Article
Readjusting expectations: preparing for college
Students and families may need to adjust expectations about how supports and accommodations change in college.
Part of the College Readiness Resource Center, by College Success @ Perkins
By: Annie Tulkin, MS, Accessible College and College Success @ Perkins
With appropriate learning strategies, and accommodations, does your student still struggle in high school coursework, without support in or out of school? Do you or your student need to readjust expectations for what are “acceptable” grades, that reflect the character and quality of the actual work completed? As you learn more about the strengths and challenges your student may bring to traditional, rigorous academic pursuits, you may wonder if they are ready to go directly to college. These are concerns that many families share, for their students learning with or without visual impairment, or with other disabilities. There’s an enormous amount of resources to help with this planning.
It’s important to know that there are many different pathways to consider in planning for life after high school graduation. Each path or journey will look different, depending on the accumulated skills and emerging maturity of your student. Finding the right timeline can open up time for student maturity, life experience and skill development, which can lead to more successful engagement in chosen paths, with greater self awareness, confidence and understanding.
Rest assured that different timelines, other than the ‘direct to college’ plan, can create opportunities for success.
For example, if a student’s reading level remains at Grade 7 throughout their high school experience, even without a diagnosed reading disability, it’s crucial to recognize that their reading skills are not well aligned with the demands of a degree-seeking college program. Yet, that same student’s deep satisfaction in hosting guests, or serving customers, may lead to a career in hospitality, customer service or other work. Alternatively, a student may need more time to develop typing and access technology skills to engage independently with the demands of college level work.
While these realizations may be difficult, and often emotionally charged, having realistic expectations and time to build skills can create significant opportunities. For students who aspire to attend college, and who’ve demonstrated the ability to meet the demands of academically challenging curriculum (grades may not tell the whole story!), here’s some “rules of thumb” while your student is in high school for selecting high school courses and skills needed to prepare for college – and career – success.
Course modifications
- Modifications in high school courses: Learn about specific modifications to your student’s work, or courses. While reduced output for repetitive homework may make sense, reduced multiple choice options on tests throughout high school will not prepare students for college, where these modifications will not exist. A student should be able to independently sustain themselves by junior year in 4-5 academic courses (Life Skills and Study Hall do not count), completing the identical work as their peers, without paraprofessional support.
- Modifications in the college setting: In the college setting, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provides for “reasonable accommodations” that allow access to materials for courses and the college experience for students with disabilities. Course modifications are not allowed, and students are expected to achieve the same curricular requirements, including papers, tests and labs, as their sighted peers by using accessible materials provided by the Disability Services Office (DSO). This may be a departure for some students learning with visual impairments, who may be used to modifications in their K-12 schooling.
So, if your student’s TVI or IEP team recommends course modifications, ask them why it’s necessary. Sometimes, this indicates that a student is lacking a skill that may be required to perform a specific task. Instead of taking away the requirement, work with your student to develop the skill. Remember, college accommodations for blind and visually impaired students are different from high school. Advanced preparation and skill building is the key to college success.
Paraprofessionals
- Paraprofessionals in high school: Paraprofessionals provide support for students to gain skills and confidence in skills being taught by their TVI, and in some cases provide support in moving through a school day as O&M skills evolve. Yet, this role will not exist in a college setting (except in rare situations, such as a personal care aide for health related issues). A student who has become accustomed to the presence of a paraprofessional may not be able to suddenly manage all the details a paraprofessional managed just a few months before!
A student who aspires to attend college should be operating in an academic setting independently, ideally by junior year.
A student who aspires to attend college should be operating in an academic setting independently by junior year, ideally, to develop the problem solving skills and self awareness they will need for future self advocacy. This includes managing homework, note taking, organization, to do’s and other tasks, using tools taught to them by their TVI and general education teachers.
Additionally, students need to learn how to work without someone in the “back of the room” ready to help if a problem arises; they must learn how to self advocate, and to tolerate things going wrong, to problem solve, as well as to anticipate challenges.
If these skills are challenging for your student, this is important information for your student and educational team, and point to crucial skills to work on while your student is still enrolled in high school, and to consider as they identify possible timelines for post secondary education and training. (See here for more information on different options for life after high school.)
Low grades may be the anticipated, appropriate result of a reduction in support from a paraprofessional, as a student adjusts their approach. This is crucial information and feedback and will help your student to make better informed decisions about their future, without the false confidence provided by that person, or by inflated grades.
Students with visual impairments and blindness have an enormous amount to learn throughout their K-12 experiences. For many students learning with visual impairments, the typical 13 year timeline for K-12 education simply is not enough time to acquire the skills and knowledge that their typically sighted peers gain, often through 13 years of incidental learning. It’s important to identify strengths, and areas for skill development, and a plan to acquire them in a logical sequence (for example, learning how to manage a daily calendar before going to college; learning to do laundry independently, if looking to live residentially at college; learning to type before learning a screen reader or to write papers independently).
- Paraprofessional support in the college setting: Colleges do not offer 1 on 1 aides, or “para’s.”
