Online Accommodations for Students with Learning Disabilities

Written by Patrice Fagnant-Macarthur

Accommodations in Education for Online Teaching: Overview

Students with a learning disability may need special accommodations in education with online teaching in order to learn more effectively. Some common learning disabilities include:

1. Dyslexia, which impacts a student's ability to read and write well
2. Dyscalculia, which affects a student's work with numbers and math
3. Dysgraphia, which involves difficulty with writing.
4. Dyspraxia, which creates challenges with conveying ideas verbally
5. Nonverbal learning disorder, which can be evident in struggles with motor skills and organizing material visually or spatially
6. Auditory Processing Disorder can cause difficulty with understanding spoken language

Fortunately, there are a wide variety of tools at online teachers' disposal that can help students with a learning disability in elementary, middle, and high school to succeed. This information can also be helpful for homeschooling parents. New technologies are increasing the opportunities for all students in online classes.

This article will provide an overview of several common accommodations and specific resources that teachers can use to help students with learning disabilities, as well as resources for teachers to increase their understanding of learning disabilities so that they can provide accommodations in education and implement best practices in online learning for students with disabilities.

Common Online Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Many of the accommodations for students with disabilities in online classes are the same that those students would receive in a traditional classroom where teachers and students interact face to face. However, online teaching can sometimes be an advantage in that it can be easier to implement these accommodations using technology. While these accommodations may seem to break the flow of a traditional classroom or single out particular students, they can be integrated seamlessly into an online classroom.

Some common accommodations include the following:

• Extra time on assessments
• Captions on transcripts for videos
• Advanced notice
• Directions for assignments

Assistive Technologies used for accommodations include:

• Text-to-speech technologies and devices
• Voice recognition technologies
• Magnifying or special display technology

Each of these accommodations will be discussed in additional detail below.

Extra Time on Assessments

One of the most common accommodations for students with disabilities is extra time for assignments, quizzes, tests, and other assessments. For students who struggle to read, write, or calculate math problems, extra time can relieve some of the stress associated with these processes. They can have the time that they need to be able to complete their work. One of the advantages of online teaching is that students can have this time to work on their own at home, without needing to schedule a special room at school or arrange for a teacher or aide to monitor the student. Most learning management systems (LMS) enable instructors to allow extra time for individual assessments. Some LMS will allow for extra time to be added to all quizzes and exams for a student at one time.

Captions or Transcripts for Videos

Another common accommodation requires instructors to provide captions for videos. This allows students to process the information being presented both auditorily and visually. They can both hear and read the material. This can be a benefit to students who struggle with auditory processing as well as those who have hearing difficulties, but this can also be a best practice for all students as students have various learning styles. Some students learn better through listening while others process information more easily when they read it.

Several recording systems, such as Techsmith Relay and Panopto allow instructors to automatically generate transcripts for videos. Some free online services for captioning videos include Subtitle Horse, Amara.org, and DotSub.com. Many LMS integrated video playback systems allow students to turn captions on.

Advanced Notice/Directions for Assignments

Providing advanced notice and directions for assignments such as papers and projects is another accommodation that can benefit all students in your online class, not only students with disabilities. When students know what papers and projects are coming, they are better able to plan out their time. This is especially important for students who struggle with organization and time management or who need extra time to complete projects. It can also allow students extra time to ask the teacher questions in order to clarify expectations and learning objectives. While this accommodation may require teachers to plan out a quarter or semester's worth of work in advance, it allows all students to have a better understanding of what is expected of them and can help increase the quality of papers and projects. Most LMS allow teachers to create automated announcements with due dates and directions.

Assistive Technologies and Learning Disabilities

A wide variety of assistive technologies are available to be used in online teaching to help students with learning disabilities be more successful. Assistive technology is any tool that helps a student learn better. Some low-tech tools include materials such as graphic organizers or using a ruler or bookmark to help a student keep their place while reading down a page. However, assistive technology is most often associated with computer-based tools. Some of these include text-to-speech technologies and devices, voice recognition technology, and magnifiers or special display technology. As with all facets of technology, new and better products are constantly emerging that may be of use in an online class.

