| High school students with learning disabilities often take | | | | poorly on the test. Studying is best done in short, |
| for granted that school "procedures" remain pretty | | | | frequent intervals. |
| much the same once they transition to college. It is this | | | | In high school, students don't have many choices as to |
| misconception that often causes students academic | | | | the courses they take, while college offers a wide |
| upset. In order to succeed, students need to be | | | | choice. This has both its up and down sides. The up |
| prepared for the unique challenges college classes | | | | side is that you can take what interests you. The |
| present. | | | | down side is that students can register themselves |
| For one, high school students are usually in school from | | | | and possibly end up with professors who don't fit their |
| about 8 AM to 3 PM and have major subjects every | | | | learning style, courses that are too difficult for them, or |
| day. In college, you may have only two classes per | | | | even classes that don't fit into their program of study. |
| day that range from one to three hours long. College | | | | Students with disabilities should always consult the |
| classes usually meet on either Monday, Wednesday, | | | | disability services office regarding the schedule and |
| and Friday or Tuesday and Thursday. In college, | | | | professors that suit them best. |
| classes can be arranged with breaks in between. | | | | In high school, attendance was taken in homeroom, |
| Students won't have the same mental fatigue that | | | | right? In college, many professors don't have |
| comes from sitting in classes all day. They can use this | | | | attendance policies. Their philosophy is that students |
| time to review their notes from the previous lesson (an | | | | are adults who can choose whether or not they wish |
| excellent study technique), begin their homework, or | | | | to attend classes. The veiled danger in this is the |
| study. | | | | sudden presumption that "attendance doesn't count". |
| In high school, students spend about 30 hours a week | | | | College classes, however, move so swiftly that missing |
| in class. In college, each credit represents one hour in | | | | even one class can set you behind. Professors expect |
| class, and students usually attend classes 12 to 15 | | | | you to return to class fully caught up and ready to |
| hours a week. For students with disabilities, a full-time | | | | move on, unlike in high school where you could make |
| load may be 6 to 9 credits/hours, depending on what | | | | up the work afterward. |
| their documentation says they can reasonably handle. | | | | If you are having difficulty in a particular class, high |
| High schools provide students with textbooks. In | | | | school teachers might ask you to come for extra help. |
| college, you must budget money for books; the cost | | | | Professors are unlikely to do that. In college, the onus is |
| can easily exceed $400 with 15 credits. Freshmen | | | | on the student to ask for anything he/she needs. The |
| usually experience "sticker shock" on their first visit to | | | | assumption is if you need help, you'll request it. The |
| the college bookstore. If possible, buy used textbooks, | | | | professor can help you during office hours. Meek |
| making sure they are the correct editions. Do not | | | | students can spend an entire semester in the dark |
| purchase books with highlighting or notes as they can | | | | because they were fearful of approaching the |
| be distracting. Also, check to see if a new book | | | | professor. In college, students need to be assertive |
| comes with a CD-ROM. If so, make sure the used | | | | and ask for what they need! |
| book does, too. | | | | Finally, another difference between classes in high |
| Let's discuss homework. In high school, assignments | | | | school and college is size. In high school, the maximum |
| are shorter and usually due the following day. In college, | | | | number of students was probably near thirty. |
| students usually have two to three days to complete | | | | Freshman classes at a university can be held in a large |
| assignments. Therefore, homework comes in greater | | | | lecture hall with a capacity of 300 students! Once a |
| quantity and requires a lot more time. In addition, college | | | | student declares a major and is taking courses |
| students are asked to be more interpretive and less | | | | specific to it, the class size becomes smaller. |
| literal, so higher level thinking skills are called into play. In | | | | Community colleges are known for their small classes, |
| addition, professors often assign long-term papers or | | | | about 25 students, even for freshman classes. |
| projects that require a good grasp on time | | | | Differences between high school and college classes |
| management. | | | | present a challenge for freshman, but particularly those |
| High school teachers often collect homework; | | | | with disabilities. The danger lies in unstructured time, |
| professors rarely do. Once students catch onto this, it | | | | often considered "free" time by freshmen. Considering |
| becomes a temptation to skip homework, which is a | | | | that students have two to three hours of homework |
| perilous policy. Homework provides the requisite | | | | studying for every hour in class, this amounts to |
| practice for thoroughly learning a concept. Students | | | | approximately 27 hours of work per week just for 9 |
| who feel they are "pulling a fast one" by not doing the | | | | credits! The hardest lesson of all is realizing that what |
| homework soon realize their cover is blown when it | | | | looks like "free" time is hardly that. The sooner |
| comes to exam time. Those who study by cramming, | | | | students adopt effective time management practices, |
| trying to learn in a short time what they should have | | | | the easier college will be. |
| learned in distributed practice, very often end up doing | | | | |