Exploring Learning Differences:
A Successful Transition Course
for
Students with Learning Disorders
2006 International First-Year Experience
Conference
Connie Chiba, Ph.D.& Rick Low, Ph.D.
University of California, Berkeley
Brief Background: Legal Protections for Students
with Disabilities
• The Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• No otherwise qualified individual with a disability
in the US…shall, solely by reason of her or his
disability, be excluded from the participation in,
be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
discrimination under any program or activity
receiving federal financial assistance…
Legal Cont.: Protections for Students with
Disabilities cont.
• Students with documented disabilities may request
modifications, accommodations, or auxiliary aids
which will enable them to participate in and
benefit from all postsecondary educational
programs.
• The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
takes over where Rehab left off by extending
protection to private sector.
Legal: Cont.
• Legally, a person is considered to have a disability when
he or she has a physical or mental impairment whose
symptoms significantly impair the condition, manner, or
duration in which he or she engages in one or more life
activities.
• Examples of major life activities: reading,working,
learning, hearing.
Nationwide increase in numbers of college
students with disabilities
• College Freshmen with Disabilities Surveys
1978 survey: 3% percent of freshmen reported a
disability
1988: percentage had tripled to 9%
1998: 3.5% of freshmen reported having a learning
disorder
Numbers of Students with Learning
Disorders at UC Berkeley
• 1988: serving 148 students with learning
disorders
• 2005: serving 271 students with learning
disorders
• 55% increase
About Learning Disorders
(AHEAD, 2002)
• Learning disabilities and ADHD are two separate, distinct
disabilities. However, the functional impact they have on
learning can often be the same. For example, learning
disabilities and ADHD can both impair an individual’s
ability to read, listen, attend, concentrate, communicate or
otherwise perform in the academic setting.
• Nearly 25% of students with learning disabilities also have
ADHD.
Definition of Learning Disability
(AHEAD, 2001)
• Is a general term for a variety of specific subtypes
including: dyslexia, dyspraxia, dysgraphia, and
dyscalculia.
• Is manifested by deficits in one or more of the
following areas: basic reading skills, reading
comprehension,listening comprehension,oral
expression, math calculation, or problem solving.
Definition of LD cont.
• Individuals with LD may also have difficulty with
sustained attention, time management, and social
skills.
• Is presumed to be neurologically based.
• Is lifelong.
• The degree and severity varies from individual to
individual.
ADHD
(AHEAD ADHD Brochure, 2002)
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
is a disorder that consists of three distinct subtypes of symptoms experienced by both children
and adults. The three subtypes are know as:
– Predominantly Inattentive
– Predominantly Hyperactive
– Combined
About ADHD Cont.
(AHEAD ADHD Brochure, 2002)
• ADHD is considered to be biologically based.
• The degree and severity varies from individual to
individual.
Transition Experience
Students with Learning Disorders:
Case Study
Jenny is an entering freshmen with LD. She was diagnosed with a
LD in the second grade and has had lifelong difficulties with reading
and written language. She received Special Education services in
grades K-12 including special classes, extended time on exams, and
some homework modifications. Jenny is accustomed to having to
study much longer than her peers, but her hard work has paid off and
she has earned high enough grades to get into Cal.
Jenny is worried about her transition to college life.
Her friends in high school knew she had a learning disability. She
wonders if she’ll meet other students with learning difficulties. She
hopes to be a political science major and is concerned about the
amount of reading and writing that will be required.
Transition Experience
Students with Learning Disorders
• What transition issues is Jenny facing?
• How are they similar to and different from a student
without a learning disorder?
