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The Daily OrangeJudge's ruling in LSAC appeals case appropriate
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Posted: 3/22/04, 2:48 AM EST Section: Opinion
Syracuse University senior Abby Rothberg's court case against the Law School Admissions Council over the issue of her learning disability is justified. Rothberg sued the LSAC after it refused to accommodate her learning disability on their standardized test, claiming the denial violates the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Rothberg took the test in January and was refused the extra time that she has routinely received on standardized tests since the age of five. She received 50 percent more time to take tests in high school, in college, and on the ACT as well. Therefore, The Daily Orange agrees with Judge Wiley Daniel's Feb. 7 ruling, which sided with Rothberg.
Denying Rothberg time and a half to take her exam violates the letter of the law and she should be afforded the rights she has been legally guaranteed. Furthermore, it violates the precedent that has been set by other standardized tests, giving takers with a learning disability extra time. Diagnosed with a learning disability, she has a handicap that impairs her to complete the exam in the amount of time her peers would need. It in no way, however, limits her ability to perform well on the exam should she be given appropriate accommodations.
The LSAC sets its own standards for the exam, which do not necessarily correspond with the skills needed in a courtroom. Because it creates the rules of the test as it pleases, it is able to structure the format so that individuals in situations similar to Rothberg's are given the opportunity they deserve.
Providing Rothberg with this time does not in any way provide her with an unfair advantage to perform on the test, nor does it guarantee she will be hired as a lawyer or succeed as one.
At some point, Rothberg will not be given the breaks she has been afforded thus far; but that can take place when she is in law school or in the courtroom. On a standardized test, which is itself suspect in its ability to test the taker's skills, Rothberg deserves the opportunity to perform her best. Until she is applying to law firms and must perform in a real world job setting, she deserves the rights that the law has created for her.
Rothberg took the test in January and was refused the extra time that she has routinely received on standardized tests since the age of five. She received 50 percent more time to take tests in high school, in college, and on the ACT as well. Therefore, The Daily Orange agrees with Judge Wiley Daniel's Feb. 7 ruling, which sided with Rothberg.
Denying Rothberg time and a half to take her exam violates the letter of the law and she should be afforded the rights she has been legally guaranteed. Furthermore, it violates the precedent that has been set by other standardized tests, giving takers with a learning disability extra time. Diagnosed with a learning disability, she has a handicap that impairs her to complete the exam in the amount of time her peers would need. It in no way, however, limits her ability to perform well on the exam should she be given appropriate accommodations.
The LSAC sets its own standards for the exam, which do not necessarily correspond with the skills needed in a courtroom. Because it creates the rules of the test as it pleases, it is able to structure the format so that individuals in situations similar to Rothberg's are given the opportunity they deserve.
Providing Rothberg with this time does not in any way provide her with an unfair advantage to perform on the test, nor does it guarantee she will be hired as a lawyer or succeed as one.
At some point, Rothberg will not be given the breaks she has been afforded thus far; but that can take place when she is in law school or in the courtroom. On a standardized test, which is itself suspect in its ability to test the taker's skills, Rothberg deserves the opportunity to perform her best. Until she is applying to law firms and must perform in a real world job setting, she deserves the rights that the law has created for her.
