Faculty Handbook - Learning Disabilities

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Students with Learning Disabilities

“Learning disability” is a general term that refers to a heterogeneous group of disorders manifested by significant difficulties in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, or mathematical skills. These disorders are intrinsic to the individual, presumed to be caused by central nervous system dysfunction, and may occur across the life span. Problems in self-regulatory behaviors, social perception, and social interaction may exist with learning disabilities but do not, by themselves, constitute a learning disability. Although learning disabilities may occur simultaneously with other disabilities, or with extrinsic influences, they are not the result of those conditions or influences (National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities [NJCLD], 1990)

Things to Keep in Mind

Learning disability (LD) is:

- Individual-specific. Commonly recognized as affecting performance in basic academic functions. Less frequent, but no less troublesome, are problems in organizational skills, time management, and social skills. Many adults with LD may also have language-based and/or perceptual problems.
- Like interference on the radio or a fuzzy TV picture, incoming or outgoing information may become scrambled as it travels between the eye, ear, or skin and the brain.
- Often inconsistent, it may present problems on Mondays, but not on Tuesdays. It may cause problems throughout grade school, seem to disappear during high school, and then resurface again in college. It may manifest itself in only specifi c areas, such as math or foreign language.
- FRUSTRATING! Persons with learning disabilities often have to deal not only with functional limitation, but also with the frustration of having to “prove” that their invisible disabilities may be as problematic as physical disabilities

Learning disability is not:

- A form of mental retardation or an emotional disorder. In fact, the marked discrepancy between intellectual capacity and achievement is what characterizes a learning disability.

Things you might do

- Select a well-written textbook. Try to choose one with a study guide or provide your own study guide and example test questions. Explain what constitutes a good answer.
- Provide students with a detailed course syllabus early. Books take an average of six weeks to be tape recorded. It is the responsibility of the student to make sure he or she contacts all available resources to obtain the proper materials.
- Make all expectations of the class clear (e.g., grading criteria, materials to be covered, due dates, and test dates). Give assignments both orally and in writing to avoid confusion.
- Present new or technical vocabulary visually (e.g., handout, overhead, or blackboard) and use it in context for added clarity.
- Allow students to tape lectures for note-taking purposes.
- Allow LD students to demonstrate mastery of course material using alternative methods when applicable, such as note-takers, accommodated testing, and tape recorders.
- Encourage students to use available campus support services.
- Make copies of overhead materials, lecture notes, and expanded syllabi in hard copy or electronic formats

Accommodations to Consider

- Academic counseling/reduced course load
- Textbooks and printed course materials in audio format
- Readers, note-takers, scribes, and assistive technology equipment Copies of power points/class notes
- Exam accommodations (oral exams, computer-assisted exams, reformatted tests) • Tape-recorded lectures
- Captioned films/videos

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