Course Guidance
The following is adapted from L. Scott Lissner's "Choosing a College"
This is a list of typical admission measures and the underlying skills, ability, and knowledge they generally measure. This may or may not be how they are used by any particular college.
Typical Admissions Standards: What Do They Measure?
1. English
a) Ability to produce a final written product (directly, utilizing adaptive technology, or utilizing alternative media)
b) Ability to comprehend material in print or alternative media (tape, etc.)
c) Basic familiarity with forms and styles of literature.
2. Mathematics (Geometry, Algebra I & Algebra II)
a) Computational mathematics skills covering basic arithmetic through one variable algebra
b) Application of linear reasoning to a constrained set of facts
c) Symbolic manipulation
d) Ability to learn and apply an abstract system of complex rules.
3. Science (including a laboratory science)
a) Basic understanding of key elements in scientific method
b) Ability to make predictions based on a theory
c) Ability to make and test predictions based on collected observations
d) Ability to observe and describe the physical world.
4. Foreign Language
a) Familiarity and exposure to alternative cultural perspectives
b) Ability to learn and apply an abstract system of complex rules
c) Symbolic manipulation
5. Social Studies
a) Basic understanding of historical and social forces that have influenced current culture
b) Basic understanding of the relationship between society and the individual.
6. Fine or Practical Arts
a) Appreciation for and an understanding of the process of creating aesthetic or functional objects
b) Understanding of the relationship between design, function, and societal values.
7. Health and Physical Education
a) Understanding of health and wellness issues as they relate to life style choices.
b) Appreciation for the physical nature of oneself and the environment.
8. Grade Point Average
a) Level of accumulated knowledge and skills acquired through high school
b) Predictor of the level of success in college
c) Indicator of motivation and consistence of performance across time and subject.
9. Rank in High School Senior Class
a) Normative measure of academic potential
b) Indicator of relative academic competitiveness (motivation and ability) over time.
10. SAT/ACT
a) Normative predictor of ability to succeed in college
b) Measure of academic potential or aptitude
c) Measure of academic achievement.
Documentation
To evaluate requests for accommodations or auxiliary aids, a college will need documentation of the disability. Various colleges define what specific documentation is required differently. You should check on the requirements of the colleges you are interested in and discuss any updating of your documentation that may be necessary when you are developing your Transition Plan. The guideline below are likely to be acceptable to most institutions.
Generic Documentation Guidelines
Documentation should include the following six elements:
1) Diagnostic statement by an appropriate professional identifying the disability with date of most current diagnostic evaluation and date of the original diagnosis.
2) Description of the diagnostic test methods, and/or criteria, used.
3) Description of the current functional impact of the disability including specific test results and examiner's narrative interpretation.
4) Treatments, medications, or assistive devices/services currently prescribed or in use.
5) Description of expected progression or stability of the impact of the disability over time, particularly the next five years.
6) Credentials of the diagnosing professionals.
Beyond the six elements needed for documentation, recommendations that state how you benefit from accommodations, adaptive devices, assistive services, compensatory strategies, and/or collateral support services are valuable.
Published in the Nov/Dec 1999 LDA (Learning Disabilities Association) News briefs
Characteristics of the Postsecondary Institution
High school counselors are skilled at helping typical students select colleges. However, a student with learning disabilities needs more diverse and detailed information from high school personnel than do typical students. Such a student needs to investigate admissions procedures carefully. How he or she compares to the typical entering student in terms of preparation and performance is critical in preventing a frustrating and possibly short-lived college experience.
A number of academic considerations are also critical for a student with learning disabilities. The availability of precollege courses, developmental and remedial courses, and course waiver provisions is essential information. The size of the institution itself, as well as the size of classes (particularly the number of large lecture classes) may be especially important to a student who has any of the social or interpersonal problems so common among students with learning disabilities.
This section is an excerpt from a digest created by ERIC, the Educational Resources Information Center, entitled "College Planning for Students with Learning Disabilities."