(10-18-2010, 01:20 PM)Sila Wrote: he basically just dismissed it because it would be "unfair to other students". :/

This is never a valid argument for a basic accommodation. I'm sorry, but it just isn't, and I think we've all heard this used on us before. A lot of people seem to define the word 'fair' as being "everyone gets the same." However, is that truly always fair? Is it fair to the kid in a wheelchair when the school won't put in ramps, barring that kid from the school? Of course not. That's actually illegal.

I believe the definition of the word 'fair,' to be more along the lines of "everyone gets what he or she needs to succeed." It's not about everyone 'getting the same,' it's about everyone getting the same opportunity.

I don't find the accommodation you are asking for to be at all unfair to anyone. The other people in that class don't have the same disabilities as you do, so they don't have nearly the level of challenge that you do. If your teacher truly wanted to be 'fair,' he would set it up so that everyone has the same level of challenge based upon their individual needs. Making one student suffer a ton of extra hardship or work just based upon their disability is very wrong, and it really is genuinely unfair to the student.

He just doesn't want to deal with extra hassle if he believes he doesn't have to. Getting documentation from the school on special needs that you have will serve to really help you on this front in the future. Since your disability isn't visible, you generally get no support from people like this unless you fight for it effectively.

I know your semester is almost over, so it's likely you'll have to just bare it this one time. In the future though, I would seek some form of accommodation from the school. Some even offer evaluations, accommodations, and tutoring for free. I would certainly recommend looking into it.

Don't let people use the 'not fair for the rest argument,' because the rest don't struggle with the same things you do. You need to get an equal opportunity (isn't that what this nation is about?).