An examination of the predictive validity in college admission criteria for students with learning disabilities
Abstract
As more and more students with learning disabilities pursue post-secondary school education, current practice in the field of college admissions places these students in the position of meeting the same admissions standards as their nondisabled peers. This study examined the predictive validity of using standard college admissions criteria for a group of students with learning disabilities as compared to a group of students without learning disabilities. The use of high school average, class rank, and SAT scores to predict college success, as measured by college English grade, was conducted with two groups of students attending two suburban 4-year private colleges. Both colleges contained a specific support program for students with learning disabilities. In addition to the admission data, IQ scores, as measured by the WAIS, were also collected for the group of students with learning disabilities and were correlated with the criterion variable. Comparative analysis of the data found that students with learning disabilities perform at a lower level in all areas of college admissions criteria. Regression equations for both groups indicated that there was little or no predictive validity for either group in using college admission criteria for predicting college success using a single course grade. The Information subtest on the WAIS was found to have the most predictability for the group with a learning disability. The results of the study were not consistent with current literature on predicting college success. The use of open-enrollment 4-year colleges provided subjects with a much lower academic profile, thereby raising the issue of predicting college success for this part of the population. The use of a single course grade as a criterion measure for college success was also a factor. Finally, the existence of a substantial academic support program for students with learning disabilities may counterbalance any negative effects that a lower academic profile may present in the admissions process.
Subject Area
School counseling|Special education|Higher education
Recommended Citation
Haubner, James Murry, "An examination of the predictive validity in college admission criteria for students with learning disabilities" (2000). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI9975350.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI9975350
