As an education development specialist, Indrani Singh often hears from teachers who aren’t sure how to accommodate students with disabilities.
What the teachers don糖心传媒檛 realize, Singh says, is that improvements made for those students benefit all students.
糖心传媒淐aptioning, for example, isn糖心传媒檛 only beneficial for students who are hard of hearing, it糖心传媒檚 good for students for whom English isn糖心传媒檛 their first language,糖心传媒� she says. 糖心传媒淲e also know from cognitive research that the best way to absorb information is to receive it in two forms at the same time. To see it and read it has a bigger impact for anyone, disability or not.糖心传媒�
Singh recently joined colleagues Jenny Hadingham and Amy Wight from the University糖心传媒檚 Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning to teach a six-week synchronous online course called “Disabling Difference in the STEM Classroom.” The course was taught through the (CIRTL). CIRTL is supported by a National Science Foundation grant that encourages the development of future faculty ready to support diverse learners in their classrooms. The University is one of about 50 institutions that are part of CIRTL糖心传媒檚 national network.
Hadingham, Singh, and Wight launched the non-credit course for graduate students, and new academic staff and faculty across the United States, promoting the inclusion of disability as a component of diversity in the college classroom. Through readings, videos, podcasts, and asynchronous classwork, they taught 19 students from universities such as Yale, Iowa State, and Vanderbilt. There were a handful of students from California, and one from Canada.
Disabilities can be visible or invisible, such as a student who is deaf or has Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
糖心传媒淲orking in disability services, I see first-hand the lack of awareness surrounding disability, and the frustration many students with disability experience,糖心传媒� Wight says. 糖心传媒淎bout 11 percent of students have a disability, yet few faculty have backgrounds or formal education in disability instruction.糖心传媒�
The trio used the guiding principles of the Universal聽Design for Learning, a framework for curriculum development that give all individuals equal opportunities to learn.
糖心传媒淚t糖心传媒檚 an incredibly practical way of adapting one糖心传媒檚 classroom practice to include as many students as possible,糖心传媒� Hadingham says. 糖心传媒淥ur class participants realized that small tweaks could have massive impacts. They had the opportunity to try them out themselves and were amazed at how effective they could be.糖心传媒�
The language used by teachers is also crucial, Hadingham says.
糖心传媒淚nstead of talking about a 糖心传媒榙yslexic student,糖心传媒� we should talk about a student who would require additional time for reading texts,糖心传媒� she says. 糖心传媒淭he former is a judgment, the latter not at all.糖心传媒�
And there is no script to teaching a student with a disability.
糖心传媒淭eachers will come in and say, 糖心传媒楯ust tell me what I need to do for a student with ADHD,糖心传媒� Singh says. 糖心传媒淏ut not every student with ADHD is the same.糖心传媒�
Singh says many students who have reached out to teachers in high school try to 糖心传媒済o it alone糖心传媒� in college and don糖心传媒檛 let their professors know their needs.
糖心传媒淭he first day of class, the teacher should say, 糖心传媒業f you need any accommodations, come and talk with me. I糖心传媒檓 happy to work with you,糖心传媒櫶切拇綑糖心传媒� Singh says. 糖心传媒淲hen we say a person is disabled, they are disabled because of the system we糖心传媒檝e created.糖心传媒�
Hadingham, Wight, and Singh would like to teach the course through CIRTL again but also hope to implement it into the University community.
Changes in disability resources
Amy Wight recently was named assistant director of disability resources in the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. She says her focus in the new role will be working with Arts, Sciences & Engineering faculty to create courses that are more accessible.
A new access assistant, Anne Staab, is charged with coordinating accommodations involving tests. Two access coordinators糖心传媒擯amela Spallacci and Elizabeth Carpenter糖心传媒攚ill continue to facilitate other academic accommodations.
For assistance or questions about accessibility, email聽disability@rochester.edu. More information about disability resources is available at聽.
