MINIMIZING DISABILITIES in pursuit of a DL degree...

MINIMIZING handicaps in pursuit of a DL degree...
Stories. There are many disaggregated ones mentioned here on the board from time to time, concerning disabilities, physical and mental, endured, minimized, sometimes overcome, but often enough simply lived with!

The "Washout" thread is probably the largest one to contain these stories, thus far. But here my intent is to have a thread where participants can share their stories, past or current, in surviving and overcoming these unique barriers.

These are unique problems, unlike most people's financial hurdles, and should not be forgotten. They might inspire others because there is no reward for being able to pass for being virtually normal. Just relief.

Personally, I have a few. The one I'll share first concerns phobias and phobic avoidance. But - for now - lets just get the thread started! WELCOME ALL.

 

Interesting post

While I have no major disabilities - save that of being pretty dense at times - I, as an online instructor, think that online learning can be a leveler but can also be a barrier. But mainly it is a help.

For example, I may have had a deaf student in my class - but I wouldn't know it unless they self-disclose. I may even have had a blind student in my class. I have had students self-disclose learning disabilities and illnesses like bipolar or depression. Students with dyslexia, for example, may have an easier time in an online class if they can work around their weaknesses. Shy students or those with a speech impediment may benefit from the fact that discussion takes place in writing rather than orally.

Online learning might be harder for students who are procrastinators. As a recovering procrastinator I can help them with that but am not always successful.

 

I'd like to thank Orson or starting this thread. It's very courageous. I'd like to contribute more but I'm not generally interested in revealing personal info online. However, I don't mind saying that the waifs tell me that I spend too much time/energy/money taking care of others and not enough taking care of myself. I know where this comes from and I know that it impedes my efforts to move forward toward my academic goals. It's a concious decision and so I can't say that I'm unhappy about the situation.

 

I think that distance learning is a great tool to maximize one's potential.

I very shy and don't talk a lot during face-to-face classes , but with online classes (and here), it can be hard to shut me up!

DL isn't a miracle worker, but it eliminates the need to be in-class daily. So problems that cause a lot of absences don't have nearly the impact that they would otherwise. Absences can decimate a GPA, even when the student gets As on every assignment, so this is no small matter.