Accommodations For Classroom Instruction

 

Accommodations For Classroom Instruction

Author: Santosh Kumar Biswa, Sr. Teacher, Damphu CS, Tsirang, Bhutan

 

It is well known that varied children with specific disabilities will be present in many school settings today and will require special attention from their teacher. Some of them may be multilingual, academically behind, international pupils speaking a different language, or have special educational needs due to a handicap. As a teacher, I've observed that difficulties or barriers that impede students with disabilities from accessing and displaying their learning are a common occurrence. It occurs as a result of the method teachers use to convey the lesson and the steps taken to allow pupils to respond to the lesson. In terms of lighting, crowds, and noise, classroom seating configurations can occasionally produce the best atmosphere. Teachers can overcome all obstacles if suitable accommodations are taken into account. As a result, teachers ought to be well-equipped to spot and deal with all kinds of learning impediments in the classroom. We also provide accommodations for some disabilities at our school. In light of the classroom, I have taught in, the following are some modifications that can be made to educational procedures to accommodate classroom instruction:

First of all, in any classroom where teachers need to alter how they present their lessons or use the teaching materials, instructional accommodations are crucial. Teachers must remember that rather than what children learn, the emphasis should be on how they learn it. Changes should be made to the level of complexity of the knowledge that students are expected to study. When I start making educational accommodations for my students, I usually make sure that they are learning the same material at the same level of competency as their peers who are not disabled. If the problem is with decoding the text, accommodating students with audiobooks, visual cues, digital text that provides definitions, or alternative formats like diagrams and hands-on activities would help them learn better. Subsequently, teachers can also adopt differentiated instruction in the classroom employing varying learning activities, content, assessment processes, and the classroom environment to meet the needs and support the growth of each child (Stanford and Reeves, 2009) so that students' needs, interests, and learning styles are met well (Taylor, 2015).

On the other hand, depending on their skills, testing accommodations should be implemented by changing the test's format without affecting what the exam is meant to measure. For instance, if a student with a disability struggles with fine motor skills and finds it difficult to hold the pen correctly during testing, the teacher may ask them to read the test aloud or give them more time to complete it. On occasion, examinations can be administered in small groups when pupils respond to inquiries regarding whether they have visual impairments or can be given braille. To ensure that my students with disabilities learn effectively in my classroom, I typically use small-group testing.

The greatest issue I've observed in my classroom is the academic gap between students with learning disabilities and their peers. Each person has a unique learning problem, which can show up in a variety of ways. As a result, accommodations must be modified for a particular student. The assistance can be provided through suitable adjustments for classwork and assignments since different students with different learning issues need different accommodations for classroom activities and directions (Parentcenterhub, n.d.). In these situations, as a teacher, I typically help the learner identify competent classmates who can take notes. Instead of this, you could give the student a copy of your lecture notes or agenda. Moreover, I allot more time for my students to do classwork and assignments, especially writing ones. Most importantly, when my students are provided with long assignments, I usually provide them with feedback and support in organizing the assignment procedure. Basically, I advise them to divide their task into smaller parts.

Although adjustments are required to help students learn more effectively in the classroom, teachers must keep in mind that the learning objectives, task specifications, and material should not be changed.

References

Parentcenterhub. (n.d.). Supports, Modifications, and Accommodations for Students. https://www.parentcenterhub.org/accommodations/

Stanford, B., & Reeves, S. (2009). Making it happen: Using differentiated instruction, retrofit framework, and universal design for learning. TEACHING Exceptional Children Plus, 5(6), 1-9. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ967757.pdf

Taylor, B.K. (2015, January 14). Content, process, and product: Modeling differentiated instruction. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 51(1), 13-17. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273340707_Content_Process_and_Product_Modeling_Differentiated_Instruction