What can teachers really do in an online environment to empower students with disabilities?
Hello All
I am not sure how students with disabilities (SWD) can be support in an online environment. Particularly when, for example they need extra time, the online environment already provides for a self-governed schedule. It is possible, however, for the fast pace of many online courses, to be a point of anxiety or challenge for SWD. How can an online teacher stay sane in accomplishing their duties will supporting SWD?
Best,
Michael J. Foster
Well, it is a challenge for both the instructor and the student. It requires a huge level of patince on the instrucotr's behalf; and a huge level of effort on the student. One of my dilemma is getting students to inform me or even the university of their disability. Many times I am totally unaware of a student with disabilities so, I will usually make a point of letting the class know from day one, that if anyone has a disability, that they need to go through the proper protocol of notifying the university and to let me know as well. I have had situations whereby the student was struggling and I could tell, yet they never acknowledged any type of disability, and I didn't want to make them feel uncomfortable about it, so I just took extra time with them after class, to help them one-on-one. I do believe that students are embarrassed about informing anyone that they have a disability, so in that poses more challenges for them.
One thing to keep in mind about disabilities is that you cannot ask a student if he/she has a disability. If a student does self-disclose, it is important that you contact the appropriate administrator at your institution to take the necessary steps.
Great question Michael. To be honest with you, I think it really depends on the disability. I have had students in which they can't have timed tests, so remove the time requirement for that particular student. Other disabilities might not be as effective. Is there a specific disability that you are concerned with accommodating?
I think its important to really understand and look for creative ways that may actually help the student to overcome their disabilities. It's going to take time on our part as an online instructor to really work with the student. I think its important that the student is willing to learn as well, if we have student who is just their because they really don't want to be then its going to be hard to really help this student. I had a student once who was legally blind and they had a true desire to learn which helped me to accommadate them in a way to help them learn the material.
As an online instructor, I find that I have at least 1 student in each class that I teach that requires additional support. Some students have learning disabilities that have not been addressed prior to entering college, others just learn at a different pace than the rest of the class. Teaching a diversity of students is where you seperate the superior and average instructors. I take pride in teaching students with varied learning styles, because by the end of the session, when that students is sucessful in my class, than the extra time that I spent with them has paid off. Many instructors do not have a passion to teach, and that is where the loss of sanity and overwhelming feel comes into play. If an instructor has to get off of their regular pace of teaching than they get stressed out. I am the total opposite. I welcome a challenge, because at the end of the day, if I can change one persons life in my class, then I have done my job.
