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ERIC Number: EJ1043273
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-2194
EISSN: N/A
Community College Students with Learning Disabilities: Evidence of Impairment, Possible Misclassification, and a Documentation Disconnect
Weis, Robert; Speridakos, Elena C.; Ludwig, Katharine
Journal of Learning Disabilities, v47 n6 p556-568 Nov-Dec 2014
Recent research suggests that most 4-year college students diagnosed with specific learning disability (SLD) do not meet objective criteria for the disorder, show normative deficits in academic skills, or have childhood histories of SLD. The purpose of this study was to examine the functioning of students diagnosed with SLD attending community college. We reviewed SLD documentation for 359 community college students previously diagnosed with SLD and receiving academic accommodations. Most students met objective criteria (82.3%) and were first diagnosed in childhood (93.3%). Most students also showed average intellectual functioning and below-average to borderline academic achievement. However, 27.3% showed uniformly low ability and achievement scores, suggesting possible misclassification. Students who failed to meet objective criteria for SLD often submitted test data that lacked current, adult-normed standardized test scores; many were diagnosed based on response to intervention and submitted only an individualized education program or summary of performance. This finding provides initial evidence of a disconnect between the qualitative documentation that secondary schools provide and the quantitative documentation that postsecondary institutions require for SLD classification.
SAGE Publications and Hammill Institute on Disabilities. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Two Year Colleges; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Cognitive Assessment System; Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test; Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement; Stanford Binet Intelligence Scale; Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale; Wechsler Individual Achievement Test; Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children; Wide Range Achievement Test; Woodcock Johnson Tests of Achievement; Woodcock Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A