Teaching Students with Disabilities

Written by Sasha Blakeley

Creating Effective Student Accommodation in the Classroom

Teachers are responsible for creating inclusive classrooms and learning policies that meet the needs of all kinds of students, including students with disabilities, so that everyone can participate fully in the classroom environment. Student accommodation efforts can vary greatly depending on which disabilities a given student has, what resources are available in the classroom, and more. Teachers will need to be prepared to work with students with a wide range of disabilities, including but not limited to:

• Learning disabilities
• Physical disabilities
• Developmental disabilities

Students with disabilities are legally entitled to school accommodations under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and many students with disabilities will have individual education plans (IEPs) that explain the accommodations that they require in schools. These are living documents that are usually created in collaboration with teachers.

When it comes to providing students with the best possible support, teachers should keep a few things in mind. For instance, a student may have multiple disabilities, each of which will require accommodations, or a student might have invisible disabilities that significantly impact their learning experience. In certain cases, students might receive a diagnosis or become disabled part of the way through a school year, necessitating new accommodations. Further, it's possible a student might not have an official diagnosis but could still benefit from specific inclusive classroom policies. Knowing one's students is a good way to better understand and meet their needs. Here, we'll take a look at a range of tangible strategies for teaching students with disabilities.

Understand How Disabilities Can Impact Student Learning

Teaching students with disabilities requires educators to learn as much as they can about how various disabilities can impact their students' learning. The following sections address learning disabilities, physical disabilities, and developmental disabilities, but these categories are not absolutes. Disabilities can fall into two or more of these categories, and some might not fit well into any of them. A student might have several kinds of disabilities from the same or different categories.

Learning Disabilities

Learning disabilities are specific disabilities that impact a student's ability to learn certain kinds of information or skills. These disabilities naturally get a lot of attention in pedagogical theory, as they have a direct impact on how students function in the classroom. Common learning disabilities include:

1. Dyslexia, which is a learning disability that makes reading and writing particularly challenging.
2. Dysgraphia, which is a set of learning disabilities that impact students' writing abilities and fine motor skills.
3. Dyscalculia, which is a disability that impacts mathematical and numeracy learning.

Additionally, students might be diagnosed with other learning disabilities that impact their communication skills, social skills, or coordination. Students with learning disabilities may need more time or extra assistance to complete certain tasks. They may benefit from differentiated instruction that meets their needs, specialized tutoring, and regular check-ins about their progress.

Physical Disabilities

Physical disabilities impact students' mobility, often making it more difficult for them to stand, walk, or move. There are many kinds of physical disabilities, including but by no means limited to:

• Motor control disabilities where students have difficulty making precise movements
• Paralysis where students cannot move some body parts or have a limited range of motion
• Amputations, missing limbs, or physical deformities that limit mobility
• Dwarfism and other disabilities that cause short stature, muscular atrophy, and mobility issues
• Chronic illnesses and other health issues that cause weakness, pain, or low energy, like cancer or connective tissue disorders

Physical disabilities may be visible or invisible. They may also be inconsistent from day to day; a student might use a wheelchair some of the time but not always, for instance. Many disabilities are permanent, while others are temporary: a student with a broken leg, for example, may need accommodations until they recover.

Developmental Disabilities

Developmental disabilities can include neurological, cognitive, or chromosomal disabilities that impact students in widely differing ways. These disabilities may impact students' learning, their ability to form strong social connections, their behavior, and more. Examples include:

• Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which can impact students' focus and executive function
• Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which can have academic, social, and behavioral impacts
• Behavioral issues that could make it harder for students to participate in a regular class environment
• Chromosomal differences like Down syndrome, which impact students' physical, social, and academic needs

This list is incomplete, but it does provide a sample of some of the disabilities that teachers should be aware of. A good first step for all current and aspiring teachers hoping to better support students is to learn more about various types of disability and how they can impact students in a school environment.

Supporting and Teaching Students with Disabilities in the Classroom

Strategies for teaching students with disabilities always begin by looking at students' support needs and the different areas where they may need support in the classroom. All students' needs are different. Two students who have the same disability might have significant variations in their needs, so it is always essential for teachers to approach each student as an individual.

Another major site of variation will be the student disability services that each school offers or has access to. While the law requires all students with disabilities to receive accommodations in schools, how comprehensive those accommodations will be and how they are integrated into the classroom setting will depend on factors like funding, available research on a given disability, and more.

Teachers can do a lot to advocate for their students to meet their needs. By creating an inclusive classroom for students with disabilities, implementing inclusive teaching design strategies, potentially working with a special education teacher, making online accommodations and using assistive technologies, teachers can help all students reach their full potential. Below are a few ways of making classrooms more accessible for students with disabilities.

Create a Safe and Inclusive Classroom Environment

One of the best ways to support students with disabilities is to focus on making the classroom as safe and inclusive as possible. An inclusive classroom environment is one where all students feel welcome and feel able to be themselves as they learn. Teachers can begin by fostering trust with their students and encouraging a classroom culture of mutual respect. They can make it clear that everyone is different, and everyone learns in their invidious way.

Inclusive Classroom Space

Making the physical classroom as inclusive as possible means looking at the environment and making careful changes. If any students have physical disabilities, they will need to be learning in a classroom that has enough space for a wheelchair to pass unobstructed, a floor free of clutter, and potentially modified furniture, a ramp, or tactile navigational markers for students who are blind. Teachers might choose to set up a corner of the classroom as a cool-down zone where students can take a break if they are feeling overstimulated, as sometimes happens to students who are on the autism spectrum or who have behavioral disabilities.