College Student Development
• General factors
•
•
•
Developing Identity
– Achieving independence
– Clarifying interests, beliefs, values
– Building integrity
Developing Meaningful Relationships
– Building relationship skills
– Forming sexual identity
– Understanding and expressing
feelings and emotions
Developing Purpose
– Prioritizing interests, beliefs, values
– Determining career goals, life-styles
– Defining skills
– Building competence
• Additional for student
with learning disorder
•
•
•
•
Developing Identity
– Understanding of disability
– Acceptance of disability
Developing Meaningful Relationships
– Communicating about disability
Developing Purpose
– Self-determination and selfadvocacy
– Using compensatory strategies
– Using disability-related resources
Other factors mediated by law
Research on Transition Issues
and Students with Learning Disorders
• Many students having difficulty completing their
degree (Mull, Sitlington, & Alper,2001)
• Difficulties often not due to academics per se but
lack of transition skills and subsequent adjustment
issues (Harris & Robertson, 2001)
• Lack of self-advocacy skills (Janiga &
Costenbader,2002)
Successful Adjustment for College Students with
Learning Disorders
(Skinner and Lindstrom,2003; Field,2003;Janiga&Costenbader, 2002)
– Knowledge about learning disorder including
the diagnostic process
– Self-acceptance of disability
– Ability to use compensatory learning strategies
– Knowledge of the law
– Self-advocacy skills
– Using peer support
– Using academic and social support networks
Collaboration of Campus Student
Support Programs
• Student Learning Center
• Graduate School of Education
• Counseling and Psychological
Services
• Disabled Students Program
• College of Letters and Science
• Student Life Advising Services
• Transfer Student Re-entry Programs
• Teaching Library
Course Goals, Content, &Process
Course Goals
Course Content
Course Process
To empower students
through self-exploration and
peer support.
Reader with chapters on
self- concept and identity;
self-esteem; and anxiety
and stress management.
Results of Myers-Briggs
Type Indicator and
Learning Styles Inventory.
Ice-breaker exercises.
Small group presentations.
Interactive discussion of
individual results of MyersBriggs and Learning Styles
Inventories.
To increase knowledge and
acceptance of learning
disorders in the university
context.
To understand the
diagnostic and, assessment
process and one’s own
specific learning disorder.
Text, Learning Between the
Lines, by Mooney and Cole.
Sharing of own experiences.
Written reflections on text.
Reader with articles on
learning disabilities and
AD/HD. Individual
summary of psychoeducational assessment
and/or AD/HD evaluation
distributed.
Lectures.
Interactive discussion of
individual summaries of
psycho-educational
assessments and AD/HD
evaluations.
Course Goals, Content, &Process, cont.
Course Goals
To become an effective
self-advocate
Course Content
Information on student
rights and responsibilities
under the ADA and Section
504.
Course Process
Role-play exercises
explaining disability and
accommodations needed.
To improve the application
of effective learning
strategies, including
developing oral
communication abilities.
Reader and lectures on
topics including critical
reading, time management,
test-taking strategies, notetaking, and effective oral
presentations.
Visit Assistive Technology
(AT) Center and attend
individual appointments
with AT Specialist.
Guest lectures from Student
Learning Center.
Group discussion and inclass activities including
individual and group oral
presentations.
Guest lectures from College
of Letters and Science,
Student Learning Center,
and other campus units.
To utilize assistive
technology and other
campus resources.
Education 1/98
Final Presentation
Fall
2003
The Assignment:
Peace and Conflict Studies 150
Final Paper
7-10 Pages
Concerns:
• Never written expository this length
• Grading for class uncertain
– Want to do well
• What to write about
– Guidelines for paper are really open
– I prefer structure and wish she would…
Spell it out
Couldn’t Get Started
In Preparation
• Too tired so I took a nap
• Looked at my first paper and wrote on it where I
could expand
• Found I had more to say than I thought
• Gained confidence
• I had sized-down the assignment
The Plan
• Show Prof. ideas for
assignment and ask for
suggestions.
• Write a draft on
Wednesday &
Thursday.
• E-mail draft to Prof.
• Re-write for next
week.
Description of My LD on
Academic Performance
•
•
•
•
Strengths
Verbal comprehension
Reading
comprehension
(untimed)
Spelling
Writing
•
•
•
•
•
Challenges
Auditory short term
memory
Processing speed
Reading
comprehension
(timed)
Reading rate
Math calculation
Quotes from
Learning Outside the Lines
These are lines that I identified with
throughout my life with a Learning
Disability.
For the first few months of college, the spinning was almost too much.
But I knew somewhere inside that, if I just kept pushing,
it would stop and I could change.
Learned to hide in the bathroom to escape reading out loud.
Wanted desperately to be like everyone else.
While I experienced these successes, my weaknesses did not go away
I was tested and diagnosed with dyslexia.
