Katharine 

 

The obvious solution to your statement is that persons with LD should be
informed consumers and not go to the schools that do not have the services .

 

And as H L Menkin said . for every problem this is a quick and easy solution
. that is completely wrong .

 

So . my easy solution may be wrong . but it has a grain of truth in it (more
like a ton) . All persons need to be informed consumers . and go to places
that will fit them best .  

 

So . as a general principle . when I do give advice to students with LD
going to college . my advice to them is to make the first stop disabled
student services . and find out about the program  and the services . and
seek out feed back from existing student with LD to see if the services are
real . etc .. and if its not good for persons with LD . don't go there .
find a place that is good.

 

We have come a very long way in a very short time . and while many can argue
that the disabled student services programs in their given college or
university are poor . well that may be true . but they are there . and there
are also many colleges and universities with excellent programs .. And
therefore, unlike a few decades agon, we have choices . 

 

And we need to exercise our role as consumers . and make the choices the fix
our needs best . as informed consumers 

 

So that mean we really need to let students with LD know they have choices .
and to help them explore the choices and reach right choices for them .

 

OK . sounds simple again . but after years of personal therapy . the thing
that I say I leaned finally is that in all cases we do have in fact a number
of options . and even in most cases we have some good options . what we have
to learn to do is to look for the options and figure out the good options .
and not just accept our "fate" as presented to us by others .

 

I feel that is one of the most pressing problems facing most persons with LD
. is they have been "beaten" up so badly by the systems and all those around
. they have no idea of what their options are, and even that in fact the do
have options . and are usually willing to accept what is told to them is all
that is available .. 

 

If we can break this chain . this feeling of no options . and instead
provide persons with LD with an understanding that there are options . and
often good options . then progress can be made (and with this I don't mean
lower your expectations . on the contrary . I mean figure out ways to get
what you need to meet your expectations)

 

I am often so confused by people who are in "dead" towns . who say they can
not find work in these towns . and I say . well move to another town . and
they say . oh no . I can't do that .. 

 

Why? I ask . well . I know this place, been here all my life  . I don't want
to go somewhere I don't know (or the other answer is I have family here) 

 

Well . I ask . you rather stay where you know it's not good . then take a
chance on finding something better?  And I also say . go get a good job and
then bring your family there .

 

But in fact most people rather "stay with the devil they know" .. And we
need to work with the people with LD to be willing to go to a new place . to
try other options . and not stay with the devil they know simple because
that is what they know, they been treated this way all their lives . we need
to teach people there are options and good options and that changing to a
better option is not bad . it's a good thing .

 

OK . this message may be a bit to abstract to get my point across . but I
tried 

 

Glenn Young

CSLD

530 Auburn Ave

Buffalo NY 14222

Cell 703-864-3755

Fax 716-822-2842

website: glennyoungcsld.com

  _____  

From: learningdisabilities-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:learningdisabilities-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Katherine
Sent: Tuesday, January 22, 2008 9:01 PM
To: The Learning Disabilities Discussion List
Subject: [LearningDisabilities 1659] Re: Response to Jon's question last
week

 

"Where you stand depends on where you sit."

 

I like that.

 


>From where I sit, I've worked with too many students who have failed because

their LD was either not diagnosed or they were not given necessary
accommodations....in postsecondary institutions.

 

I am glad adult education is working to take care of this at another level.
My primary concern is that those efforts aren't always transferring into the
colleges.  Community colleges and even state colleges don't seem to have as
much of an issue because there are usually specific departments that help
these students transition.  But in smaller, private schools, it seems these
students fall through the cracks and never even know they "fell" until it's
too late.  

 

 

Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt
www.luxuriouschoices.net 

----- Original Message ----- 

From: Glenn <mailto:gyoungxlt at roadrunner.com>  Young 

To: 'The Learning Disabilities Discussion
<mailto:learningdisabilities at nifl.gov>  List' 

Sent: Tuesday, January 22, 2008 4:40 PM

Subject: [LearningDisabilities 1658] Re: Response to Jon's question last
week

 

Katherine 

There is an old saying . where you stand where you sdepends upon it .. So
your struggle and focus . is based on your personal experience .