Text-to-Speech Technologies and Devices

Text-to-Speech technology can be of great help to anyone who has difficulty reading printed text. This can include students with dyslexia, as well as students who have difficulty seeing. Text-to-speech services read the printed text for the student using an automated voice. This can be especially useful in an online class when much of the material is available on a screen as opposed to a printed textbook or worksheets. Both Microsoft Word and Google Docs have basic services that can read documents aloud to students. Kurzweil 3000 is a more robust program that offers many different automated voices to choose from, as well as the ability to read in several languages. NaturalReader is another service that allows users to upload text or documents and then convert them to mp3 files.

Voice Recognition Technologies

Voice recognition technologies transform speech into written text. This can be helpful for students with dyslexia or dysgraphia as well as anyone who struggles with writing or typing. Students who struggle with writing often have a great many thoughts to share verbally but are limited when it comes to putting their thoughts on paper. Therefore, their written work does not accurately reflect their intellect or their understanding of the material. Speech to text technology allows these students to speak what they would like to convey and have the words appear on the screen. Many computers and smartphones today have this service preloaded and available for free for anyone who wants to use it. Dragon and Braina are two popular paid programs for speech to text.

Magnifiers or Special Display Technology

Magnifiers enlarge text, icons, and images on a screen. They can also enlarge mouse cursors. Magnifiers can be helpful for anyone who has difficulty seeing. They can also be useful for students with dyslexia as it is sometimes easier to read when the print is larger. Special display technology can include using touchscreens that may be easier for some students to use than a standard keyboard and may allow for increased involvement in online learning for students with disabilities. The use of different fonts may also help students who have difficulty reading standard text. Dyslexia-friendly fonts use thicker lines in some parts of the letters. While they have not been proven to improve reading accuracy or speed, some individuals with dyslexia find that reading is more comfortable with these fonts.

Special Education Resources for Online Teaching

Teaching students with disabilities online can be a challenge, but there are many special education resources for online teaching to help teachers educate all students. Teachers do not need to feel that they are left to their own devices to come up with strategies and tools to provide the best education for their students with learning disabilities. There are opportunities for workshops and professional development for online teaching, as well as many electronic resources available online.

Workshops and Professional Development for Online Teaching

There are a wide variety of workshops and professional development opportunities that teachers can take advantage of that focus on the challenges that students with learning disabilities face in online classes.

• VectorSolutions.com offers a variety of online professional development classes to help teachers understand and educate students with disabilities.
• ExceptionalChildren.org provides both in-person and online teacher training.
• Peer Learning: many special education teachers generously share their knowledge through blogs, podcasts, and social media groups. This peer sharing from others in the online learning trenches may be just what teachers need to help make the most of their online classrooms.

Electronic Resources for Teachers

Electronic resources are available for teachers who are involved with online learning of students with disabilities.

• The Council for Exceptional Children offers resources for teaching remotely.
• The United Federation of Teachers offers a collection of special education online resources sorted by specific disciplines and particular learning disabilities.
• The Educating All Learners Alliance has a searchable library of resources providing helpful advice on particular challenges and subjects. It also features a collection of tech tools so that teachers can find the tools that will most help their students.
• The U.S. Department of Education Office of Educational Technology offers a downloadable teacher digital learning guide designed to assist teachers as they transition to online learning.

Best Practices in Online Learning for Students With Disabilities

To properly provide accommodations and help students with learning disabilities, instructors should make an effort to learn and understand best practices in online learning for students with disabilities. It is important to understand accommodations and to communicate frequently with students.

