Frank,
Head injuries and concussion (not uncommon with vets) can manifest symptoms very like those of a learning disability, but they are not the same because the causation is not the same. There are some different strategies that can be offered for those with head injuries -- but ALL (those with head injuries and those with LD) still need and benefit from your patience and understanding, as you have already discovered.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
I deal with alot of vets who have just returned from overseas.Some have brain injury from combat,which sometimes require patience.When they show me there paperwork i work with them.Show them i care,and give them respect.It means alot to them.I follow up with them to make sure they understand the subject.
Russell,
These are great ideas because they are affirmative steps to be taken to actively assist, rather than penalize, all students, INCLUDING those with disabilities. Good job.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
For students with a disability that affects their spelling, several accomodations could be made. First, it would be important to check with the student to make sure he/she is using spellcheck on any papers due for the class. Secondly, asking the English tutor to come in to speak to the class about the tutoring services available. This way, the student doesn't feel he/she is being singled out for tutoring. In our university's tutoring center, which is called the Learning Center, English tutors review papers for grammar, spelling and APA formatting and are available six days a week. If there are tests in the class, then a reasonable accommodation would be either allowing the student to use a dictionary during the test.
Russell Faulk
Joseph,
That's a terrific strategy for ALL students, as you suggest. I think it helps students to focus on producing a polished end-product that they can feel proud of and not get a grade, shrug, and move on to the next project with or without a good feeling about the last!
Dr. Jane Jarrow
I have always had a hard time with spelling, not because of reading the words but in hearing their phonetic spelling. In a way I can relate with folk that have experiences the difficulty of having a learning disability. What I do in class is not just for the folk with disability's but for everyone and that is to allow them to rewrite their paper as many time as they want during the quarter in order to improve their grade.
Trish ,
I am not sure what a "comprehensive disability" is, but it sounds as though someone at your institution is doing a good job of shepherding students with disabilities through the educational process. You might suggest that someone explore technology as another possibility to assist. There are some very workable text-to-speech applications available, free of charge, on the internet. These would allow a student with reading difficulties to access print materials more independently.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
We are using readers for testing and private accommodations for those who have comprehensive disabilities. We have students who cannot read. We are referring them to the Adult Education Center and Literacy Council. We have study buddies who spend time studying and the computer lab is used to study online with games and matching for word recognition. We also use study guides for our course.
Carolyn,
If you are suggesting that you NOTE the misspelled word (by spelling it correctly above their error) but do not penalize them for it, that sounds like a sound strategy in some courses (where spelling is emphasized but not critical). In other classes, correct spelling may be a critical element of performance (like a medical terminology class). In such a situation, encouraging students to use some form of technology to monitor and correct their own spelling may be a better solution.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Spelling the words correctly above the mispelled word, so that the student could see the word spelled correctly for future purposes.
Gilbert,
It sounds as though there is some kind of "glitch in the system" and your institution has yet to develop an effective system for assuring that students with disabilities are invited to come forward, and that someone in the institutional structure has the responsibility of shepherding them through and assuring that everyone knows what can/should be done. I would encourage you to go back to the powers-that-be and ask some hard questions.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
This brings up a good point especially with career focused education.In our school we get students from diverse backgrounds and the basic requirement to enter is a high school education.Instructors get students without any notice of a students learning disability.Generally you don't find out untill the first assesment.In my experience there have been few students who have informed me of their learning disability at the start of the term.It is a possibilty that some of them never recieved the attention to work with their learning diability or were not officially informed about it.
Mechele,
Your experience is both sad and inspiring. I think it is too bad that you had to struggle so much during your own educational career because no one in your environment understood the very real difficulties you were having. But I love hearing that you were able to "make lemonade out of lemons" and that you have not only harnessed your disability-related symptoms, but found a way to make them work for you. The experience of NEEDING to think outside the box for your own endeavors has ALLOWED you to think outside the box for others -- and I am sure many students will be better off for your presence in *their* academic careers.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Dr. Jane,
I am 44 years old , back in my early education, I didn’t get a specific disability label. I spent my early education in special reading programs and writing programs. I always had to find ways to understand what others had no problem learning. I spent many days after school in tutoring(English, math, reading). I didn’t have the diagnosis but later when I made it to college, I finally understood my learning disability was real. Regardless, I developed ways to cope or move around the material. I do know it has made me a very versatile learner as well as an instructor. I was gifted with a talent to paint and draw. I am also a great observer of people and intuitively seem to know what they need. My old bosses use to call me Radar(Tv Mash star). As an instructor, I found it has helped me be a better observer of my students learning needs and I adapt to change faster. I do thank god for computers and spell check and the calculator.
Mechele Felts
Larry,
While I know some postsecondary institutions talk about (use the terminology)"IEP plans", (just for the record) IEP plans are a specific requirement under the laws that govern special education in the K-12 system. IEP accommodations are assigned to foster success for students with disabilities. The accommodations we assign at the postsecondary level are for purposes of facilitating full ACCESS. That doesn't matter much in the way you carry out the assigned accommodation, but it SHOULD matter to whomever is assigning them!
Dr. Jane Jarrow
We also have IEP plans and they are given more time, test read to them, and MP3. These accomodations seem to do good for our students needs.
Guerda,
I would be happy with all of your solutions except the first one, Guerda. One of the cardinal principles of making accommodation is that it should never translate to requiring LESS of a student. All your other suggestions are ways of giving the student the same test, under different circumstances. Testing over less content wouldn't be a good idea. OH! Unless you meant breaking the test -- the SAME test -- into smaller segments and testing over all the same materials but in smaller units. That would work in some classes, not others.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Students with learning disabilities could be given a shorter list of words to study and be tested on. Or the test could be given in two parts to allow a break. Or by allowing more time for the test. Also give the test one on one and allow oral responses from the student.
Bernard,
That's the mark of a good teacher -- spending individual time with students to help them make the best of their individual abilities. Nice job!
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Jennifer,
That works fine for some folks (that is, those teaching some courses), but not so well for others. If I were teaching history, for instance, as long as I could tell what the student was saying, spelling might not be that important. For an English class, or a Business class, it might be critical, because the final product (in looks and presentation) is a part of what is being tested. An alternative to not counting off for spelling might be to allow the student to use technology that allows them to clean up their mistakes! Spell checkers in word processing systems have been the saving grace of a whole generation of LD learners.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
