Making them comfortable with the rest of the class. They often feel like they are holding people back because of the extra time that it takes them to take notes, finish assignments/tests, etc. I have found that, if possible, assigning the reading for the next lesson or having students work on projects after they complete a test is a great way to keep everyone busy. If everyone is continuing to work on something, no one will be sitting around "waiting" for others to finish which will make the person with the disability more comfortable.
The greatest challenge when working with students with learning disabilities, in my experience, is to find the additional time many of these students require. Often, in addition to my responsibility of presenting the class material to them, these students also feel their learning is my responsibility. The class structure, with the limited amount of time I have, lends little additional time available during the lecture time itself. Often, the personal commitments of these students allow them little time before or after regular school hours for additional instruction. In these cases, I have directed them to many web sites that offer additional basic instruction and various worksheets than they have found very helpful. This has allowed them to work on their own time and requires very little of time with me to only review their work and answer what questions they may have.
Our biggest challenge is that they do not tell us before class starts that they have a learning disability and we find out by poor grades and very upset students.
ANDREA,
you cannot make them share with you but I've found that by demonstrating I want to help & being open & receptive to the students that this can help alleviate that tension & break the ice a little (so to speak).
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
We deal with all knds of learners in our field. It is very important to me to provide ny students with the best opportunity to be successful. I fell sometimes students are embarrassed to share a disability. Any suggestions for this situation?
The greatest challenge of working with studetns with learning disabilities is the keeping their frustrations to a minimal level. Most of these student are more prone to dropping out when they feel they do not fit in with the rest of the group. Instructors sometimes need to give these students individual attention, and this is not always easy when you have 20 plus other students whose needs need to be met as well.
Alison,
this is a good point to keep in mind. We need to help these students as much as possible, but ultimately it is up to them to own their education.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I had a similar problem with a student. When I talked to him about it he admitted to having one and stated that he was ready to quit because the school had told him they'd work with him and no one was. Apparently, he thought the faculty would automatically know and was really angry that we hadn't helped. Unfortunately, he had unreasonable expectations for the accommodations and would do little to help himself. I don't know if that's the same for your student, but there really is only so much we can do.
I totally agree with this. The biggest challenge is getting the student to open up and explain what works best for them. It has been my experience that once the student feels comfortable sharing this information, they excel tremendously in the classroom. Its up to the instructor to set an atmosphere in the class that makes it comfortable and conducive for everyone.
One of the biggest challenges,is understanding how they may be feeling,and then trying to communicate information in a way they will understand with out making them feel different.
I say identification of the disability is the greatest challenge. I recently had a student that was failing tests. I found that if I read the test questions to him he could answer then all. He was a smart student, he just had a form of dyslexia.
Michael,
this is definitely challenging when the student is reluctant to open up & share.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
My biggest problem is determining what disability the student has and how to address it.
Dawn,
at the risk of sounding harsh, it really is up to him. It sounds to me like you've done what you can to show you want to help, but until he is ready to disclose the disability or seek real help, there's nothing else you can do.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
I believe that not knowing a student has a disability is the hardest part of being an instructor of someone with a true learning. However, I really have trouble believing the statement from the course that 15% of people have a learning disability. I think maybe we have loosened the defination of disability. It may be that the style that we use is hard. Those that have reading difficulty can oftentimes be a great oral learner. Their ability to comprehend is not what is the problem but rather the way we have determined to be the correct way. Based on definations I am getting in this course more than 50% of people are learning disabled at playing baseball. Before you say no that is a skill game and not the same, I believe it is the same.
True diabilities need to be addressed and compassion, encouragement and help needs to be given, however, not everyone can be expected to be college material or a book learner. I remember being shocked by the first contractor I had to deal with that could not read or write, however he could draw or read a blueprint and could build an excellent house.
I have a student currently whom I suspect may have a serious learning disability but he has not disclosed it to me or asked for accommodations. I can't ask him about it either. So I am at a loss as to how to proceed in helping him. I try to provide some individual instruction in class when I can, but I can see he is struggling all the time and I am limited in the time I can spend with him in class. I referred him to tutoring to help catch up on material and it seems to help. I am not sure what else to do in this case.
One thing I struggle with is keeping the rest of the class on task and focused while I work with the student who requires a little more time to comprehend the material. Understanding their disability is a big help in meeting their needs and presenting the information in a form that the slower learner can understand.
One of the most challenging issues is not working with the disabled learner, but in educating the other students. When you are seen making allowances for one student because of a learning disability we are often questioned by other students about why that person is special and allowed privledges. It is a tightrope to explain you still retain the confidentiality of the student involved.
The greatest challenge for me has been for the individual to have a stigma created by themselves to inhibit learning. Its almost a self induced blockade and the challenge for me is to have them not think of the past as a handicap
Mario,
this is a good point & one of the reasons we need to make ourselves approachable to our students.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
