Learning disabilities in the academy: A professor’s guide

Abstract

I ncreasingly, professors have been receiving memos of this sort f rom administrators. Currently more than 45,000 students with learning disabilities (LD) enter college each year, up f rom 19,000 in 1988,1 with the n u m b e r o f LD students graduat ing high school growing by more than 5 percent a year. 2 Professors have reacted to these developments with confusion. Most have no idea what LD is and have only a vague awareness that the law is somehow relevant. Consequently they have quietly acquiesced to all requests, believing they have no legal recourse. Professors who otherwise staunchly resist any intrusions into their teaching now passively abdicate their academic f reedom, allowing an administrator to decide how they shall conduct their courses. To remedy this problem, I shall describe LD, explain the legal issues, and provide a f ramework for thinking about the topic.