Accommodations & Modifications - Leveling the Playing Field for Students with Disabilities

 

The truth is that ALL kids learn differently. That's why UDL and multi-modal teaching is best practice - Tier 1. 

BUT when students have disabilities, accommodations level the playing field. Not only are we LEGALLY required to meet students' needs this way, it's the right thing to do. 

Different doesn't mean easier; it means accessible. 

Here are some things to consider when determining which accommodations may be appropriate: 

1. Consider the impact of the student's disability on their learning. What is getting in the way? What is the barrier to the student accessing instruction or the school environment? How can we support the student in accessing grade level instruction? 

2. Accommodations don't reduce or change learning expectations. That would be a modification. Accommodations allow access. 

3. The entire IEP team's input is important when deciding on which accommodations are appropriate - including parents and students, as well as the school-based team. 

4. What type of access does the student need? Consider the 4 categories of accommodations: presentation, response, scheduling, setting. This helps guide the discussion for what accommodations would be appropriate (and reduce OVER-accommodating). 

With accommodations (as with all parts of an IEP), we select them on a student-by-student basis. There is no one size fits all.

In fact, I feel so strongly about accommodations, modifications, knowing the difference, and carefully determining which are appropriate for individual students, I put together a Classroom Accommodations and Modifications Toolkit. 

The purpose of this comprehensive toolkit is to help teachers and IEP teams not only choose accommodations and modifications, but also ensure they are implemented consistently and monitored for effectiveness. There are tools for accommodation and modification recommendations, based on student struggles or disability category. There is also a menu provided by category (presentation, response, setting, timing/scheduling, behavior and self-regulation) and student accommodation planning and matching worksheet based on student need.

Finally, there are accountability tools for teachers, administrators, and students, which include fidelity trackers and planning tools for instructional units.

A disclaimer, of course, that these lists are not exhaustive, and depend on individual student need, as with everything in special education. These are suggestions and recommendations, but by no means intended to be prescriptive.

Below is the table of contents for the toolkit, and here is the link to the full 145 page resource on Teachers Pay Teachers.

Table of Contents

Section 1 - Accommodations and Modifications Overview

Section 2 - Accommodation Recommendation Guide 

• Student Struggles with Reading

• Student Struggles with Writing

• Student struggles with Attention/Focus

• Student struggles with Executive Functioning

• Student struggles with Math

• Student struggles with Processing Speed

• Student struggles with Communication

• Student struggles with Sensory Regulation

• Student struggles with Behavior/Self-Regulation

Section 3 - Modification Recommendation Guide 

Section 4 - Classroom Accommodation Menus by Category (Presentation, Response, Setting, Timing/Scheduling, Behavior and Self-Regulation)

Section 5 - Accommodation and Modification Planning Forms

• Student Accommodation Planning Sheet

• Accommodation Matching Worksheet

Section 6 - Teacher Quick Reference Sheets By Disability - Classroom Challenges + High Impact Accommodations

• Other Health Impairment / ADHD / Executive Functioning

• Autism

• Specific Learning Disability - Reading, Math, Writing

• Speech/Language

• Intellectual Disabilities

Section 7 - Accountability Tools for Accommodations and Modifications

• Teacher

• Administrator

• Student

Section 8 - Data Collection Fidelity Tracker

Section 9 - Collaboration and Planning Tools

• General Education Teacher Unit Planning Form : Accommodations & Modifications

• General Education Teacher and Special Education Teacher Collaboration Log

• Monthly Team Collaboration Meeting Agenda