In this article, we describe current research findings on assessment accommodations and universal design within the context of emerging interactive digital assessment tasks that employ simulations such as in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). STEM education in many classrooms now includes digitally based activities such as…

Discusses students classified as learning disabled in regard to foreign language requirements, since institutions are now obligated by the Americans with Disabilities Act to teach these students. Criteria on which these students are classified as learning disabled for foreign language study and granted waivers of course substitution to fulfill the…

Discusses the effects of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and various state laws on the foreign language requirements of Virginia college and university programs. Foreign language instructors and departments need to be aware of their responsibilities in accommodating learning-disabled…

Examines special issues surrounding foreign language (FL) requirements for students classified as learning disabled (LD). Focuses on why students experience FL learning problems, the problems with the definition of and diagnosis of LD, whether research supports traditional assumptions about LD and FL learning, whether students classified as LD…

Since 1996, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), located in Southern California, has been under a federal court consent decree requiring compliance with laws pertaining to the delivery of special education services and the elimination of architectural barriers in schools. In 2003, the consent decree was modified, creating…

One of the most significant barriers facing postsecondary students with reading and written expression disorders who are eligible to receive specific accommodations is the lack of professional knowledge pertaining to issues surrounding accommodations. Though guided by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with…

Although the Americans with Disabilities Act forbids discrimination on the basis of learning disability, institutions of higher learning must establish academic achievement standards. A recent case ("Guckenberger v. Boston University") involving course substitutions for a foreign-language requirement illustrates this point. Boston…

Provisions of special education law under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are many and complex. During the 2001-2002 school year over 48 million children in the United States, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico were enrolled in pre-kindergarten through Grade 12. Parents are becoming increasingly legally literate; the increased…