Students who are blind/visually impaired will need to work with the college’s Disability Services Office (DSO) to make sure that they have course content and materials in a format that is accessible in order to meet course requirements. DSOs will support the student in getting materials; yet students will need to access assignments via websites such as Canvas or Blackboard, online, and to manage assignments independently. Each college has their own process for registering and engaging with the DSO. Prospective students will want to contact the DSO as they are looking at different colleges, to inquire about the process at that college; here’s an article to provide additional insight about visiting DSOs. Some colleges offer O&M training, but they do not provide sighted guides or classroom assistance. Your student should start to build their skills in high school and work with their IEP team, TVI and para to develop goals that work towards independence.
Study hall
- Study hall / Special education in high school: Often, students with visual impairments and blindness are scheduled into a study hall in a Special Education Room to provide support while a student completes homework assignments while still at school. This support can provide a crucial bridge of support – and confidence building – for a student. Yet, if continued throughout high school, it can also provide a crutch for homework, allowing students to only do homework at school, or with a supportive adult available. College demands task initiation outside of classes, and significant independence. Look for your student to be assigned identical homework as their peers, and for opportunities to have them complete these assignments on their own, with limited support. If applicable, reflect to the student and school how much support you provided your student, and how long it took your student to complete the assignment. This information can help your student’s educational team understand areas for specific skill development, and can help the team (and you!) recognize both your student’s strengths and limitations, allowing for more authentic discussions when planning for post secondary goals and engagement.
- Study hall / Special education in the college setting: This is not something that typically exists in the college setting. Students need to be able to recognize when they are encountering difficulty understanding or completing an assignment, and reach out in a timely way time to connect with professors, hire tutors, and take advantage of other university support services such as the Writing Center or Math Center.
Students need to be able to reach out for help when they need it.
Additionally, college is the first time in most students’ lives when they have to learn how to manage largely unstructured time. Often, students may have an entire day without courses or obligations, when they should be completing assignments, both short term and long term. These time management skills take time to recognize and to develop preferred methods in managing independently through To Do lists, calendar apps and other tools.
Life skills
- Life skills in high school: This is a valuable skill and class, and essential for our students in addressing essential blindness skills. Yet, it’s not considered an “academic” course by most selective colleges. While there are an enormous range of reasons for students to remain enrolled in a course such as this into junior and senior year in high school, consider the tradeoff between the knowledge and skills for college developed in this course vs one that demands critical thinking, reading and writing skills. Colleges assume these skills are developed upon entry. Ask yourself, and your student and their team, why this course is recommended, and what academic alternatives (or specific blindness skills building such as fluency with typing, technology such as a laptop) exist instead. Then you can make more informed decisions about which courses make sense for your student’s trajectory through high school, and how these align with a student’s expressed goals, and demonstrated independence and skills.
- Life skills in the college setting: By the time they get to college, your student will need to be able to not only manage their academics, but they will also need executive function skills like being able to create a schedule, stay on top of deadlines, and daily life skills like being able to do laundry, get their food, and manage their own medical needs.
Reading levels (grade and speed)
- Reading levels in high school: Reading level is a complex idea – but for college readiness, it’s important to consider this from a number of different angles.
First, what are the different methods with which your student accesses reading material? On each device/access point (Braille note, laptop, phone), how fast, and at what grade level, with what comprehension, is your student reading?
Strong vocabulary, inferential comprehension, and comfort level with a number of different types of writing (creative, analytic, academic, unfamiliar vs. familiar) are critical for college readiness. These are developed over many years.
Pace and comprehension are important concepts as well. If your student is reading significantly below grade level, it’s important to ask why, and what steps can be taken to increase your student’s reading comprehension. Further, if your student’s preferred method of reading, possibly visually, is slow and leads to significant physical discomfort, it may be time to add to your student’s reading strategies to meet their post secondary goals. Then, if their speed and comprehension do not improve with deliberate interventions, it may be time to ask if there may be other learning disabilities (including auditory processing issues).
A final question: is your student at the upper limits of their abilities? All of these considerations help to understand who your student is emerging to become, and can suggest the pace and form of initial postsecondary planning.
- Reading levels in the college setting: When your student enters college, the expectation is that they will be able to read and comprehend alongside their sighted peers, using accessible materials as provided by the DSO.
Conclusion
The transition to college is a process that starts as early as elementary school. By empowering students to set goals, embrace feedback as opportunities for growth, develop skills, identify strengths, discover and work on weaknesses, families and educators are giving students the gift of independence on terms that allow them to make informed decisions, and to utilize their skills and interests in increasingly complex demands for reading, writing and critical thinking.
This process can be difficult for students and families, as they receive challenging feedback, and work to gain the habits of mind that lead to success in college and career – or other paths such as training and employment, possibly better aligned with a students interests, curiosities and skills. The path to independence, and the ability to meet the expectations of college professors, requires early planning, as well as intentional challenges supported by families and students’ educational teams, and an embracing of appropriate rigor – starting early – that must remain centered in a student’s actions.
Stay in the college readiness conversation.
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