Students' Perceptions of a Postsecondary LD/ADHD Support Program

Colleges are seeking ways to better serve the growing population of students with learning disabilities (LD) and/or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). In making decisions about how to best facilitate students' success, it is important to listen to their voices as they describe their experiences and offer unique insights. The researchers interviewed 14 undergraduates with LD and/or ADHD enrolled in a fee-based support program at a private liberal arts college. The interviews explored students' perceptions of outcomes of their participation in the program and factors they believed contributed to these outcomes. Students reported growth in self-authorship and self-determination, greater metacognitive awareness, improved academic skills, and changes in their perceptions of themselves as learners and their learning differences. They attributed these positive outcomes to the mentoring relationships they established with professors in the program and the metacognitive conversations they had with them. Students' stories confirm the value of a metacognitive, dialogic approach; the significance of caring, supportive relationships with mentors; and the importance of integrating the emotional and cognitive domains in postsecondary support programs for students with LD/ADHD.