setting students up for success or failure
I have been the ADA/504 coordinator on my campus for a little over a year now. In this time, I have seen many studnets overcome their challenges in life and be successful in their field of choice. On the other side of that, I have seen students who, in all reality, will have a difficult road at best in finding work and being successful in their career choice. We do all that we can to help them succeed in their programs, but at what point are we setting them up for failure when they get out into the workforce? We all want nothing more than to see them be happy and fullfilled in their careers. It's just difficult when know the struggles that they will encounter.
I understand what you are saying, but I never believe we are setting them up for failure. If the student can make it through the program successfully, then given time, they can also begin to work in the field they choose making the necessary changes within themselves. Students may not have a name for their difficulties, but many find a way to work around them: especially with good instruction.
Erin,
In no way can we anticipate everything-we can only try. :)
Sarah Smoger
Hanna,
great questions. I'm hoping they are addressed in your institution's enrollment agreement. I'm also hoping your institution can provide you guidance on your institution's admissions criteria. A student who can't read, for whatever reason, would have a difficult time in any course.
Sarah Smoger
I've been thinking about this for a long time. I've seen students come to my class who were not prepared for a degree program. Should we, as a college, accept everyone, or should we not accept people who are clearly not capable of succeeding in the program. Also, who determines this? The question holds for both people with disabilities and those who just don't have the pre-requisites. Someone who can't read comes to mind. Can that person pass courses which require reading. It's one thing to have a reading disabity where it takes longer, but should we start with teaching people to read and/or do basic math?
I believe an educator's role is to provide quality education to all of our students without judging their ability for post graduate gainful employmemt in their chosen area of study. Let's instead focus on the reason they are in our classrooms and help them achieve their dreams.
