[blindlaw] Kaplan LSAT Support

Sun May 16 01:15:26 UTC 2010

Thanks for all of the great info.  LSAC has been very difficult to work with 
to date.  They seem to prefer doing things by email instead of human 
interaction. They are not willing to give much  information over the phone, 
and have posted a scanned image of an accommodation letter in PDF files for 
me to view.  Funny, huh?  I would like to see them add some more check boxes 
to their accommodations forms to assign accommodations advisors to people 
who are blind.

Regarding Kaplan, a fellow blind student recommended Kaplan, but it appears 
that taking the course when you are able to use ZoomText and when you need 
to use JAWS are quite a bit different.  The PDF files all seem to have 
formatting issues, even if they are tagged.  I spoke with Freedom Scientific 
about the problem and their conclusion is that the  files are not formatted 
to be accessible.  They suggested scanning the PDF files using OpenBook and 
saving it to a Word file, but even that leaves all sort of junk in the file 
because of their multi column structure and the books being for the Premier 
classes instead of the Standard classes.  Trying to keep up with a class 
when you have the wrong books and distracting junk embedded in the test is a 
problem.

It seems that a law firm could spend all of their time just trying to level 
the playing field for blind people who are already in or trying to get into 
the legal profession.  Any ideas on how to get the playing field leveled and 
attorney fees paid are welcome.

Tom
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Derek Wilson" <dwilson.lists at gmail.com>
To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, May 14, 2010 9:25 AM
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Kaplan LSAT Support

Hi Tom,

I also took an LSAT prep course with Kaplan, though mine was online
and self-paced.  Kaplan provided me with PDF versions of the study
materials as well.  I had no difficulty accessing the PDF files with
ZoomText, but I did have some trouble with what I believe were
flash-based tutorials and quizzes.  They were much less accessible, as
the text did not appear to be tagged so the reading cursor jumbped
around the screen at random.

In my case, I needed to arrange for a reader through LSAC.  Kaplan had
nothing to do with this.  I am a Canadian who took the LSAT in Tokyo
last September and again last December.

One word of caution, you would be wise to do your best to prepare for
the LSAT under the same conditions as you will write on test day.  I
prepared online with a screen-reader, but was given only 2 options by
LSAC in the way of accommodation: 1. a large-print test book, or 2. a
human reader. The nature of my disability makes large print difficult
for me to read, as it is an 18-point font.  I am able to read only 14
or 16-point font, and only with great difficulty for short periods of
time.  To make a long story short, my test day score was 15 points
lower than my timed practice test score. Other reasons aside, the
nature of my interaction with the test material was a huge factor in
my performance.  As I was not in a position to pay a human reader to
help me study, my options were limited.  I don't what the implications
are for you, but I wanted to bring this to your attention.

If you decide to go with a human reader, I strongly urge you to meet
with them in person prior to test day and assess their reading skills
at this level.  They will need to be quick, clear, competent, and have
the stamina to last for many hours.  LSAC will pay for them to meet
with you for up to 3 hours for the purposes of screening and
acquaintance, and you have the right of refusal if you deem them unfit
for the task.

After my first time writing the LSAT in September of last year, I
asked LSAC point blank if I could take the test on a computer using
Access Technology, and they flat out said "No, that is not possible at
this time." I asked if LSAC was planning to offer a computer-based
alternative in the future, and the representative repeated flatly "No,
not at this time."  I have since learned that two of my acquaintances
in Canada, both of whom are visually impaired, were able to write on
test day with the use of a PC and Access Technology.  I would not go
so far as to say that LSAC is arbitrary in their accommodation
decisions, since I do not have all of the facts, but it is clear to me
that the playing field is far from level.

I sincerely hope that you find this information useful in some way,
and I wish you the best of luck on test day!

Regards,
Derek Wilson
www.twitter.com/culturemate
http://jp.linkedin.com/in/culturemate

On 5/13/10, Tom Ladis <tom at tomladis.com> wrote:
> I am pretty sure that it will all get worked out, but the class has 
> started
> and I am falling behind.  It took them a month to get me the PDF files 
> just
> 3 days before the class started.  My fault for starting late and I have 
> not
> been able to find anyone at Kaplan that knows how to deal with getting me
> the materials in a JAWS friendly format.   I was finally able to get
> OpenBook to read the PDF this morning, but that is not the greatest 
> solution
> either.
>
> Thanks for your thoughts,
> Tom
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Rod Alcidonis, Esquire." <attorney at alcidonislaw.com>
> To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 2010 10:32 AM
> Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Kaplan LSAT Support
>
>
> Tom
>
> Kaplan will work with you. Just tell them what you need and why. Kaplan 
> has
> demonstrated to me times and again that they are committed to complying 
> with
> the ADA. This was when I signed up with them for the SAT, LSAT, and Bar
> Prep. They will find a solution even it may not be perfect. Have a
> constructive dialog with them.
>
>
> Rod Alcidonis, Attorney and Counselor at Law
> Alcidonis Law Office, LLC
> 6907B Rising Sun Ave., 1st Fl
> Philadelphia, PA 19111
> Tel: (215) 305-8085
> Fax: (215) 525-0999
> Attorney at alcidonislaw.com
>
> CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE:
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>
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Tom Ladis" <tom at tomladis.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 2010 10:18 AM
> To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
> Subject: [blindlaw] Kaplan LSAT Support
>
>> Hello All.
>>
>> I have started the Kaplan LSAT class and requested the course material in
>> a digital format.  They sent the material on a CD-ROM in PDF files.  Some
>> of the files are HUGE, as in 30 megabytes, and not manageable by JAWS.
>>
>>  I got what I asked for, but it is not usable.   Kaplan has not been able
>> to provide anything besides the PDF files.
>>
>> Does anybody have the ability to save a 30 megabyte ? PDF to a Word
>> document?
>>
>> In addition, isn't Kaplan responsible for providing a reader and scribe
>> for the practice tests?
>>
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Tom
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