I had no idea what that meant at the time. It was never explained to me
I had hit my emotional bottom but kept fighting,
Your mind is quicker than your pen.
How It Effects This Assignment?
• Slow reader. Don’t want to reread many
assignments
• Did not read everything the first time
because readings summarized in class
• Did not know would need to use info in a
paper (assignment was changed.)
Accommodations
• Did not really use for this class
• Instructor told me the most important
reading assignments
• Utilized the cave :}
– WYNN
– Inspiration
– Adam
Myers-Briggs
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Introversion
• Prefer to study
individually
• Need quiet for
concentration
Intuition
• Read between the lines
• Like theories to give
perspective
Thinking
• Logic guides learning
• Learn by challenge
and debate
• Like to critique new
ideas
Judging
• Want faculty to be
organized
• Like formal
instructions for
solving problems
Personal Strategies for Academic
Success!
Personal Strategies for Academic
Success!
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•
•
•
•
•
Flash cards.
Write it out
Color it.
Post-its
Make lists
Talk about itRecite information out
loud when reviewing
almost anything
Because in the End, the Wounds
Heal. The Scars Remind Me of
Where I Came From and Who
Loved Me; The Gifts the People
in My Life Gave Me Bloom the
Brightest and Continue to Grow.
---Learning Outside the Lines
Thank You Kristin for Showing
Me How to Use PowerPoint
Understanding Learning Differences:
Strategies for Success
An Eight-year Follow-up Survey | Student Perceptions of the Impact of the Course
Fall 1993 through Spring 2002 ( N= 222) 39% Response Rate
Demographics: Gender: 58% Females 42% Males Type of Learning Disorder:
61% have a diagnosed learning disability
18% have a diagnosis of ADHD
21% have both a learning disability and ADHD
Date of Diagnosis of Learning Disorders
32% ­ Elementary School
3 % ­ Middle School
27% ­ High School
38 % ­ College Class Level When Enrolled in Course:
52%­Freshmen 14%­Sophomores 28%­Juniors 5%­Seniors 1%­Graduate Students
Graduation : 42% of the respondents had graduated from Cal.
Two Approaches to Course Evaluation
• Approach 1:
– In Fall 2002, a follow up survey sent to all
students (N=222) who had taken course from
Fall 1993 through Spring 2002.
– 39% response rate
• Approach 2:
– Pre-Post version of the questionnaire
administered to all students (N=68)in the class
from Fall semester 2002 to Fall semester 2004.
Questions Included on Follow-up Questionnaire
1a).
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1b).
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Which statement best describes your feelings and thoughts about your learning
disorder before taking the class?
Understanding and accepting that a learning disorder is part of who I am
Feeling sad/Feeling down on myself because of my disability
Asking myself, "Why me, why did it have to be me?"
Telling myself I did not have a disability.
Which statement best describes your feelings and thoughts about your learning
disorder after taking the class?
Understanding and accepting that a learning disorder is part of who I am
Feeling sad/Feeling down on myself because of my disability
Asking myself, "Why me, why did it have to be me?"
• Telling myself I did not have a disability.
To what extent did the course help you understand your learning disorder?
To what extent did the course help you accept your learning disorder?
To what extent did the course help you communicate about your learning disorder?
To what extent did the course help you understand your learning preferences and
styles?
To what extent did the course increase your academic self-confidence?
To what extent did the course help your overall academic performance?
To what extent did you feel peer support in the class helped you?
To what extent did the course help you adjust socially to Cal?
To what extent did the course help you adjust personally to Cal?
Significant Results for Long-Term
Follow-up Survey:
• To what extent did the course help you understand your learning
disorder?
–
77% "moderately" to "a great deal"
• To what extent did the course help you accept your learning disorder?
– Before:
• 44 %
• 56%
– After:
• 91%
• 9%
accepted that a learning disorder is part of who they are.
either denied, felt angry, or were sad
accepted that a learning disorder is part of who they are.
continued to deny, feel angry or sad
• To what extent did the course help you accept your LD?
– 69% "moderately" to "a great deal"
Survey Results (continued)
• To what extent did the course help you
communicate about your learning disorder?
– 75% "moderately" to "a great deal"
• To what extent did the course help you understand
your learning preferences and styles?
