[nabs-l] One can live without disability services and others

Tue Dec 16 03:27:50 UTC 2014

Hi all,

Interesting points. First, how sad that a blind student would take advantage 
of the setting like a take home test or unproctored exam and then cheat. You 
do yourself no good by this.
My exam settings have been in the learning center for the private college I 
went to. Tests were always supervised and I also had to sign an honor code 
thing. When at George Mason university, I took them in a private place but 
now they have an official testing center;  I took it unsupervised with jaws. 
but, I did have safe guards so I did not cheat. First, I wasn't allowed to 
use my own notetaker. I'm very surprised when I hear colleges let blind 
students let them use their own laptop or notetakers.
Second, I left my things in the main DSS office so its not as if I had notes 
with me. Yes, I could have found a way to cheat if I thought of it, like 
slipping a phone with notes in my pocket, but it never crossed my mind.

At the community college, I take them in the testing center.
It is not really proctored. I simply walk to a private room to do the exam 
with jaws or a pre arranged reader.
But I never have had the temptation to cheat. I notice they do not ask me to 
leave my belongings in a locker; I guess they feel that's harder for me, but 
I don't make an issue of it because e I'd rather keep my items rather than 
have to have
someone help me with the locker.

Second point. I agree that dss should be used in moderation.
Someone wrote in and said they did it without them. Well, you can in the USA 
too. but here is the ting. You have to have supportive professors and 
supportive family, this is simply not the case in USA colleges. you often 
live away from family. Even at home, not all parents will read texts to you; 
simply do not have the time or skill to.
Also, , I think its wrong to have to do an exam on your own time. we need to 
do it at school with some supervision  like everyone.

Of course you can do it with out dss; I've know a few blind students who did 
just that at private schools.
But the key to success was securing your own accomodations with professors 
and advocacy and flexibility of all parties.
Finally,  I think many of us find it nearly impossible to secure 
accomodations due to the university or college structures and policies. For 
instance, to receive accomodations via the community college and GMU which I 
referenced earlier , you have to go through DSS and get the accomodation 
memo. Professors are not technically supposed to accommodate you without 
your accomodation memo.
Also, I know from experience and those of other blind students, you have to 
go through dss to get electronic texts. you simply cannot! contact 
publishers and request it because of a disability. they have to hear it 
through dss.
So because of these policies and structures, we are bound to contact dss in 
some way. but that said, most of my dss offices have done the minimum and 
I've had to be an advocate and secure accomodations with professors. DSS was 
simply there to give me my accessible texts. Also, they were there to say in 
the official memo, here are ashley's accomodations, and you have to follow 
them.
Beyond that, they were little involved. I've had to politely get after 
professors to email me accessible handouts and powerpoints, for instance. 
I've had to remind them to read stuff on the board if they write it, etc.
So, don't think that because we have DSS involvement, that its very easy. In 
my experience, you have to still  be an advocate and work hard to get your 
accomodations. its far from being handed to you.

So, its not that we cannot do it Gerardo, its that conditions in US are 
different; so don't compare apples and oranges.

Ashley

-----Original Message----- 
From: Karl Martin Adam via nabs-l
Sent: Monday, December 15, 2014 8:45 PM
To: Michael D Ausbun ; National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] One can live without disability services and others

As someone who is going to become a college professor, I would
never allow a student to take a test unproctored.  I've had
professors offer to let me do that, and once or twice I have just
out of convenience, but I have too many blind friends who use
their blindness as an excuse to take tests on their notetakers or
worse yet at home so they can cheat by looking at the book and
their notes.  The level of cheating that goes on in DSS offices
is horrifying (I know, I've worked there) without even getting
into giving blind people the chance to take in class exams as
takehomes.

