Students from Special Populations - Session #1 Flashcards
Title Slide
Welcome everyone!
I’m thrilled to see each of you here to embark on this latest tutor certification training class!
We are very excited to offer this newly updated version of this course!
Introductions
We are going to launch into the training agenda for today’s session in a moment, but first, let’s have a round of re-introductions to one another, to establish our usual casual and comfortable discussion environment.
For your intro, please just give your name and your preferred pronouns if you so choose, the subject you are tutoring this semester and one thing you hope to gain from this training course…I’ll start…
Training Focus
Fantastic! It’s great to have you here! This broader class will focus on serving students who come with certain protected identities and/or certain common accessibility needs.
Course Overview
This session will focus specifically on how we can better work with students who come in with accessibility needs, and next session, two weeks from today, will focus on a deep dive into diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in tutoring, a much deeper dive than we had in the DEI module from New Tutor Orientation Training.
Syllabus and Assignment Breakdown
Just like with the Theoretical Foundations training class that I know you have all taken, we will start with a break down of course requirements to complete certification.
Please turn to the logistical class documents (first three) in the handout packet…
…Are there any lingering questions about the various expectations for completing this course?
Discussion Guidelines
We are going to review the agenda in a moment, but first I want to frame our discussion in a way that will ensure that we are comfortable as we converse about some potentially sensitive topics today…
Critical Guidelines for building that conversational foundation include…
1) recognize that I am not an accessibility expert.
I am learning and growing with everyone else on these topics, but it is important to note that all this material was informed by our wonderful accessibility services staff - so there has been consistent guidance by true experts in the material.
2) Be aware that certain topics related to disabilities and mental health conditions will be covered
(Rather obviously)
3) Of course, these can be very sensitive topics…
As the tutor trainer for the course, I will do my best to treat them delicately and respectfully and with care
Feel free to share your experiences with disability and/or mental health (but only if comfortable) in this space
No one is under any obligation to share their lived experiences of these topics but to the extent that you are willing to make yourself vulnerable in discussing them, please feel free to do so…and we will all hold ourselves to a high standard of respect and confidentiality for each other in this space
Try to use person-first language when referring to someone who has a disability
What is person-first language?
Right! It is language that acknowledges the person before the disability they have…as with “Person who is deaf” as opposed to “deaf person”. This is a good practice in conversations about disability across all walks of life, because person-first language helps combat the connotation that people with disabilities are defined primarily by those disabilities. It recognizes that they are humans first and foremost!
I will ask that you do not use any of the following outmoded, offensive and othering terms when referring to those with disabilities…
And yes, that does include words like “handicapped” and “able-bodied” as both of these phrases imply that a disability is fundamentally a deficit to be somehow corrected or overcome.
Important Note: If anyone in this discussion says anything that seems insensitive or hurtful, feel free to speak up and calmly explain the offense…
We want to improve in these areas together, and so if I or anyone else unintentionally offend, we will simply apologize, correct ourselves and allow the discussion to flow forward harmoniously.
If, at any point, you become uncomfortable with the discussion, feel free to step out for a moment…
Sometimes, these topics can be triggering and we just need to step away and recalibrate or breathe. And that’s okay. You are more than welcome to step outside and decompress if necessary and rejoin us when you are ready to do so.
Finally, as I mentioned before, we are going to prioritize confidentiality in this discussion…
As David likes to say, what is said here stays here…only what is learned here leaves this space.
Session Agenda
Alright, let’s review our agenda items together for this session…we do have a lot to cover! [read each item in turn]
Slide - Some Basic Definitions in the Accessibility Field
Voltaire famously said “If you would discuss with me, you must first define your terms…” So we are going to start by following that advice.
As we work our way through these definitions together, please note that they and other important basic terms are given on the “Basic Definitions in Accessibility Reference Handout” - not an assignment for the course but a useful reference guide for you.
But with out turning to those definitions or looking at that handout just yet, let’s see how many of these first basic definitions we can come up with together…
[Review all basic definitions, asking for rough working definitions in the discussion space one at a time]
Universal Design vs. Reasonable Accommodations Debate
I do want to highlight these two definitions together, as they form the basis of a very contentious debate in the field of accessibility today.
