Empowering Students With Dyslexia in the Classroom:Making Accommodations Meaningful and Accessible
Take a moment to consider how much your interactions with the world around you involve print. From reading road signs to sending emails and text messages, reading the newspaper or a book, writing a note to your child's teacher, or completing an assignment for school or work, possessing the skills for reading and writing is critical. Reading and writing are a part of almost every aspect of our lives, and for students, reading and writing expectations encompass every academic layer of school yet often pose difficulties for those with dyslexia. For individuals with dyslexia, understanding and advocating for accommodations is part of the journey, and educators who have this knowledge and understanding can set the stage for success for students with dyslexia. Accommodations are essential for our children because they can provide access to the curriculum and act as a vehicle for learning.
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month, but the reality is dyslexia impacts students in our classrooms every day. Dyslexia is the most common learning disability and affects students worldwide across all demographics, socioeconomic status, gender, race, and language. Therefore, within schools, dyslexia and accommodations can (and should) be discussed and used across disciplines and with all members who work with the student. With the right accommodations, students and adults with dyslexia can succeed and become empowered in the classroom and beyond. It is important to note accommodations are not cheating or a crutch, but a tool our students use to level the academic playing field and ensure equal learning access.
Accommodations, instructional, or test adaptations, can change how students access information and demonstrate their knowledge, skills, and abilities while keeping the same academic standards and expectations. These adjustments are based on the student's needs and make it possible for individuals with dyslexia to demonstrate their learning without focusing on their learning disability. Things like providing extra time, using graphic organizers, accessing audiobooks, and use of assistive technology are examples of some accommodations. Keeping in mind the tasks we are asking students to do as well as the student profile can determine what type of assistive technology will benefit the student. Assistive technology can be broken into two large categories: low-tech assistive technology (highlighters, graphic organizers, reading guides, etc.) and high-tech assistive technology (digital highlighters, audiobooks, speech-to-text, etc.) which provide access to learning. In addition, some students may benefit from accommodations in presentation of lessons, types of responses, setting, organization, and testing.
At first glance, this may feel overwhelming for both the teacher and the student—but with the intentional and mindful application of accommodations, we embark on a learning journey with the student to provide effective support with deliberate teaching and application and empower students to embrace accommodations within the academic setting. If we place accommodations on a "list" but don't teach those tools and applications, it is not beneficial to our children. We must be the stewards of this for our children. We must see the benefits of taking the time to weave these tools into our lessons, bring awareness to how they are helping and why, and then guide students in this reflective process of thinking about the benefit of the accommodation and how to advocate for its use.
I hope you will join me at 2 p.m. (CT), October 8, when I will be a guest presenter on EDVIEW360's webinar series. I’ll share how we can intentionally provide accommodations within our classrooms to act as a vehicle for learning.