Parents of tweens & teens who get accommodations like extra ACT time, daily homework review, what is

[Anonymous]

your plan for your child when this child turns 18 and enters either a college or the work world? And the ADA's 'reasonable accommodations' clause doesn't mandate do-overs, taking all the time you need, and extra daily review by the teacher (er, supervisor) to ensure all the work is done properly and turned in?

I know how this has played out for my brother, it's been a mixed bag until he went into work for himself.

But I want to ask you anonymously here if you have a mental plan for that day your child doesn't receive twice as long as the other employees [extra time] to complete the "bona fide requirement of the job," etc?

I'm mostly asking as the supervisor of several 20-something interns with **hugely** varying ability to "get it done." All are "smart" on resume paper (which is why they were chosen, along with much nepotism), but a couple really stand out as being unable to execute projects/assignments.

[Anonymous]

Mine is planning for a career with special needs children. And DC is used to working twice as hard as peers to get work done so doesn't expect that to change.

[Anonymous]

This question kind of reads like a taunt rather than a request for information, and I hesitate to even respond.

As a supervisor, I know that an accommodation to a disability can be providing extra time for an essential job function to be carried out.

If you hired an intern who cannot perform an essential job function, I don't think you screen applicants well.

[Anonymous]

As a supervisor, I know that an accommodation to a disability can be providing extra time for an essential job function to be carried out.

If you hired an intern who cannot perform an essential job function, I don't think you screen applicants well.

Thank you. I did not select these interns, my boss does that. As you probably are aware, as a supervisor, you cannot always ensure that a candidate with a clean resume and a cheerful, can-do personality can actually complete a project in a satisfactory way, on time, with appropriate (not excess) supervision.

Which brings me back to my question. If Emily, with a 3.2 from U. of Texas earned that 3.2 (solid, IMO) because of 4 years of extra time, take-home exams when no one else got take home exams, a personal typist, etc etc .... what happens when Large International Hotel Corp. cannot and will not provide all of those types of accommodations?

I am very easy-going about giving such a person (who really does exist, btw) as long as she needs to finish a non-time sensitive memo. Why create artificial hoops? I don't. That would be mean.

But there are, in most office jobs, genuine deadlines that can't be modified without negative impact on workflow or other employees. I personally, and silently, would promote the person who met the deadlines and exceeded expectations with minimal "checking in" or hand-holding, given the choice.

So at the end of the summer, if I have to choose one intern from my team out of 8, I am inclined to go with the person who gets it done (all other things being fairly equal). One the one hand, this seems completely, totally rational. Business is rational, say economists. OTOH, if I reflect as the sister of a guy who struggled professionally due to ADHD .... this seems sad. Not unfair, but sad.

[Anonymous]

Let us know the name of your company and I will make sure my DC never applies there - you sound horrible.

[Anonymous]

11:01 here.

I find it hard to believe that "Emily" got a 3.2 due to 4 years of extra time on take home exams which no one else got, and got a personal typist. And now she's your intern.

Sorry, don't buy it. I just don't.

I think YOU are a whiner. The kind of person who makes excuses because YOU can't meet the essential functions of YOUR job.

[Anonymous]

"I find it hard to believe that "Emily" got a 3.2 due to 4 years of extra time on take home exams which no one else got, and got a personal typist. And now she's your intern."

I find it very easy to believe.

[Anonymous]

So suck it up. Do you think you're entitled to star performers on your team?

[Anonymous]

Jesus Christ. 11:01 again. These kinds of posts mystify and enrage me. Black people have their jobs because of Title VII or affirmative action. Disabled people have their jobs because of reasonable accommodations.

But all white or normally abled people are just magical, right! Magically mediocre.

This is ridiculous. If you have a problem employee, you have a problem employee. YOU ARE A SUPERVISOR. No one promised you an easy ride. This is your goddamn job. Now shut up and do it.

[Anonymous]

OP, you hit a sore point.

As a parent of an ADHD child, I worry about what the future has in store for my son. He is in 2nd grade with minimal accommodations for now, and I see all these parents clamoring for more accommodations for their SN children... which is their parental duty on the face of it.

But then what?

Are we all making sure that our children know their own strengths and weaknesses, recognize they should not feel entitled about their accommodations, and that they may have to struggle harder than anyone in their chosen professional field?

So the crux is self-knowledge, the will to work, and realistic expectations of the workplace and of the goodness of fit with their abilities.

Which means my son is probably doomed to be a professor/researcher of an abstruse branch of knowledge like his father

You do your job and pick the best candidate. We'll do ours.

[Anonymous]

OP there is a difference between a learning environment and a work environment. Accommodations in testing, homework, and class time are made for kid's with learning disabilities so that each child has access to an appropriate education for his/her academic needs. Work environments may or may not offer accommodations. Smart people with ADHD often are very successful while others struggle. The biggest differentiator is whether they are continuing to manage the ADHD through behavioral techniques or medication.