----- Original Message -----
From: Michael D Ausbun via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
To: Gerardo Corripio <gera1027 at gmail.com>, "National Association
of BlindStudents mailing list" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 22:28:37 +0000
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] One can live without disability services
and others

Hello Gerardo:
First, I’d like to say that your experience is admirable and
definitely worthwhile and one that ought to be heard; after
all, as you pointed out, a large majority of blind
individuals belief or seem to believe: if there is no
disability service, then failure is inevitable.
With that said, however, I must point out a few things which
are necessary, in order for something like your story to
work successfully.
1) A student must have family support. In some cases,
especially when an individual is not an only child, family
members may not always be able or willing to assist a
student to the degree which is necessary (I.E. reading
papers, recording books etc.). If there is zero family
support, the chance of success is exponentially decreases,
for both sited folks and blind.
2) A student must have professor(s) trust. I also have had
occasions where professors have given me the exam to take
home or to do away from my disability center. In my case, it
was either because the professor did not want to deal with
the Disability services office or they did not trust the
disability services office (professors are interesting
creatures). In either case, if a professor gives you the
exam like this, they have to trust that you will not cheat
in some way shape or form. Many students, if they do not
advocate well, never reach this level of trust with their
instructors.
3) Technology rocks, that is, if you manage to get your hands
on technology which can help you succeed, then you may not
need a disability center; however, most students don’t have
the technology, which you stated, so most need the DSS in
order to succeed in this case.
Of course, there are other ways for individuals to do things
without the disability services getting involved; for instance, I
always request my books from bookshare, so I don’t have to worry
about the disability center not getting them to me on time. I
think though, the key fact is that the disability center provides
students with a safety blanket. You don’t have to advocate as
much nor do you have to stress as much. If you go through a
disability services center, then nine times out of ten they
assist you in shouldering your burden. This, for a lot of people,
can and probably does, act as relief.
I hope I addressed your concerns adequately.
Respectfully,
Michael

________________________________________
From: nabs-l [nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] on behalf of Gerardo
Corripio via nabs-l [nabs-l at nfbnet.org]
Sent: Monday, December 15, 2014 1:57 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: [nabs-l] One can live without disability services and
others

  HI guys
It's interesting how you've guys talked about how the world comes
crashing down when the Disability service in the college doesn't
Braille
out tests, make books available etc., so I wonder how do you
think I
managed in a country where disability services aren't heard of or
known?
By talking with the teachers, suggesting techniques for instance
at
first, they allowed me to take the tests home, and have my
parents read
me the tests and i'd answer on the computer and print them out,
turning
them to the teachers the next day as if it were homework; as the
semesters wore on, the teachers graduated to seeing them in the
classroom in a time when my classmates were out eating lunch or
other
activities, and orally test me; another time, I installed Jaws on
the
college's computer and I'd go and take the test there with the
teacher
in that she'd read me the questions, and I'd type in the answers,
printing it out afterwards, generally before my classmates took
the test
in the classroom, but can you believe when the tech guys did
computer
maintainance, they erased my copy of Jaws?
Books and other written assignments? During the first semester or
so, my
parents mostly, but also from time to time other family members,
recorded the chapters on cassettes, to which I'd listen, and take
notes
on an old Toshiba Laptop running Keysoft my parents had bought
while in
the States; as the second semester ended, however, I guess I was
lucky
because the university donated for my use, a PC with kurzweil1000
and a
scanner, to which I afterwards put on Jaws and did all my
assignments on
there; they also donated me a NoteTaker, the Braille Lite 2000
for
taking notes etc; as I say again, maybe it was luck, because I've
contacted other college students, and they only dream of having
these
technologies! I guess it's one of the advantages of having gone
to a
private college, and not a public university? So there you have
it;
perseverance/determination, wins! Also support from family
mostly, and
teachers, except for those who dinde'didn't believe in my
abilities and
made the semester a nightmare! So what do you guys think? are
these
experiences worthwhile?

--
Enviado desde mi lap
Gerardo J Corripio Flores Psic?ogo, Terap?ta Reiki
Saludos desde Tampico, Tamaulipas M?ico
RompiendoBarreras espacio de psicolog?/Superaci? Personal
S?ados 10PM M?ico http://radiogeneral.com ¡los esperamos!

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