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Elementary school children who maintained their academic performance levels following separation of their parents were compared to those whose levels declined. Although no single measure could accurately predict children's academic adjustment, those who maintained performance levels spent significantly more time with both parents.

Despite growing enrollment of university students with disabilities, they have not achieved academic parity with their non-disabled peers. This study matched 71 first-year university students with disabilities and students without disabilities on three variables: high school average when admitted to university, gender, and program of study. Both groups of students were compared on three measures of academic performance: GPA, failed courses, and dropped courses after first year of university. The relationship between accommodations and academic performance was also analyzed for students with disabilities. Evenwhen matched on admission average, gender, and program of study, students with disabilities had a significantly lower GPA and were more likely to fail courses in their first year than their peers without disabilities. While note-taking in the classroom was associated with being less likely to drop a course, it was also associated with poorer academic performance, as was using a calculator or alternate format during exams. The more accommodations students lost in the transition from high school, the worse they performed academically at university. Students who lost human assistant support in the classroom and theuse of a computer or a memory aid during exams had a significantly lower GPA and were more likely to fail courses in their first year of university compared with students who did not lose these accommodations. These findings have implications for accessibility offices and universities in supporting the access needs and academic success of students with disabilities.

More students with disabilities are attending university in Canada, bringing increasing expectations for academic accommodations. This study compared accommodations offered in high school and university for 71 first-year undergraduates with disabilities at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada. More than a third (34%) of the participants presented with a disability label at university different from what they had in high school. Eighty-six percent (86%) of participants received fewer accommodations in university (6.34 fewer on average). The most frequently lost accommodations were individualized instructional supports and extra time on exams. High school students who received human-assisted accommodations, and those who identified as exceptional, lost the highest number of accommodations. Accommodations increased for students who attended private high schools. These findings have practice implications for both high schools and universities. Instead of using disability labels, high school students with disabilities should be taught how to describe their disability-related functional limitations (FLs) within academic activities. High schools should align Grade 12 academic accommodations specifically to disability-related FLs for university-bound students with disabilities. Universities should communicate clear information about its accommodation process. This includes the conditions in which specific accommodations, such as memory aids, are granted. Universities should identify and support students whose accommodations change significantly upon their arrival from high school. Finally, universities ought to adopt Universal Design for Learning principles in teaching wherever possible. This will help create a welcoming learning environment for all students, including high school students experiencing significant changes to their accommodations as they transition to university.

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