What is a learning disability?
A learning disability (LD) is a disorder that affects the way in which information
is received, organized, remembered, retrieved or expressed by parts of the
brain. Students with learning disabilities are intelligent, but have difficulties
in one or more of the basic functions: memory, oral expression, listening comprehension,
writing, basic reading skills, reading comprehension, mathematical calculation,
or mathematical reasoning. In addition, LD’s affect every person differently,
and can be isolated or may overlap. For example, a student with a LD may be
good at math computation, but may have difficulty with reading and comprehension.
A learning disability is not a disease so there is no cure, but there are ways
to overcome the challenges through identification and intervention, which can
include, accommodations, modifications, special programs, counseling, or medication.
If you’ve
already been diagnosed with a learning disability:
- Contact the Office of Academic Support at 616-331-2490 and provide them with
documentation of your LD. Then work with them to get the accommodations you
need to be successful.
- If you were on medication before coming to college and they worked, this
is not the time to stop. If you feel changes should be made, discuss your concerns
with your doctor.
- If the strategies you used before aren’t working now, work with professionals
in the Office of Academic Support to learn new ones or adapt your old ones
to your new academic environment.
- If you’re feeling overwhelmed, frustrated, anxious, or stressed see
a counselor in the Counseling Center. These feelings alone make learning more
challenging.
If you
think you might have a learning disability:
- Speak to someone in the Office of Academic support or in the Counseling Center
about your concerns and learn about your options.
- A person may have some form of a learning disability that wasn’t very
noticeable prior to coming to college, but may struggle academically once they
get to college.
- Understanding the specific challenges and learning strategies to deal with
LD’s at any age can alleviate frustration, and make successful living
and learning much easier.
For more information regarding learning disabilities and resources on campus, you can visit the Office of Academic Support at www.gvsu.edu/oas/, or the Counseling Center at www.gvsu.edu/counsel. You can also visit www.teachingld.org/understanding, www.ncld.org and http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/learndis.htm.