– 76% "moderately" to "a great deal"
• To what extent did you feel peer support in the
class helped you?
– 69% "moderately" to "a great deal."
• To what extent did the course increase your social
adjustment?
– 34% "moderately" to "a great deal"
Significant Results for Pre-Post Questionnaire:
• To what extent did the course help you understand your learning
disorder?
– Pre: 53% "moderately" to "a great deal”
– Post: 82% "moderately" to "a great deal"
• To what extent did the course help you accept your learning disorder?
– Pre: 65% accepted that a learning disorder is part of who they are;
35% either denied, felt angry, or were sad
– Post: 88% accepted that a learning disorder is part of who they
are; 12% continued to deny, feel angry, or feel sad
• To what extent did you feel peer support in the class helped you?
– Pre: 40% “moderately” to “a great deal”
– Post: 73% “moderately” to “a great deal”
• How have you adjusted socially to Cal?
– Pre: 61% “moderately” to “a great deal”
– Post: 25% “moderately” to “a great deal”
Student Reflections:
To what extent did the course help you
understand your learning disorder?
Increased knowledge about their learning disorder:
“It gave me more confidence in answering questions about my disability.
I never had to articulate my learning disability to a group of peers or
teachers before. Doing this helped me understand how to articulate my
difficulties.”
Increased adjustment to their learning disability.
“I learned new strategies to deal with my disorder and
I was able to relax a lot more in school.”
Making the transition from high school to college.
“It definitely helped me understand the transition from high school to
college. It gave me coping mechanisms.”
What was Most Significant about this Course?
A better understanding and acceptance of their disability:
“I learned about the nature of my disability. Even though the
brain is a total mystery, I learned a great deal. The class
also inspired me to learn more so I became a Cognitive
Neuroscience major and I want to figure out about the brain
and how to fix these problems.”
The peer support that it provided them:
“Just being in an open setting with other students who have a
disability was most helpful. Also there was a lot of peer
support.”
Student Reflections
“ I never had to articulate my learning disability to a group of
peers or teachers before. Doing this helped me understand how to
articulate my difficulties and gave me more confidence in
answering questions about my disability.”
“ I learned new strategies to deal with my disorder and I was able
to relax a lot more in school.”
“ It definitely helped me understand the transition from high school
to college. It gave me coping mechanisms.”
“ I learned how to express in words what was going on with me
and how people or professors could assist me”.
Student Reflections
“I basically learned what my difficulties were; my learning process -- Who I
am-- and with that in mind I now hold a clearer sense in how to navigate
myself through school, my studies. I learned alternate and easier techniques
with certain areas and, conversely, what to avoid.”
“I’m not afraid to tell people anymore, I understand that my disorder is not
a reflection of my intelligence.”
“It really gave me the vocabulary to talk and feel confident..
“I never really thought about other students having the same disability as
me, and after meeting others like me, I felt more comfortable in that I didn't
feel as alone as I did before with my problems.”
Thank you
Connie Chiba & Rick Low
University of California at Berkeley
References
Chiba, C. & Low, R. (in press). A course-based model to promote successful transition
to college for students with learning disorders. Journal of Post-Secondary Education
and Disability.
Association for Higher Education and Disability. (2002). College Students who have
ADHD.
(Brochure).
Association for Higher Education and Disability. (2001). College Students with learning
disabilities (3rd ed.) (Brochure). Loring Brinkerhoff, author.
Field, S., (2003). Self-determination: A key to success in postsecondary education for
students
with learning disabilities. Remedial and Special Education, 24(6), 339-
349.
Harris, R., & Robertson, J. (2001). Successful strategies for college-bound students with
learning disabilities. Preventing School Failure, 45(3), 125-131.
Janiga, S. J., & Costenbader, V. (2002). The transition from high school to postsecondary
education for students with a learning disability: A survey of college service
coordinators. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 35(5), 462-468.
Milson, A., and Hartley, M. (2005). Assisting Students with Learning Disabilities Transitioning to College: What School Counselors Should Know. Professional School Counseling, 8 (5), 436­41. Skinner, M.E., & Lindstrom, B.D. (2003). Bridging the gap between high school and college: [email protected]