‘Learning Disabilities’ refer to a number of disorders which may affect the acquisition, organization, retention, understanding or use of verbal or nonverbal information. These disorders affect learning in individuals who otherwise demonstrate at least average abilities essential for thinking and/or reasoning. As such, learning disabilities are distinct from global intellectual deficiency.
Learning disabilities result from impairments in one or more processes related to perceiving, thinking, remembering or learning. Learning disabilities range in severity and may interfere with the acquisition and use of one or more of the following:
- oral language (e.g. listening, speaking, understanding)
- reading (e.g. decoding, phonetic knowledge, word recognition, comprehension);
- written language (e.g. spelling and written expression); and
- mathematics (e.g. computation, problem solving).
Documentation of a specific learning disability must:
- be based on an assessment conducted within the last three to five years
- be provided by a licensed psychologist or similarly qualified professional
- provide a definite diagnosis based on consideration of developmental and psychosocial history, medical and psychological history, academic history, clinical observations, and psychometric test scores
- include test results from a comprehensive set of psychological tests which includes measures of general intelligence, measures demonstrating a specific neuropsychological deficit, and standardized achievement measures
- make recommendations and include a rationale for recommended academic accommodations which are clearly linked to the specific learning disability
A note about identification and diagnosis
Many students with learning disabilities are identified as "exceptional students" by an Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC) in the elementary or high school system. An Individual Education Plan (IEP) may have been developed as the result. The identification as an exceptional student and/or an IEP is not the same as a diagnosis of a permanent disability.
In the elementary and secondary system, specific legislation allows for the accommodation of students with an "identification" without the need for a formal diagnosis. However, at the post-secondary level legislation requires that students be formally diagnosed as having a disability. This is done through a psycho-educational assessment.
A prior history of accommodation in high school does not, in and of itself, warrant the provision of similar accommodations in a university setting. The assessment report must demonstrate reasonable evidence that the accommodations requested are required given the nature of the disability. In order for you to be eligible for academic accommodations you must provide us with a comprehensive assessment report that contains the clinical diagnosis of a disability to support your requests.
Although a learning disability is normally viewed as ongoing and lifelong, the severity and manifestations of the condition may change over time. The provision of reasonable accommodations and services is based upon an assessment of the current impact of the learning disability on your academic performance. It is therefore in your best interest to provide recent and appropriate documentation. The assessment must have been completed in the last three years using tests that are reliable, valid, and standardized for use with an adult population. Whenever possible, the most recently normed version of the test should be used. Documentation that is more than three years old will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.