Students are individuals. The best accommodation for one student is not necessarily the accommodation that will work the best for another student, even for students with the same disability. It is important to work with students, their parents, and school counselors to determine appropriate accommodations. Accommodations should not change the content of what the student is learning or the requirements of an exam, project, evaluation. Rather, they level the playing field so that the student can achieve and be successful in the online classroom. It is also important to track performance so that teachers can determine if the accommodation is having the desired goal and helping the student. If it is not, it may be appropriate to investigate other accommodations.

Understand Accommodations

One of the best things instructors can do is continue to educate themselves about how best to provide accommodations in online classes to help students with learning disabilities. Teachers need to read IEP (Individual Education Plan) or 504 plan paperwork that details accommodations every time they receive it from an administrator or student to be sure that all accommodations are being met. It is important to tailor the accommodation to the particular student.

In some cases, a student may continue to have difficulty even with the accommodation. In those cases, it can be helpful to be aware of other accommodations to try. If an accommodation proves to be successful for a student, it can then be brought to the IEP team for possible inclusion.

Having a general understanding of learning disabilities and the various accommodations that can help them is important for all teachers. There may be students in the class who can benefit from an accommodation even if they have not been officially diagnosed with a disability. Some accommodations can be used for the whole class and may help all learners be more successful.

Actively Communicate with Students with Learning Disabilities

Communication is one of the most important tools in an online teacher's toolbox. Even more than in traditional classrooms, it is easy for students to fall through the cracks. Teachers must make the effort to cultivate relationships with their students and communicate with them both in class and on a one-on-one basis. Teachers need to clearly express the goals and expectations for assignments and allow students to ask questions and seek out help when needed. Students need to feel that they can approach their teacher when they are having difficulty or need clarification about the material presented or assignments given. They need to be able to express when they are struggling with completing the material or when accommodations are not meeting their needs. Only then can solutions be found and students with learning disabilities be empowered to succeed and achieve in their online classes.

Students should be able to communicate with their teachers through various means, whether that is through an online chat box, email, phone, or video office hours. By the same token, teachers can and should reach out to their students to check in on how they are doing. This way, problems can be dealt with as soon as they emerge and solutions can be found before a student falls too far behind in a class. With younger students, these same lines of communication should be made available to parents so that they can express their concerns and advocate on behalf of their children.

Provide Different Types of Media and Material

Presenting class information using different types of media and material is one way to make sure that all students in a class can process and understand the material. Even students without documented disabilities have various learning styles. It can be helpful to determine how the students in a class learn best.

• Visual or spatial learners learn best with visual and written aids, including images, graphs, handouts, and written directions.
• Auditory learners need to hear the material and directions for an assignment. They can also get a great deal of information from videos.
• Kinesthetic learners are hands-on learners. They learn best by doing and moving.
• Reading/writing learners prefer to read and take notes. They enjoy research and keeping journals.

The more ways a teacher can present a given lesson, the more likely it is that everyone in the class, including the students with disabilities, will benefit. It can also be helpful to provide different ways to complete an assignment and illustrate learning. For example, some students may demonstrate their learning best by writing a paper, while others may appreciate creating a poster or video. Teachers may also wish to incorporate microlearning (learning in short periods of time) in order to help students who have short attention spans.

Accommodations for Online Tests like the TExES Exam

Individuals with documented disabilities or health needs are eligible to have accommodations on online tests such as the TExES Exam (Texas Educator Certification Examination). Accommodations may vary from test to test, but some common accommodations include extra time, use of noise-reducing headphones, and alternative testing sites. It is important to note that students applying for accommodations do need to have had appropriate diagnostic tests (usually within the previous five years) and have documentation listing the specific disability and required accommodations. Applying for accommodations can take additional time and students must be ready to submit all required documentation and fill out required paperwork in addition to registering for the exam and paying the required fees. Students planning to take an online standardized test should check the requirements for that test as soon as possible and allow ample time to apply for an accommodation. If a request for an accommodation is denied, it is possible to appeal that decision.