learn and what methods to teach it, on a day-to-day schedule.
I tend to struggle with managing my time when it comes to working with students with disabilities and giving equal time to the other students.
Katina,
yes the balance of these different student groups is a challenge for instructors.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I have had a few with all kinds of disabilities. We can always find some strategy to help them, and I really like to try and teach creative ways for them to learn and organize the information for their own learning style. I try to approach each disability as a unique learning style. I have seen people with severe problems succeed because they found their own way of taking in, processing, and relaying the information... correctly and succinctly.
I always try to remember we all learn a little differently; some with sight, some by doing, and some by listening, but usually a combo of the two of the three...
students with learning disabilities take much more of your time than regular students but teaming them up with other students or groups has seamed to work for me
The biggest challenge is trying to meet their needs and well as the needs of the other students in the class.
Sometimes I have a class with more that one student with learning disabilities so I find it hard to juggle their needs with class as a whole at times.Allowing extra time after class to address their specific needs has seem to work best and it helps them get caught up if needed.
Kathryn,
We do need to always keep in mind that we are there to serve the students & should have a positive attitude toward them.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
The biggest challenge is remembering that the student has a disiability and adapting ac lass around that.
I'm going to keep this simple. Growing up I was on a IED. This I found was degrading and being that I was on a IED I gave up. Once I realized that I needed I can do what ever I applied myself to, I did it. This took work on my end and my end only. So the hardest thing for me is I was not trained to handle students with disabilities and helping them understand that they too can do it if they try.
I really don't see a challenge when it comes to working with students with LD. Once you find out what the LD is then we can work to help that student. It may require a little more time on my part, but that's okay. We are here to teach and enable every student to be successful on the pathway to their chosen journey.
