Disabilities
affect students ability to learn in many ways.
Disabilities and learning styles are unique to each individual. Many accommodations are simple, creative
alternatives for traditional ways of doing things. Following
are examples and suggestions to try in your classroom.
They are by no means comprehensive.
LOW VISION
Explanation: People with low
vision are those who have limited usable sight, including learners who are considered
legally blind. Material may be
too small to read, objects are blurry, or are limited in their field of vision with
sections missing. Learning through visual
medium may take longer and may be more mentally fatiguing for people who have low vision.
Accommodations:
Use large print books, handouts, signs, and equipment labels. Some learners may benefit from audiotape, seating
where the lighting is best; television monitors connected to microscopes to enlarge
images, class assignments made available in electronic formats; and computers equipped
with screen enlargers.
BLINDNESS
Explanation: People who have not
had vision since birth may have difficulty understanding verbal descriptions of visual
materials and abstract concepts, ex: This diagram of ancestral lineage looks like a
tree. However, learners who have lost
their vision later in life may find it easy to understand this verbal description. Demonstrations based on color differences may be
more difficult for learners with blindness to understand than demonstrations that
emphasize changes in shape, temperature, or texture.
Accommodations: Ready access to
printed materials on computer disks or the Internet allows blind learners, who have the
appropriate technology, to use computers to read text aloud and/or produce Braille. Some materials may need to be transferred to
audiotape. Use clear, concise narration of
the basic points being represented in visual aids is helpful. Other accommodations could include tactile models
and raised-line drawings of graphic materials; adaptive lab equipment such as talking
thermometers, calculators, light probes, and tactile timers; and computers with optical
character readers, voice output, Braille screen displays, and Braille printers.
HEARING AND SPEECH IMPAIRMENTS
Explanation: Learners who have hearing
impairments may hear at a functional level with the assistance of amplification
devices. Others hear only specific
frequencies, sounds within a certain volume range, or nothing at all. Strategies used often include a combination of
lip-reading, sign language, and amplification to understand spoken information. It is difficult to follow lectures,
simultaneously watch demonstrations and follow verbal descriptions. It may also be difficult for them to follow or
participate in class discussions. Students
may have speech impairments. Encourage
them to participate in class discussions, ask them to repeat themselves when you cannot
understand them, encourage other students to interact with them.
Accommodations:
Hearing impairment accommodations can include interpreters; sound amplification
systems; note takers; visual aids; written lecture outlines, class assignments, lab
instructions, and demonstration summaries; visual warning systems for lab emergencies; and
electronic mail for faculty-learner meetings and class discussions. Instructors should turn their faces toward
learners with hearing impairments when speaking and discussion questions and statements
made by other learners. Equipment may be
needed to amplify voices. Speech impairment accommodations may include computer
based speech output systems that can provide an alternative voice for learners who cannot
speak and electronic mail does not require the ability to speak.
LEARNING DISABILITIES
Explanation: Learners usually have average to
above average intelligence, but may have difficulties demonstrating knowledge and
understanding concepts. It may take longer
for some learners to process written information, making lengthy reading or writing
assignments or tests difficult to complete in a standard amount of time. Some learners may be able to organize and
communicate their thoughts in one-to-one conversations, but find it difficult to
articulate those same ideas in a noisy classroom.
Accommodations:
Accommodations may include note takers, audio taped class sessions, extra test time, quiet
testing location, alternative testing arrangements, visual, aural, and tactile
demonstrations incorporated into instruction, course and lecture outlines, and computers
with voice output and spelling and grammar checkers.
Be aware of environmental factors that tend to distract learns, such as seating by
a window or a door.
MOBILITY IMPAIRMENTS
Explanation: These can range from
lower body impairments requiring the use of canes, walkers, or wheelchairs, to upper body
impairments, which may result in limited or no use of the hands. It may be difficult for students to get from class
to class, field work sites, manipulate objects, turn pages, write with a pen, type at a
keyboard, or retrieve research materials.
Accommodations:
Accommodations may include note takers, scribes, and lab assistants; group lab
assignments; extended exam time, and alternative testing arrangements. Other accommodations may include accessible
locations for classrooms, labs, and field trips; adjustable tables; equipment located
within reach; course materials available in electronic formats; computer with special
devices such as voice or Morse code input and alternative keyboards; and access to
research resources on the internet.
HEALTH IMPAIRMENTS
Explanation: Some health
conditions and medications affect memory and/or energy levels. Additionally, some learners who have health
impairments may have difficulties attending classes full-time or on a daily basis. Be aware of medications that the learner is taking
and their potential physical and educational effects.
This is particularly important for learners taking medications for
conditions such as seizure disorders. Some
health impairments are chronic and stable while others are sporadic and require flexible
accommodations.
Accommodations:
Be flexible. Other accommodations include
note takers and/or taped class sessions; flexible attendance requirements; alternative
testing arrangements; assignments available in electronic format; and electronic mail for
faculty-learner meetings, class discussions, and distribution of class materials and
lecture notes.
Sources:
Illinois Center for Specialized Professional Support (ICSPS)/Special Populations Project
Walter, S. (2001). Suggested members and resources for the IEP/Transition team. As cited
in Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities. (2001). Including youth with
disabilities in education to careers. Springfield, Illinois: Author.