A variety of accommodations are possible in educational settings. Accommodations should provide students with disabilities an equal opportunity to learn and demonstrate their acquired knowledge.
Accommodations
Accommodations in Education and in the Workplace can help to bring out the very best of your abilities.
Accommodations in Education
Accommodations can support students with disabilities during tests and in the classroom. They will vary from student to student depending on the nature of the Disability. Some examples of accommodations for students with Learning Disabilities are as follows:
- extended time for tests
- distraction reduced room for tests or assistance in reducing noise in the test environment
- access to assistive technology to support reading and writing (e.g., computers with text-to-speech software and/or voice recognition, portable note-taking devices, organizational software, spell checkers, etc.)
- limit on the number of tests to be written in one day
- tests at alternate times of day
- assistance arranging for a reduced course load
- permission to use a digital recorder in class
- preferential seating
- note takers
Related Links:
Postsecondary planning and transition:
https://www.ldatschool.ca/post-secondary-transition-planning/
Guidelines for accessible education – roles and responsibilities
Guidelines for Recommendation of Memory Aids (Assessment & Resource Centres of Ontario, 2020)
https://www.noarc-cerno.ca/resources/accommodations/memory-aids/
Workplace Accommodations
Accommodations in the Workplace can help you be successful, but there can be challenges. Here is some information on how to make them work for you.
You can help make the transition from school to work go smoothly by choosing a job that is a good match for you. To do this you will need to:
- Know your strengths, skills, and talents and apply for positions that will make use of them
- Request a copy of the “role description” for any jobs you are applying for so you can have a better idea of what the job requires
Reasonable accommodations are changes made to the job duties or environment that help to ensure equal opportunity and enable a qualified person with a disability to apply for, or perform the job.
- accessing assistive technology computers and specialized software
- having additional time to learn new job tasks or to complete more complex tasks
- provision of partitions to lessen distractions in the work area
- exchanging marginal or problematic job duties with another employee
- receiving material in alternate formats, such as written instructions or instructions on tape
- Competency statements focusing on the individual’s strengths and weakness can be developed in consultation with a vocational or learning disability counselor
- If needed, a job coach from the Ontario Disability Support Program/Employment Supports can act as a liaison between the individual and the employer to set up accommodations.
- Generally speaking, one should disclose when and if an accommodation is needed. Disclosure is an individual choice. Your employer need not ever know you have a disability unless you need an accommodation.
- It is advisable to disclose the need for accommodations before job performance suffers and the employer/employee relationship has been strained.
- Be prepared. Know what you are going to say ahead of time. Be ready to be a successful self-advocate.
- Explain your disability in simple language without using jargon.
- Know your strengths and be able to describe them to your employer.
- Discuss the strategies you have developed that will help you perform your job and be willing to talk with your employer about workplace accommodations that can help you.
- Job coaching services can be accessed through the Ontario Disability Support Program – Employment Supports (ODSP).
http://www.ldao.ca/introduction-to-ldsadhd/ldsadhs-in-depth/articles/about-lds/disclosure-in-the-workplace/
(Points to consider before, Disclosure in the Workplace)
http://www.ldao.ca/introduction-to-ldsadhd/ldsadhs-in-depth/articles/about-employment/disclosure-of-lds-for-employees/ (Should I Tell My Boss? Disclosure of LDs for Employees)
http://www.ldao.ca/introduction-to-ldsadhd/ldsadhs-in-depth/articles/about-lds/possibilities-and-pitfalls-employment-and-learning-disabilities/ (Possibilities and Pitfalls: Employment and Learning Disabilities)
