The article frames being smart and promising (to a university) as at odds with having a learning disability, which is not necessarily true. It also frames depression and anxiety as learning disabilities, which they are not.
Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
401–410 of 1001 posts
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#402Earlier quoted context omitted.
> people that are just in the line where they are very productive workers anyway Of course, that applies to everybody who achieves a stable career at all. Exceedingly few people (if anyone) are competent and capable at everything, even when you're just talking about basic skills that are handy for common, everyday work. Your doctor may be a incorrigibly terrible driver, your bus driver may pass out at the sight of bl…
Well put. > A lot of modern, aspiring-middle-class and online culture Theres also a pernicious way of identifying with the struggle. Instead of I have trouble focusing in certain situations, so maybe I should find ways to spend my time (careers, hobbies) that work well with that. We instead go to 'I have ADHD' and my 'job' should make special accommodations for me. Regardless of whether a job should or should not mak…
> maybe I should find ways to spend my time (careers, hobbies) that work well with that
You're really close to getting it.
Students in school do not have this flexibility. They are required to be there, an 8th grader has no control and little influence over how their time is spent, or whether their tasks are a good match for their abilities.
So the only option in school is accommodation. There are some who continue to expect that into adulthood, but the vast majority of kids diagnosed with ADHD do not seek accommodation in their professional life.
Why? Because they do exactly what you propose. They find careers that match their disposition.
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#403Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't see how you spending time in ways that work well with your challenges is different from your job providing accomodations, except that if your employer is willing to work with you then you don't have to randomly roll the dice until you come up with an employer where things happen to work in whatever way you wanted. It's not like one of the accomodations on the table is "not doing your job"
The difference reduces to: 1. The career I would like to have, and the life I desire to live, is my free choice. Once I've made that choice, the community's responsibility is to give me whatever I need so that I can apply myself to that career and live the life I imagine for myself. vs 2. I have certain capabilities and limitations. The community has certain needs. If there's any way for me to do so, it's my responsi…
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Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#404Earlier quoted context omitted.
They lead with the headline that most of these students have a mental health disability - particularly ADHD. Is it surprising that legalized Amphetamines drive teenagers to higher performance for a short period in their lives? Adderall and other amphetamines only have problems with long term usage. It should be expected that some portion of the teenage population sees a net-benefit from Amphetamines for the duration…
Wow that's interesting! Could you share your sources?
Source for amphetamines being a performance enhancing drug? Try some lol.
Really, they're habit forming and destructive so don't take them, but the reason they're so popular is they really do kick you up.
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#405The amount of pressure young kids are under... I am surprised the numbers aren't much higher. I grew up with debilitating OCD/Tourettes. I am glad kids growing up today have more resources than I did. Society itself is sick and broken. If that many kids are having issues.. Maybe the system is the problem here?
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#406American society is at the point where if you don't play these sort of games/tricks, you'll get out-competed by those who do. Bleak.
Reason.com is operated by the kind of people who start the game with generational wealth in their back pocket.
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#407Earlier quoted context omitted.
I dont know why you're getting downvoted, I see this all the time and its infuriating. Its a deflection tactic to burn peoples time.
I think you answered your own question as to why this is getting downvoted lol
The person I replied to was clearly using sarcasm
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#408Regarding Stanford specifically, I did not see the number broken down by academic or residential disability (in the underlying Atlantic article). This is relevant, because > Some students get approved for housing accommodations, including single rooms and emotional-support animals. buries the lede, at least for Stanford. It is incredibly commonplace for students to "get an OAE" (Office of Accessible Education) exclus…
The original article which is linked in this post goes into much better detail: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/01/elite-universit... Schools and universities have made accommodations a priority for decades. It started with good intentions, but parents and students alike have noticed that it's both a) easy to qualify for a disability and b) provides significant academic advantages if you do. Another big acc…
>Another big accommodation request is extra time on tests.
Yep. Speaking from experience, top colleges will give students with ADHD or similar conditions as much as double time or more on exams. One college I know of sends them to a disability services office to proctor it, in which they simply don't enforce time limits at all.
Coincidentally, there's an overwhelming number of students with ADHD compared to before these kinds of accommodations became standard.
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#409Earlier quoted context omitted.
It means that the action we should take in response to this article is "building more dorms with singles" rather than "we need to rethink the way that we are making accommodations for disabilities in educational contexts". That seems like an important distinction, and makes the rest of the article (which focuses on educational accommodations) look mistaken.
I worked in residential life while in college and can tell you that placing freshmen in singles is a horrible idea. It leads to isolation and lets mental health issues fester. Some need it but you do not want to place anyone who doesn’t into a room alone especially in their first year.
Before you went to college, did you have a bedroom to yourself in your parents' home?
Re: Why are 38 percent of Stanford students saying they're disabled?
#410Earlier quoted context omitted.
The original article which is linked in this post goes into much better detail: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/01/elite-universit... Schools and universities have made accommodations a priority for decades. It started with good intentions, but parents and students alike have noticed that it's both a) easy to qualify for a disability and b) provides significant academic advantages if you do. Another big acc…
Can someone explain to me why the accommodations make sense in the first place? Like what's the point of having the test be time constrained? If there is no point, then just let everyone have more time. If there is a point to having the test be time constrained, then aren't we just holding one group to a lower standard than another group? Why is that good? Same question about lectures. Is there a reason everyone can'…
Lots of people think a test should measure one thing (often under the slightly "main character" assumption that they'll be really good at the one truly important thing).
Tests usually measure lots of things, and speed and accuracy / fluency in the topic is one.
It certainly shouldn't be entirely a race either though.
Also if a test is time constrained it's easier to mark. Give a failing student 8 hours and they'll write 30 pages of nonsense.