Inclusion is an important topic of discussion within special education. Within inclusion settings, all students are placed in the same room to learn alongside each other, as opposed to removing students with disabilities to a separate space.
In recent years, the amount of time that students with disabilities spend in general education classrooms has shown an increase, signaling that inclusive practices are being adopted.
While students with disabilities may be spending more time collaborating with their peers, there is still a long way to go in terms of inclusion in schools. Here are some tips for classroom inclusivity and accessibility.
Neurodiverse classes
Neurodiversity is a fairly new term, but one that we’re coming to hear more about in recent times. As an overarching term, neurodiversity is usually used to imply a number of conditions where people experience the world and learn in different ways.
Neurodiverse conditions include dyslexia, autism and ADD. For learners with dyslexia, offering alternatives to printed text can help them read the information they need to learn. The Dyslexia Association in the UK recommends audio books as a reading tool for people with dyslexia. While anecdotally, combinations of different color backgrounds, dyslexia-friendly fonts and increases in letter or line spacing are often found to be helpful to improve reading comfort.
An inclusive classroom contains a variety of students and accommodates all types of learning.
Know Your Students
Get to know your students. Invest time to focus on getting to know your students. Provide opportunities for students to share their own experiences and perspectives. Students learn from each other and the various perspectives and existing knowledge their fellow students bring to the table. Activities such as a fishbowl activity or reverse circle discussion activity can encourage and direct these challenging conversations.
Students not only come from diverse backgrounds, ethnicities, race, and gender, but students also bring different talents and styles of learning. All students should have the opportunity to learn in a way that works for them, and they should be able to showcase their talents.
Assistive Technology
In many cases, companies are developing accessibility features to be built into devices to promote access for all. For example, iSandbox has multiple forms of their products for a wide range of access for people with disabilities and learning needs.
Although accessibility tools and assistive technology have made their way into all modern devices, studies show that a stigma still exists surrounding these features. One of the easiest ways to use technology to make classrooms more inclusive is to promote it as a tool for everyone. Instead of singling out specific students to use some of the accessibility features built into their laptop, tablet, or mobile device, offer as an option for every student. Teachers could introduce the tool to the class, explain how to use it, and have everyone practice. Then, all students can decide on their own if the tool will be something that might support them.
Model and encourage technology use
Just as it is important to model skills to teach students, the same philosophy can be applied to accessibility features. Simply offering a tool and walking away will not encourage frequent use. Students need to see the tool used to understand how to use it effectively and help them see how it can be used to support all different kinds of learners.
One recommendation would be for the teacher to model using the tool for the class. By integrating some of the accessibility features into instructional practices, students can see how the tool is beneficial and observe situations where it is used appropriately. For example, a teacher could use speech-to-text to model writing an answer for an assignment or use an on-screen keyboard when demonstrating work.
If any student is struggling within the classroom, the teacher should encourage the use of the accessibility features. Making a light suggestion to students to utilize the support systems at their fingertips is a great way to create an inclusive environment, especially if the teacher is making the recommendation to all students in the class and not just the children with disabilities.
What do you do in your classrooms to enhance inclusivity and accessibility?
Resources:
https://citl.indiana.edu/teaching-resources/diversity-inclusion/accessible-classrooms/index.html
https://blog.yourdolphin.com/blog/accessibility-for-inclusive-classrooms
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