AccessComputing

Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs) are documents developed by school personnel to help guide interventions for students in special education. Well-written IEPs and IFSPs for students who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH) can be used to effectively guide instruction and track academic progress. Both itinerant and classroom teachers can play important roles in developing these documents.

Since each student's accommodation needs are unique and the student is often most knowledgeable about effective accommodations, be sure to talk with the student about what accommodations they might need.

Some specific accommodations that might be useful to a student with a health impairment in a science lab include the following:

Podcasts will pose a barrier to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing unless the information is made available in an accessible format. For audio-only podcasts, consider posting a transcript on your course website; this document will also be of value to students who are not deaf. Podcasts that include video can be captioned. Be sure to make transcriptions and captions available in a timely manner.

A cochlear implant is a small, complex electronic device that can help to provide a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard-of-hearing. The implant consists of an external portion that sits behind the ear and an internal portion that is surgically placed under the skin. An implant includes the following components:

The training and resource needs of distance learning professionals regarding how to make courses welcoming and accessible to students with disabilities depends on their respective roles. Key stakeholder groups include program administrators, course designers, instructors, and evaluators. Training for these individuals should be tailored to their unique needs and may include content related to access challenges for people with disabilities, legal requirements, accessibility guidelines/standards, design techniques, and resources.

Many students have difficulty seeing the connections between the separate and distinct subjects presented in school. Students at all ability levels often ask, "Well, what does this have to do with that?" They wonder what the purposes of certain lessons or even entire subjects are. When students also struggle with a learning disability, which can make communication and comprehension even more challenging, it is no wonder they often disengage from the classroom.

Video remote interpreting (VRI) is a form of sign language interpreting that allows people who are deaf or hard of hearing to communicate with a hearing person at the same site via videoconferencing instead of live, on-site interpreting. VRI is especially useful when (1) there is a lack of available qualified interpreters, such as at a rural location; and (2) when an interpreter is needed immediately and there is no available interpreter on-site.

The AccessComputing Team is a community of college and graduate students with disabilities who are interested in computing fields, such as computer science and information technology. Team members communicate with support staff and mentors as they engage in electronic mentoring, work-based learning, and other experiences that enhance college and career success in computing fields.

Length of time and setting are two separate issues. If the student's accommodation is extra time only, rather than extra time and alternative location, then the instructor may have the student take the exam within the regular classroom if the classroom is available for the extended period approved. If the classroom is not available for the extended time or if there are test proctoring issues during the extra time period, the student who needs extra time may need to take the exam at a location that is different than that of other students.

According to the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation (NSF), the data available on people with disabilities in science and engineering is seriously limited for the following reasons.