Through my experience working as a resource teacher in special education, I have had a common question from parents and teachers of students with learning disabilities: “how are they going to catch up in the classroom when you are working on other skills and they are missing out on new ones?” I remember the first time a parent asked me that in an IEP meeting and I really didn’t know what to say. I don’t even remember my response, but I do remember thinking that I needed to find that answer to that question myself.
I’m going to be talking about the importance of using accommodations within a classroom setting and how you will be able to answer that question when it arises – again. This would apply to a general education classroom and a special education classroom.
First off, I just want to clarify what an accommodation is because it does get used interchangeably with modifications a lot. An accommodation is any support that is given to a student in order to participate and/or show mastery within a grade level standard. A modification is when the expectation of the standard has been changed so that the student can complete the task; the student is not doing what the other students are doing. This is usually only used when a student is instructed on the alternate core.
Here are some examples in which accommodations can bring power to the student in any educational setting:
- A student does not have their multiplication facts memorized and has a hard time completing the 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication.
- ACCOMMODATION: Teacher gives the student a multiplication chart so that she can participate in the math lesson for 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication
- A student reads on a second grade level and in his fifth grade class, the teacher wants the students to read the article given to them so that they can discuss their opinion on the subject.
- ACCOMMODATION: The teacher reads the article with him so that he has the information to participate in the class discussion
- A student struggles remembering the steps in solving a long division problem. When working with the teacher and having several verbal prompts, she can solve it successfully.
- ACCOMMODATION: The teacher wrote down all the steps for solving the long division problem so that she can refer to that and increase independence
- A student is frequently not completing the writing assignments in class. When the teacher conferences with the student, he would express how he doesn’t really know how to spell a lot of words.
- ACCOMMODATION: The teacher brings a sticky note to place on his desk and asks different words that the student feels that he will be using in the assignment
In every example above, the teacher is able to provide an accommodation appropriate for the student in order for them to continue to participate in the general education classroom. Another thing to note with the examples is that the expectation of the standard was not changed. The students still completed the standard, but received the tool they needed in order to make that happen. Those specific skill deficits that are accommodated in the general education classroom can be addressed with specially designed instruction within the resource setting and that decreases the chance that the student will develop more gaps. So, if I were to be in a meeting when the parent asks me “how are they going to catch up in the classroom when you are working on other skills and they are missing out on new ones?” I would confidently lead a discussion with the team and discuss what ways the general education teacher and I could provide accommodations.
There are many disabilities that are visible and just as many that are not. The danger when a disability is not visible is that people do not take it as seriously as the visible ones or may view giving the student an accommodation for them as unfair. For example, I’m not a very tall person and when I need to get something off the top shelf in my kitchen, I need the accommodation of using a stool. This stool helps me to accomplish the same thing that my husband can do without the stool, but I can do it independently and I don’t have to wait for him every time I need something.
Another example is that my daughter wears glasses and has terrible vision without them. In order for her to participate in school, she uses glasses or contacts so that she can see the board. What if the teacher told her that she had to remove her glasses because it wasn’t fair that no one else gets to use glasses? Does that even make sense? Of course not, because fair doesn’t mean that things are exactly the same; fair is when everyone is provided with what they need (an accommodation) to accomplish a goal or task independently.
Here are some questions to ask yourself when you are looking for accommodations for students:
- What tool or help can I provide that will allow the student to accomplish the skill with proficiency without changing the expectation?
- Have I collaborated with the general education teacher, or any other member of the IEP team, to ensure that we are using the same accommodations? Do they have any recommendations for appropriate support in the classroom? (You don’t want to reinvent the wheel if someone is already using something that is working)
- Am I taking into consideration that the student may have a disability that is not visible?
- How will the accommodation help the student become more independent in any academic setting?
- How often will the student need to use that accommodation?
Within one of my first years of teaching resource, I had a student that was really struggling with writing. He would work on his story, but the progress was just painstakingly slow! There were a few days where he would only write a few words and I was getting frustrated with him. This writing time dragged on for a few months and I was trying to figure out how I could get him to write more. My reward system in the class seemed to work for him in reading and math, but writing was still such a dull time. He had such great ideas and he was definitely not lacking in the fun personality area (except during writing time).
One day, as he was working on a personal narrative I noticed that he would write “m/d” once in a while. I asked him what it meant and he said that it stood for “mom and dad”. I think I laughed out loud in that moment because I still remember it and it was a pivotal moment for me as an educator. I never took in consideration that the student had a disability that was not visible – he was lacking fine motor skills.
He had occupational therapy there at the school and I didn’t even make the connection that writing was not hard for him because he couldn’t come up with stories, sentences, main ideas, details, descriptive words, etc. Writing was hard for him because it was a physical labor on his part. I made a change in mindset from being frustrated with the student to becoming a problem-solver and finding a way to make things easier for him. I came up with the accommodation that I would write 2 sentences for him and then he would write a sentence. That made such a difference! His creativity began to pour out on the paper and his attitude was so much more his playful self. Just that one minor accommodation gave him power to reach the expectations in class.
Where does the “power” of accommodations come into play? I believe that “power” comes with providing a student with the tools to increase their success and/or independence within their general education classroom setting. This also may change the student’s attitude towards a subject area. I have worked with so many students that are convinced that “math is not their thing”. Well, it’s our job to make it “their thing” by showing them that they can accomplish those assignments in class even though it may be in a different way. I also believe that the “power” would also refer to the teachers working together and creating a plan for the student. There is so much “power” in knowledge, in confidence, in learning and in collaborating.