Helpful Tips for Faculty
Information for Faculty
- Helpful Tips for Faculty
- Two questions often asked about LD & ADD students
TIPS FOR HELPING STUDENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES, ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER, AND ASPERGER’S SYNDROME/AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS IN THE CLASSROOM
1) Provide students with a detailed course syllabus. Make it available before registration week.
2) Clearly spell out expectations for the course (e.g., grading, material to be covered, due dates, reading lists).
3) Start each lecture with an outline of material to be covered. At the conclusion of class, briefly summarize key points.
4) Speak directly to students, and use gestures and natural expression to convey further meaning.
5) Present new or technical vocabulary on the blackboard, overhead, or use handouts. Terms should be used in context to convey greater meaning.
6) Give assignments both orally and in writing to avoid confusion.
7) Provide adequate opportunities for questions and answers, including review sessions.
8) If possible, select a textbook with an accompanying study guide for optional student use.
9) If indicated in the student’s memo from Disability Services, please facilitate notetaking by providing copies of overheads and allowing students to tape lectures. If you lecture from a detailed set of notes, many students would find it helpful if you would provide them with a copy that they can use to check against their own notes.
10) Provide study questions for exams that demonstrate the format, as well as the content, of the test. Explain what constitutes a good answer and why.
11) If indicated in the student’s memo from Disability Services, allow students to demonstrate mastery of course material using extended time limits for testing, and alternative formats if necessary (e.g., oral exams, tape-recorded exams, exams given in a separate, non-distracting room). Contact Disability Services if assistance is needed in administering an exam.
12) If needed, allow students to reiterate test questions in their own words to be sure they have interpreted them accurately.
13) Permit use of spellers' dictionaries, simple calculators, scratch paper, and a computer for essay exams.
14) Encourage students to join study groups and work with others.
15) Encourage students to use academic support services, especially the services of the Advising and Learning Assistance Center for tutoring, time management, and study skills assistance. If students ask for accommodations such as extra test time but do not have a memo, please refer them to Disability Services in the Dean of Students Office.
For additional information on why extra test time is helpful, click here!
Questions and comments regarding services for students with disabilities are welcomed and encouraged. For more information, please contact Debra Hamilton, Disability Services for Students, Dean of Students Office, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180-3590, send an email to dss@rpi.edu, or call (518) 276-2746.