Agree James-- communication is primary and keeping all faculty on the same page. Brainstorming is a result of informing each other and we can adjust accomodations to meet the right measure. I love the concept of "access" and "success". For me, that was a valuable thought and it has helped me understand the idea of accomodations and the true meaning why they were ever suggested. It dismissed the idea that having them somehow made the dynamic in the classroom unfair. I learned a lot from that simple line. :)
KELLY,
"Access versus success" has been my mantra for years, Kelly. It does help to put things in perspective for folks. But I think embracing the thought also has the unexpected benefit of embracing the idea that people with disabilities are fully functioning, competent individuals. They are not looking for an added boost -- they are looking for an equal chance. They'll take it from there. I think it shows great respect for their inherent abilities.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
When it comes to liability I believe more woud be willing to learn rather than dismiss this knowledge out ot hand.
Richard,
If you are suggesting that faculty would rather know if there is a problem than to find out about it after a complaint is filed, I'd like to believe that is true. My concern, however, would be that faculty in most areas are likely to dismiss that concern until there IS a legal challenge. "We have always done it this way, and it is no one's business but our own" is a powerful sentiment to override with cautions about the possibility of challenge.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
I agree. I think it is easy to see ourselves in the situation and think how hard it would be for us, but forget that the student may have had to deal with a similar situation and found a different way to do it.
Ann Marie ,
Exactly! For us, the idea of trying to manage an old task in a new or different way (because of disability) seems overwhelming and, potentially, unlikely. But for students with disabilities, working around their disability is a way of life. That's where they get to teach US a thing or two. GRIN
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Yes, allowed to try and maybe the field the students will eventually work in will have specifics job requirements that will fit a disabled worker.
Dave,
I would say that much of the focus of the ADA and accommodations is to allow the individual with a disability to fit the job requirements of a WORKER in the field. Our goal is to make "disability" a neutral element -- that is, something that neither adds to nor detracts from the individual's performance of the required task. Obviously, that can't always happen. But that is what we hope for.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
This is difficult for many of uas to do, as we look at a situation through our own eyes and our own perception of a disability, which does not allow us to see the possibility's, but only the difficulty's ahead.
I think that it is really important to let students know what the techinical skills will be in order to get a job. They need to know what they will be faced with and then it is up to them to make the decsion.
John,
The trick is to get comfortable with seeing students with disabilities as CAPABLE, rather than DISABLED. Emphasis on abilities helps to remind us of the options available, rather than just the limitations.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Chrissy,
Agreed. The problem is that technical skills are not always clearly thought out or stated. Part of our job may be to help the student understand what must be done, how it is TRADITIONALLY accomplished, and then help them discern how they might accomplish the same thing through different means.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
At my school we are in the process of completing a full curriculum re-vamp. I am fortunate to have a Regulatory Affairs person who starts with the requirements (both technical and physical), and evaluates the curriculum from that perspective. That way, when we need to determine if a proposed accommodation will "fundamentally alter" the program, we will have a set of very specific tasks and skills, for each individual course. I like that she focuses on the task/skill, rather than the method of teaching/implementation. After reading some of the materials in this course, I see where her ADA training and experience have come into play. I can now better appreciate where she is "coming from" when she pushes back......
Nicholas,
Sounds like you have a very savvy Regulatory Affairs person, Nicholas. Developing technical standards that focus on WHAT must be done, rather than HOW it must be done, is what it is all about. Give her my congratulations!
Dr. Jane Jarrow
She was certainly a rare find, and we are glad to have her.
With the every changing and more regulations especially when it comes to actually placing the students in the field, the school is sometimes definately put between that rock and a hard place. By having a committe that has someone with expierence and looks at things from all angles of ensuring both the sucess of the student and the outcomes that are demanded to meet the technical standards helps the academic department make decsions and stick behind them even if they are challenged. Knowing and sharing the specifics of the requirements and any limitations that are discovered with this team at the moment of discovery is critical so there is foundation and documentation when there is a challenge.
The key in my experience has always been to educate the educators on these topics, once you have there buy in and understanding, they will do fine .
Lisa ,
I think I would agree with you here, so long as you are telling me that such a committee meets and assesses the potential for ALL students, and not just students with disabilities or other students whom they think cannot meet the challenge for some reason. So long as all students undergo the same scrutiny, I'm all for it. But if the committee is only called together to discuss how to defend a decision to exclude someone, I'm not so enthusiastic.
Dr. Jane Jarrow
Daryl,
And that's what courses like this are all about! (GRIN)
Dr. Jane Jarrow
I like the idea of focusing on what needs to be done versus how it gets done. We live in a day of innovation and new procedures are developed for a variety of tasks whether they be for the disabled or the able bodied. I agree with the honesty principle, we have discussed before how ahead of the game education is and behind the game industry is. Industry wants efficient, cost effective production. Education wants the same end product but is willing to take longer to get there. A student may earn the training and education needed for a job, but will jobs be made available espcially in cases when the economy is tough and there are plenty of able bodied workers to hire.
