June 2008 — News
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Addressing the Needs of Students with Disabilities in Math (Part 1)
Accommodations
The intent of an accommodation is to ensure best ways that students can demonstrate what they know unimpeded by any disability. What is altered is the way an activity is presented, not the content nor grading of the activity or assessment itself (National Center for Learning Disabilities [NCLD], 2005, sec: Grades K-8, Accommodations: http://www.ncld.org/content/view/306/377/). To fully include students with disabilities in any classroom, teachers should not presume to know the accommodations learners might need related to a particular disability or assignment.
An individual education plan would indicate accommodations for students who have already been diagnosed with a disability. Often the student can relay a particular need. Some disabilities don't come to light until teachers have worked with students for a period of time and observed certain behaviors. What would trigger them to recommend a professional diagnosis for a learner who struggles and can't seem to do math?
Rochelle Kenyon (2000) points out that a learning disability manifests itself "by significant difficulties in acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, or mathematical abilities, or of social skills" (sec: Definition). Students with a potential math disability might not be able to recall basic number facts, easily forget rules, procedures, formulas, or what they are doing when solving problems. When computing, they might be unable to copy problems correctly, write numbers or letters backwards, misread operation signs in a problem, or have difficulty keeping score in a game. Connecting abstract or conceptual representations with concrete representations or reality challenges them (e.g., time and direction). Students might also struggle with comprehending visual-spatial and perceptual aspects of math. They might lack organization skills, or become overwhelmed and unable to continue solving problems when too many are presented at one time on a page.
Online resources help to identify particular accommodations and teaching strategies. For example, the DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) team at the University of Washington developed a Student Activities Profile form for math and science. DO-IT promotes the use of computer and networking technologies in education and employment for individuals with disabilities.
DO-IT also has a number of videos. The Winning Equation: Access + Attitude = Success in Math and Science illustrates strategies for fully including students with disabilities in science and math activities. Learners with mobility problems will benefit from note takers, copies of lecture outlines, and test taking alternatives like dictating to a scribe, using a computer for interactions, or extra time on tests.