 

So .. Keep on fighting . and we can support each others fights .

 

But we must always keep the broad picture of fighting for the broad LD
issues .

 

 

Glenn Young

CSLD

530 Auburn Ave

Buffalo NY 14222

Cell 703-864-3755

Fax 716-822-2842

website: glennyoungcsld.com


  _____  


From: learningdisabilities-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:learningdisabilities-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Nancie Payne
Sent: Saturday, January 19, 2008 6:30 AM
To: Learningdisabilities at nifl.gov
Subject: [LearningDisabilities 1656] Response to Jon's question last week

 

In response to Rochelle's request for a response to Jon's question:

First, I am not an attorney and do not explicitly follow the ADA/Civil
Rights cases, thus I can not comment on any rulings or stipulations.  That
said -- here are some thoughts about the LD policy set by the literacy
agency and the college that Jon references. 

I am going to start at the end instead of the beginning.  First, it is my
belief that the major reason a teacher (in the adult basic education world)
would need new or updated learning disability information about a student is
for purposes of receiving necessary accommodations on the GED Test, in
admissions testing and/or when involved in coursework in a postsecondary
institution, or on a job/work training situation.

Now that you have my bias/opinion, here's the next element. While a learning
disability is a permanent disability, there are several "glitches" if you
will.

Many times, especially with the current elements of the IDEA, K-12 students
are not actually diagnosed with a learning disability - only identified as
"qualifying for special education services."  Then, there are the issues
around documentation done by a qualified professional.  There are no
constants in the documentation of a learning disability - while many
professionals follow a specific set of criteria, research shows that in
practice, there are many ways of documenting this disability - some more
acceptable than others.  These documentation elements lead to individuals
having documentation that is inaccurate or frequently does not provide
enough information to support the diagnosis. Finally, if the only
documentation available was done sometime during elementary, middle, or
early high school and the individual is now an adult, chances are their
cognitive abilities have changed (especially if they have encountered good
teachers and used strategies) and while the learning disability might still
be present, the levels are different and an "adult assessment" may be
important to have.

All that said, the question is whether an adult education teacher providing
instruction to an individual who has/appears to have a learning disability
is assisted - instructionally speaking - by documentation/diagnostic
information.  In my estimation - many times not, as the
documentation/diagnosis typically does not suggest what should be done; that
is the types of modification or adjustments appropriate in an adult
education/literacy setting. Remember, that is not to say that the
documentation/diagnosis is not important if accommodations for the GED test,
postsecondary or work appear to be in order. In these cases, programs that
provide adult basic education (in this case literacy and pre-GED classes)
certainly have a need - as advocates for the student - and hopefully believe
- a responsibility - to help the student access updated or new information.
If we don't do it who will?  If it doesn't happen during the time the
student is enrolled in the adult education program, does the lack of such
create a significant barrier in passage to the next level of
self-sufficiency?  In my opinion, these requests should be based again on
the student's goals/direction and the requirements/standards set by the
entity/organization (e.g., GED Testing Service, the postsecondary
institution, or the workplace).  

On to the next element -- It is my understanding that organizations/programs
that receive federal, state or local municipality funds and are providing
services to individuals who lack the resources/support to access new or
updated documentation of a disability have some obligation to assist the
individual.  The question is - to what level of assistance is the obligation
of the organization/program?  At the very least, having information
available regarding resources within the community - for example: Vocational
Rehabilitation may provide assistance if the student's primary goal is to
become employed, literacy/GED is a step in that goal and a disability or the
perception that there is a disability is preventing the student from
achieving the goal or if the student is a welfare-to-work/TANF participant
then there should be resources for disability documentation/diagnosis from
that program.  These are just two instances of assistance within the system.
Each state, region and local area has a variety of options.  

Well, the subject continually evolves - perhaps others in the legal field
have more substantive information from the ADA perspective.

Nancie Payne

 

 


  _____  


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