Trying to get accommodations at univeristy, having trouble

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I have an official diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome, that is not contested. My diagnosis of Sensory Integration Disorder also goes unchallenged. I requested three accommodations: distraction-reduced testing environment (due to sensory processing issues), note-taking (due primarily to sensory-processing issues) and permission to type essay exams rather than hand-write them (again, mostly sensory processing, but also a fine motor skills issue). My handwriting is terrible (almost illegible to the professor) and I am also very slow at writing and my hand gets fatigued quickly.

Anyways, the quiet testing room was permitted because of the sensory processing issues. No problem there. The note-taking was denied for some obscure reasons, and they're trying to get me to enroll in some silly note-taking tutoring sessions. Utterly futile, but I'll humor them and try to meet them halfway on this issue. They completely refuse to allow the typing of essay exams, even though the professor in question has individually and explicitly approved my doing that. Their reasoning is thus: on the IQ test that was submitted as part of my documentation, there was a 3-s.d. (45 points) gap between my verbal (highest) and processing speed (lowest). BUT, since my processing speed is still in the "normal" range rather than the severely impaired range, they refuse to take the massive discrepancy into account and so deny the accommodations on the basis that they would give me an unfair advantage. They are, basically, only willing to reconsider if I either start flunking exams or get an official diagnosis of dysgraphia.

Does anyone have any ideas on how I should proceed here? I'm fairly confident their reasoning is flawed (surely tests and documentation should be interpreted in context?) but they don't seem to want to budge on that. The only way they will allow the typing is if the professor accommodates it individually, but she simply has no way of doing so.

I am in the United States. The ADA applies to my university.

Orwell,

How frustrating! You're right, it their decision isn't logical. You might contact the Belin-Blank Center at the University of Iowa. That's the place that studies gifted students who also have ASDs. Maybe they could give you some advice on how to proceed. Here is what they say about accommodating students with writing difficulties:

The Paradox of Giftedness and Autism
Written-Language, Writing, and Fine-Motor Coordination

Oral language skills are precursors to written language skills. In fact, strong language skills are among the reasons that many students with an ASD are not initially diagnosed with the disorder. Not only do they acquire oral language skills at an early age, these skills are typically exceptional in comparison to their same-age peers. Therefore, it would be natural to expect that students with strong oral language skills would be highly successful in the area of written language. However, the level of success often does not match the level that would be predicted from their earlier verbal development, which is typically very high. This is due to the fact that some areas of weakness, including both fine motor skills and cognitive processing interact to work as a double barrier to successful written language.

Fine-motor coordination is a skill that is often taken for granted, especially if there are no concerns. Yet, fine-motor coordination is vitally important to writing and drawing tasks, detailed lab work, or in using new tools like those used in science projects. In all of these areas, the interaction of fine-motor coordination and cognitive processing speed is vital to successful output. Fine-motor diffi culties for some students are manifested through poor quality handwriting and seemingly general carelessness, which may or may not be related to difficulty gripping a pencil or pen.

Students with ASD tend to have slow, labored, and unorganized writing. It can be frustrating for a teacher to observe that a highly verbal student with extensive knowledge about a specific subject area produces written work that is messy and may appear to be carelessly done. A few teachers perceive sloppy penmanship as a sign of carelessness and/or poor quality work. These problems, as previously mentioned, are the manifestation of the fine-motor difficulties combined with slower cognitive-processing speed, which are experienced by many students with ASD. Many times, students with ASD avoid writing altogether to avoid negative comments and/or feelings about inadequate work, which often can lead to frustration and embarrassment.

Recommendations to Accommodate Difficulties in Writing, Written Language, and Fine-Motor Coordination

• Model or imitate the fine-motor activity— especially for very young students.
• Offer an assortment of different pens and pencils so students can find the one that’s most comfortable.
• Allow use of print or cursive—whichever is most comfortable.
• Allow students to share notes, lessening the stress of rapid note taking.
• Provide copies of class notes.
• Use large graph paper for math calculations in order to help with number alignment.
• Allow the use of computers to complete writing assignments, and use assistive technology, such as voice-recognition software (e.g., Dragon Naturally Speaking) if the mechanical aspects of writing are too difficult.
• If a student’s writing is slow or labored, allow extra time to complete assignments.
• Have students tape-record their response first and then produce written output based on their recording.
• Intersperse required writing assignments with writing activities that allow the student to write about their special interests.
• Encourage the idea of writing drafts and proofreading so that students can focus on the content first and the mechanics second.

Hope things work out for you,

Z

I notice that they recommend not just typing of essay exams, but also...

In graduate school, my class was given an assignment that I didn't understand - I just couldn't comprehend how to approach it (had to do with historical interpretation). I asked the professor to help me understand, but she said that would be an unfair advantage over the other students. Something that didn't help her opinion of me was that the previous year, with the same professor, I had tested so much higher than the other students in a particular subject that she threw me off of the grading curve and asked me to help teach the class. I guess that she thought I was making it up that I didn't understand.

That's ASDs for you . . .

Z

Why don't you bring your laptop to class for taking notes or you not allowed? Or does typing for a long period of time bother your hands?

I don't think they're allowed to deny you an accommodation based on their opinions. You said your documentation states you have Sensory Integration Disorder and the college doesn't challenge that. Does your documentation give recommendations for the type of accommodations you should be allowed to have? I think mine gave recommendations.

Anyways, from what I understand, the college isn't allowed to come up with their own opinions and/or conclusions on what your disabilities are as defined in your documentation. It sounds like the counselor in charge of your file is doing that. You said you got a low score on your ability to process info, but got a way higher score on something to do with your verbal skills.

You should read up on Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and check this link out, it may be useful to you.
http://ldonline.org/article/6082

I have had my school pull this type of crap to me before.

I guess one option is to ask your counselor how does one file a Disability discrimination complaint and to where. You don't have to do that, but it's quite amusing if you do. Here's a links for where you can file a complaint.
http://wdcrobcolp01.ed.gov/CFAPPS/OCR/contactus.cfm
http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oc ... intro.html

You should probably talk to your professors to see if they will allow you to type your tests and what not. If you have difficulties with taking notes and you're school not allowing you to have a note taker. I would just bring a tape recorder or something. That's if your classes are lecture type classes.

My school initially refused to give me extended time for tests. I had to get my dad to go and argue with them since he is a professor at the school I go to.I guess that helped and the fact that I flunked out of the school I go to before around 10 years ago. I had to go to community college to get back in.

Hm well they based your accommodations on your documentation which is their job after all. They see something that makes you able to write notes after all along with writing essay exams. For me I got, extended time for exams, note taker, breaks if needed, and extended time on assignments if needed. Mason's ODS took me off the last two accommodations in my sophomore year by accident but it was fix since they reviewed my documentation again.

Its all about the documentation and I would not doing anything rash at the moment because they are following Section 508, ADA and ADA Amendments based on your documentation you provided them.

Have you considered bringing a tape recorder to class and then taking notes off of the recording at your leisure?