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We have an intern in his last year of college. We were talking and he was lamenting about his last advanced calculus test he took and how he couldn't finish it on time. That some of the problems take over a page to complete and that he knew the procedures but just couldn't get it all down in time. Then he said the kids who got the extra time probably got it all done. Of course this is all new to me since I never went to college but allegedly if you have some disorder you're allowed extra time on tests!!! What????
Obviously if you're not getting said test done on time you need to apply for this allowance I told him.
Now me, I circumvented college and climbed the ranks from the ground up. I also have say in who we hire. I did not know of this practice. If all else being the same, I'd probably hire 3.8 guy over 3.4 guy...but now I just learned I could be getting a subpar product?
I kind of think employers should know about this don't you think? Maybe a stamp on the diploma stating extra time was given. Not all jobs are benign pushing papers, some require spur of the moment life or death decisions.
I would think by the time someone is doing college level advance calculus, something but 2% of the population can probably do, it is time to retire the "I'm mentally disabled" card
For all I know 4.0 guy completed his tests open-book Sorry, I just can't stop laughing since learning of this practice.
You might miss out on hiring that brilliant guy who can do calculus in his head---but just can't read the silly problem because he's learning disabled or has to convert everything to a program because his hands were blown off by an IED and holding a pencil just isn't all that possible. Folks get accommodations for all kinds of reasons in college--extra days for papers, extra time for tests, helpers to read things aloud. This is changing somewhat since programs like Dragonspeak and such, but on average, the students I've worked with who have accommodations work much harder than their "normal" counterparts, and have blown me away with some of the things they can do. For the record, it's not exactly easy to qualify for those accommodations, and let's be honest, how many of us are rocking the calculus we learned in school? Really? It was a weed-out course for the vast majority of people who took it. Heck, I did doctoral statistics and barely used any of the calculus I broke my head over as an undergraduate.
Ah, and let's continue to be honest. Even an open calculus book will not a 100% earn if someone knows jack squat about calculus.
The only way we're ever allowed extra time at my college is with an alert form, which indicates the student has a learning disorder or maybe just has problems taking tests in general. My math professors have been very nice and would stay later to let us finish. I've never had a hard time finishing tests on time but it happens.
One girl in my pre-algebra class (years ago) was allowed to use a Calculator on a quiz for adding and subtracting negative integers, which I thought was BS. Honestly, you clearly shouldn't be in a math class if you can't follow those concepts. It's not even about doing math, it's about remembering rules. No one else was permitted to use a calculator and rightfully so.
Yes, some students with documented learning disabilities are allowed accommodations to finish tests and whatnot. It would be the same as a deaf person being allowed to have a sign language interpreter in the classroom. What is wrong with that??
You might miss out on hiring that brilliant guy who can do calculus in his head---but just can't read the silly problem because he's learning disabled or has to convert everything to a program because his hands were blown off by an IED and holding a pencil just isn't all that possible. Folks get accommodations for all kinds of reasons in college--extra days for papers, extra time for tests, helpers to read things aloud. This is changing somewhat since programs like Dragonspeak and such, but on average, the students I've worked with who have accommodations work much harder than their "normal" counterparts, and have blown me away with some of the things they can do. For the record, it's not exactly easy to qualify for those accommodations, and let's be honest, how many of us are rocking the calculus we learned in school? Really? It was a weed-out course for the vast majority of people who took it. Heck, I did doctoral statistics and barely used any of the calculus I broke my head over as an undergraduate.
Ah, and let's continue to be honest. Even an open calculus book will not a 100% earn if someone knows jack squat about calculus.
Well said. And, as the parent with a son who has a documented learning disability, yet will graduate in May with a 3.2 gpa, I know how hard he's had to work. The extra time he gets on a test when needed is not what has gotten him through school.
We have an intern in his last year of college. We were talking and he was lamenting about his last advanced calculus test he took and how he couldn't finish it on time. That some of the problems take over a page to complete and that he knew the procedures but just couldn't get it all down in time. Then he said the kids who got the extra time probably got it all done. Of course this is all new to me since I never went to college but allegedly if you have some disorder you're allowed extra time on tests!!! What????
Obviously if you're not getting said test done on time you need to apply for this allowance I told him.
Now me, I circumvented college and climbed the ranks from the ground up. I also have say in who we hire. I did not know of this practice. If all else being the same, I'd probably hire 3.8 guy over 3.4 guy...but now I just learned I could be getting a subpar product?
I kind of think employers should know about this don't you think? Maybe a stamp on the diploma stating extra time was given. Not all jobs are benign pushing papers, some require spur of the moment life or death decisions.
I would think by the time someone is doing college level advance calculus, something but 2% of the population can probably do, it is time to retire the "I'm mentally disabled" card
For all I know 4.0 guy completed his tests open-book Sorry, I just can't stop laughing since learning of this practice.
If it was your child who was documented to have a disability, would you be okay with an employer kicking him to the curb? What about yourself? What it's time to "retire" is the arrogance that ignores that there but for the Grace of God go I or my own.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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It's called accommodations for a disability, and is common for GED, SAT, ACT and other tests as well as classroom tests in high school and college. Just as employers must make accommodations for employees who acquire a disability but are still able to do the work with some adjustments to their workstation.
Yes, some students with documented learning disabilities are allowed accommodations to finish tests and whatnot. It would be the same as a deaf person being allowed to have a sign language interpreter in the classroom. What is wrong with that??
Good question.
There are different goals in educational institutions vs business ventures.
Can a lack of hearing can be accommodated for in all situations? Musician? Help desk technician? Astronaut?
Do profitability and safety considerations not need to be taken into account when hiring?
There are different goals in educational institutions vs business ventures.
Can a lack of hearing can be accommodated for in all situations? Musician? Help desk technician? Astronaut?
Do profitability and safety considerations not need to be taken into account when hiring?
We aren't talking work force--this is a college student. That same college student, however, may find obstacles when it comes time to find employment. Yes, employers need to make reasonable accommodations for documented disabilities but that employee has to be able to execute the essential job functions in the first place as well. A deaf person certainly can't get a job in a call center, for example.
As golfgal noted, it is not about employment; it is about education and compliance with federal law.
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Sorry, I just can't stop laughing since learning of this practice.
