Student Sues Princeton Over Learning Disability Accommodations

kmccrindle
Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:14:58 +0000

I haven’t followed this thread enough to comment, but will say to future surfing parents something about asking the LD office questions in advance. First off, my s. (gifted+CAPD) did not receive (or ask for) accommodations in HS b/c he was admitted to GT magnet program - although had accommodations in GS. However, by gr. 10, he noticed a lot of trouble with memorization, sequential recreation and symptoms of poor notetaking (eg. all mental energy used in COMPREHENDING what is said in noisy background…ergo no energy to properly write in full what it was, or in some cases recall). Informally (with principal’s blessing) he began tape recording class, transcribing notes, spending 3 or 4x as long on homework. Pulled his GPA up, got into a very competitive flagship public, with a scholarship.
NOW he needs some accommodation (eg. straight As on assignments but terrible marks on tests that require detailed notetaking recall…so he’ll end up being way more “average” than his general inherent aptitude or in-class performance…)

I HAD SPOKEN AT LENGTH, twice over two years prior to his attendance, with the LD dept. First time, I was told to get him an Adult Scan, and was told what accommodations were possibly available. So I did. Second time, AFTER he was admitted, I was told that a SCAN wasn’t good enough, he’d need a full ($3,300) psychoeducational assessment in order to receive even the accommodations he’d received previously, because even though he HAS the CAPD diagnosis, the school does not necessarily accept that if affects his performance (This is a little confounding to me. For example, sit between two noisy generators at a cocktail party and listen to a lecture from across the room while someone’s talking in your other ear. See how many coherent ideas you get down while trying to HEAR what the crap was said…No brainer, right ; ).

That said, s. is stubborn and wanted to try to continue without notetaking assistance, but has finally (after midterm results) agreed to go for the assessment as, in his words, “I have done everything in my power to overcome my CAPD challenges and underneath it all there is still something getting in the way of my performance that I need help with and a strategy to conquer.”

I will tell you that while he is working his butt off and loving his school, pulling very strong assignment marks where he can and living with the outcomes where his weaknesses lie, I wish we’d have gotten the full psych assessment before now, (b/c it could take up to 3 mos now) and I wish he’d had a little more help along the way, and I wish we’d have formalized his HS plan with a 504. Yes, he is always and solely responsible for communicating and anticipating what he needs to others, future employers, etc. Many people, teachers included, seem to know very little about CAPD. Eg. girlfriends who despite this knowledge, can’t understand why talking on the phone is difficult. And yes, an employer will not have someone take notes for him at meetings. And yes, in doing things the hard way, he has definitely learned to take responsibility for himself, and has developed a level of character I admire.

That said, here’s the advice I’d impart now:

1. If your kid is doing fine without accommodations in HS, remember that under an 18-credit course load at a rigorous U. it may be another story, and there just might not be enough time in the day to use the compensation strategies (such as transcribing tape.)

2. Get the full psychoeducational assessment before they attend university. And 504.

3. Download and read the LD handbook for your school.

4. Get any information offered to you prior to acceptance in writing if you can, so that you’re clear on what you need and you won’t waste money on tests that are not accepted.

5. Convince your child to turn up at the LD office for counseling immediately upon arrival at the U. Eg. before they need it. Getting it all together right before finals is NOT the time to be laying groundwork ; )

That’s my .02
Cheers,
K