Week 4 has definitely been a challenge to get through. Its the last week of FAU's Mid-Summer session, so we have to make sure that students who receive extended time on exams have turned in all of their paperwork, check to see if the exams have been received my professors (regular font, large print for vision-impaired students, audio recording for physically impaired students or blind students, etc.), double check that the students accomodations have been approved, and finally, once the student finishes the exam, we have sure be 100% positive that each and every exam is delivered to the correct office to the correct professor. Needless to say, there was PLENTY of work to be done during Week 4, but it was all worth it for all of our appreciative students. One memory in particular that was very touching to me was one I met a graduate student who was physically impaired in a wheelchair. I had worked with him before but never realized that extent of his physical impairment. As I was leading him to his personal testing room where he would receive 2.5x's extra time on his final exam, I opened up the audio recording program on the computer since he is unable to use his hands. I thought he was only unable to write, but it turns out that he can't use his hand at all except for the joystick on his electric wheel chair. When we were in the testing room, he asked me to put the headphones on his head and then had me adjust them about three or four times until they were comfortable. This made me appreciate every little movement that I am able to make with my hands.
Later that week, I learned about Asperger's Syndrome which is also known as High-Functioning Autism. I was told that Asperger's students are extremely bright and are often the most intelligent students in a course. They absorb material like sponges, and retain large amounts of information. There disability is seen in social situations...they literally have no regard for how to act in social settings. They don't know what is appropriate or not and have a hard time communicating at all with others let alone communicating effectively. Most Asperger's students are male and their speech is often about random topics that have nothing to do with the task at hand. I witnessed the struggle that Asperger's students go through when on of our Asperger's students used our computer lab for two hours before informing us that he was infected with Pink Eye. Because of his disability, he didn't realize that it is innapropriate to be in public settings with conjuctivitis. We kindly asked him to return only when he had a Doctor's note and quickly went to work disinfecting the lab and the rest of the office. I really felt bad for him, though.
Week 5 has been the most challenging week thus far. Our Coordinator of Notetaking Services is taking off for vacation in England until July 20th and I have been chosen to learn her position and fill in for her. I never realized how much paperwork, computer records, and filing had to be done in order to pair one of our disabled students with a volunteer notetaker. There were literally moments during my training when I wanted to quick, because I was so incredibly frustrated with all of the crazy details to remember. Thankfully, our Coordinator is one of the most patient women I've ever met. I was finally getting the hang of things by Thursday, and by Friday, I was barley asking her questions on how to put the data in the system, match the student with a notetaker, file the paperwork, inform the volunteer that they have a volunteer position, while simultaneously contacting professors who are being stubborn about informing the class that a volunteer notetaker is needed. I am learning to balance all of the tasks at hand, and realize that all of my work pays off when I see that relief on a disabled student's face when they are informed that they have been matched with a volunteer notetaker for one of their courses. Let's see how this week goes...I'm on my own without help! Bring on the challenges!!! hehehe
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