Students With Learning Disabilities And Their Perceptions In Relation To Their Abilities To Self-Advocate: Implications For Secondary And Post-Secondary Education: A Qualitative Analysis

Abstract

Open-ended interview questions were asked to ten college freshmen with learning disabilities (LD) to provide the primary source of data in this qualitative study. This was done to explore their perceptions in relation to their abilities to self-advocate. Student participants were chosen based on meeting the criteria of having a diagnosed specific learning disability, having qualified and received special education services in high school, and at the time of the study were receiving accommodations through the Disability Resource Center (DRC) at the University of Arizona (UA). Students were further identified as members of a "successful" group with a first semester grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher, or members of "jeopardy" group with a first semester GPA of below 2.0 and the academic status of probation. This was done in order to ensure that I included perceptions of students at the high and low range academic status levels in this sample, not to compare or contrast the two groups. Interviews yielded information about students' perceptions of their ability to self-advocate, their perceptions of their disability, their involvement in educational planning, and what they considered to be indicators of success. Data were analyzed to determine themes related to student success and difficulties. Suggestions for further research and information for future practice are offered.