ADHD people can be the high energy risk takers that end up being on top. Its important to remember that ADHD is about the inability to regulate attention not having an inability to ever pay attention. ADHD people often hyper focus on some areas. My kid needs accommodation in reading and writing areas but whizzes through math and science. She hyper focuses in math, is a gifted problem solver and uses her ADHD as an advantage. Since ADHD people "see" everything and don't always discriminate/drop details she can quickly make broad connections between disparate data points to find a solution. I doubt that my daughter would ever become an editor reading through long manuscripts on deadline but she could be an amazing architect or engineer.

In your situation of managing an internship, I think you need to balance providing a learning environment and showing the interns some aspects of real work environment. An internship is a trade. You are getting free work while the intern is gaining a learning experience. It is appropriate to make some accommodations so that you hold up your end of the bargain. Its also appropriate to show them some real world deadlines. This will help them make good career choices down the road.

[Anonymous]

I don't have any expectations because I dont know what the world will be like when DC enters the workforce. It is 10+ years away. I do know that the increased technology and the ADA will help him. If he needs accomodations, it would be things similar to someone who is blind or deaf. He has some motor integration issues that make it difficult for him to write and type, but the speech to text software is helping him now and is only going to get better (just like it helps all those doctors whose handwriting is illegible ). Same for the text to speach software he uses to access his textbooks. I believe that most employers allow their staff to utlize things like calculators, which is another one of his accommodations. They also allow people to get up and walk around ever 30 minutes or so - which helps quite a few people to clear their head and perform more productively.

So mainly he will need added software. It is only a big deal if someone like you makes it a big deal. Do you really care if someone listens to their email or dictates their e-mail instead of reading and typing it?

[Anonymous]

I am that child, who is now an adult, and the honest truth is, I struggle like crazy. I've been fired from several jobs for things that boil down to me just not understanding and thus not being able to perform.

It sucks, and is frustrating, and I try really, really hard. I have absolutely stepped outside with my cell phone to call my parents crying hysterically because "work is too hard" and I don't know what to do at my desk.

The good thing is: work rarely cares HOW you get it done and so whatever process makes the most sense to you is fine with them. Also, they WANT you to succeed. If you can tell them what you need, they will generally bend over backwards to give you that.

When I clicked with a specific IT person (because she was a great teacher), I went to HR when they rolled out a new program I'd have to use and said, "I found during New Employee Training that I learned REALLY well from Valerie. Any way she can teach me how to use the new FLOTE system? I'm happy to skip my lunch hour or stay late without putting in for overtime." And they got me Valerie, and she was happy to do it.

Granted, that doesn't always work.

But nobody cares that I take more notes than others, or that I write out the alphabet when I'm filing so as not to file incorrectly. Sometimes they think that's funny, but nobody says I can't do it.

[Anonymous]

PP congratulations on working through your issues. 13:58 I wholeheartedly agree with your mind set. I was diagnosed as a child but my parents had emotional issues ie they screamed at each other all of the time and eventually divorced so I don't know if I really have it or not. Sometimes I wonder if my official diagnosis was just really a reaction to their behavior as I did have emotional issues growing up. I think otherwise it would flown under the radar as I have an IQ in the 120 range so I can compensate. I haven't even told my husband nor did I have accomodations growing up. I do have some symptoms and am easily distracted but also can hyper focus on things so the latter has served me well at work. I feel I have to work harder than everyone else but I deliver a superior product at the end of the day. I never had accommodations nor do I take pills. I see some of the same issues with my bright daughter. I am sure if I took her to a shrink I could get a diagnosis but I would rather let her try to cope naturally. When she gets into the workforce she is not going to get a do over.

[Anonymous]

I think my sons with school accommodations will far exceed the 4.0's of the world. If you are a good manager (which actually may be your issue) you will find each intern has strengths and weeknesses.

Let's say Joe hands in his proposal for a contract, it is exactly what you asked for, it is well written with no mistakes. He meets with the client who loves the proposal but hates Joe. He lacks personality, he does not seem like a risk taker (even calculated ones) and he rubs everybody the wrong way.

Todd on the other hand had an okay proposal, it was, like a B minus. A few mistakes and it took him 2 days to get it to you instead of 1.5. The client loves Todd, he as gret leadership qualities, the team loves him, he had great suggestions the client didn't even think about and wold love to try some of the out of the box ideas. Actually, looking back, the proposal took longer to generate because the content is better than Joes, just not structured well and it had some grammar and spelling issues. You realize Todd actually spent the whole night doing research on the area, ended up a little hyper focused and read about some interesting new trends.

Joe did what he was told, like most 4.0s. Todd did what he thought he should (which is why teachers hate him).

You know what happens next. 4.0 joe becomes a contracts writer and Todd becomes an account manager. Joe is told not to talk to the client. Todd ends up getting hired by the client.