Typically, disability accommodations are more easily accessible for students who have a formal medical diagnosis, but teachers should be aware that many forms of accommodation may be helpful for students who lack these diagnoses, too. For instance, a clutter-free classroom with wide walking paths might be essential for students with physical disabilities, but it could also be a major benefit to a student who has no formal disability but who is nonetheless clumsy and likely to trip and fall.

Inclusive Communication

Teachers should be aware that not all students (or parents) will feel comfortable disclosing their disability status immediately. When possible, teachers should aim to provide ways for students and parents to confidentially discuss or disclose disabilities, including during parent-teacher conferences or using individual education plans. They should foster open communication so that students know that they can discuss potential changes to their learning or new accommodations with teachers at any time.

Implement Inclusive Teaching Design

Classroom instruction has the potential to be very inclusive or very inaccessible. Teachers should aim to allow for flexible learning methods, potentially by presenting information in several ways so that students have a better chance of understanding what they are learning. Differentiated instruction, or the process of providing the same lesson at varying levels of complexity, can help all students stay on the same page as they learn.

To help students participate fully in class, teachers should aim to provide clear expectations surrounding coursework, grading, and assignment due dates, potentially adjusting all these things as needed for individual students. These strategies can help students with disabilities complete their work in ways that work best for them while still meeting learning outcomes.

These teaching strategies all fall under the umbrella of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which is a relatively new pedagogical theory that states whenever possible teachers should not single out students with disabilities. Learning should ideally be flexible for all students so that everyone, including students with disabilities, has options for how to approach their assignments. What teachers should aim to avoid is having a rigid mainstream curriculum that most students follow and separate assignments that only students with disabilities complete. A big part of disability advocacy is about fully integrating students with disabilities into the classroom as much as possible rather than singling them out or othering them.

Work with a Special Education Teacher

A special education teacher is a professional who specializes in working with students with disabilities. Schools may have programs for special education that establish an entire class of students with disabilities separate from mainstream classes or will have special education teachers work alongside regular teachers in a classroom. Schools might also require all teachers to have a grounding in teaching special education so that they can meet students' needs within a mainstream classroom.

Special education teachers are often uniquely well-prepared to meet the needs of students with disabilities. Teachers should ensure that they are in regular communication with any special education teachers at their school to ensure students are thriving in the classroom. That might mean having meetings to discuss an individual student's IEP, finding ways to teach one class together, or looking over students' assignments together to strategize about potential room for improvement.

When possible, students with disabilities should spend most or all of their time in a mainstream classroom instead of being isolated from their peers. Regular and special education teachers can push for more inclusive and integrated environments by speaking to administrators, reading up on relevant school policy, and working together.

Interested in becoming a special education teacher? TExEStest.org has practice tests and study guides to help you prepare for the TExES Test!

Use Assistive Technology for Students With Disabilities

Assistive technology is any tool that can help a student with disabilities function better in a school environment. There are many types of assistive technology for students with disabilities that range from simple, low-tech solutions to expensive equipment. An IEP will usually outline the kinds of assistive technologies that students need.

Examples of these technologies and their use in the classroom include:

Supporting Students with Disabilities at Home

A student's need for disability support does not end the moment they leave the classroom, and when student support is continuous, students with disabilities may find it easier to transition between home and school environments. Having good support at home can help students get a well-rounded education without gaps or confusion. By communicating clearly with parents and focusing on how to make at-home study plans, teachers can do their part to extend support for students with disabilities beyond school hours.

Communicating with Parents

Strong communication is the first and most important step in supporting students with disabilities. That means that teachers should be in ongoing communication with students, special education teachers, school administrators, and parents. This communication can happen face-to-face, over email, through phone calls, and more. Regular check-ins, orientations at the beginning of each semester, and other ongoing dialogues can all be useful.

Teachers and parents can keep in touch about a particular student's needs, progress, and happiness in the classroom. It is important to keep parents feeling involved in their child's education. When parents have a clear understanding of how they can help, they may be better able to work with their children to achieve their learning goals.

Helping Parents Create At-Home Study Plans

A student's learning does not only take place in the classroom. Teachers use homework, assignments, and projects to help students reinforce their learning. For students with disabilities, at-home study plans can be a very useful form of educational support.

Teachers and parents may need to work together, often making use of a student's IEP, to develop a study plan for at-home use. These study plans might include adapted homework assignments or ongoing extra work on areas where students have difficulties. For instance, a student with dyslexia might need to spend extra time on specialized reading review that parents can help facilitate. Teachers should communicate clearly with parents about students' needs, the specific goals of at-home study, and the best way for parents to provide support.

Creating Inclusive Extra-Curricular Environments

Extra-curricular activities are an important part of many students' lives. Unfortunately, not all extra-curriculars are accessible for students with disabilities. One way that teachers can go above and beyond to support their students is to focus on their school's extra-curricular offerings. Most of these programs are run by teachers before or after school, during lunch, or when there is free time.

Teachers may have the opportunity to either start a new club or program or adjust a program they already run to be more accessible. That might mean ensuring that the club meets in a wheelchair-accessible room, providing alternative activities so that all students can take part, or fostering an inclusive and respectful environment in the club. Extra-curriculars can be a great way for students with disabilities to make new social connections, integrate into the school environment, and pursue areas of interest.