The argument centers on whether accessibility departments should put their resources into the wholesale redesign of systems and spaces to comply with principles of universal design, or whether those resources should be spent on providing more staff and technology to provide more robust reasonable accommodations in spaces not already designed universally.
This debate will pop up more than once today, as it has been particularly impactful in accessibility in higher education.
Again, there will be other key definitions for us today, that are included on the handout, but…
…we will be introducing those as move through later modules.
Slide- Why does accessibility matter for us as tutors?
So why should we, as tutors, prioritize accessibility for students we work with? Isn’t that the job of the accessibility services department?
Well, unsurprisingly, making educational spaces accessible requires a lot of effort from across the full gamut of professionals in a college…and we as tutors have our role to play as well…
And there are many reasons for us to care for student’s experiences in this area, not the least of which is that…it is a departmental commitment that we have in the Learning Commons.
Let me direct your attention to this excerpt from our tutoring department mission statement: [read excerpt]
But beyond this department mandate/commitment as a formal decree, why should tutors strive to assist students with accessibility in particular? [allow responses]
Right! Those are all great reasons to care about this issue. Others include…
Helps to make up for a lack of universal design on college campuses…
As mentioned in our definitions portion, universal design is, sadly, not common, even in historically more socially progressive spaces like universities/colleges…
Best tutoring practice…
When we make spaces accessible for students, we maximize their comfort and learning, which, in turn, makes it easier for us to do our job of facilitating their insights and promoting more independent learning with our students…
Enhances ease of resource use in our department, benefitting EVERYONE
What are some examples of accommodations we might make for accessibility in tutoring that would serve to ease the experience for all, regardless of ability or disability status?
Right! When we install adjustable table-tops, we allow for a wide variety of positions at which students can work with technology. And when we write clearly and legibly, we make our messages easier for most everyone to see -regardless of their personal level of vision.
Contributes to RRCC commitment to equity/inclusion for those who identify as disabled…
For many persons with disabilities, having the disability is a core part of their identity, and where that is true, we are improving our practice of inclusion by facilitating how easily they can inhabit that identity.
We will, of course, have far more on inclusion topics in session #2 for this course.
RRCC, as an institution, must comply with laws that require accessibility accommodations…
So not only do we have an institutional commitment to accessibility as a principle, we are legally liable if we fail to abide by federal law in this regard.
And we will learn much today about federal laws that require our accessibility compliance.
Finally, working to make our services more accessible for all, regardless of ability, is an ethical responsibility for us…
…it simply makes us more compassionate, and justice-minded educators - I believe that’s a thing to be desired in itself and for no external reason!
Slide - Ableism and Disability Stigma in U.S. History
Now that we have key definitions and motivation for our discussion today, let’s establish some critical background.
Let’s dive into the topic of accessibility issues in U.S. history, their treatment by society and the law, and the extension of those phenomena into the sphere of higher education.
Importantly, the history of how persons with disabilities have been treated/accommodated in U.S. society is very checkered…
we need to acknowledge that if we are to understand the origins of accessibility accommodations as a practice…
- Of course, much of that history has been mired in: Ableism [read definition]
- Examples of ableist policies and attitudes go back centuries
very few accommodations for those with physical disabilities –
if they couldn’t work in factories or on farms, many would be doomed to poverty;
additionally, those who could find gainful work were forced to do so as objects of ridicule/entertainment in sideshows, like Charles Stratton here, who was known as “General Tom Thumb” in P.T. Barnum’s circus
- Those with intellectual disabilities didn’t fair much better.
- Those with intellectual disabilities didn’t fair much better. They were written off as “feeble-minded” and many were forced into asylums, despite not having any mental illness…
- Of course, those with mental health conditions (or those perceived to have such conditions) were similarly confined;
But these institutions, while well-meaning (with a philanthropic beginning), were underfunded, overcrowded and unregulated, all by the year 1900…
We have an example on the right of a photo from inside of Pennhurst Asylum, which was literally known as the “Pennsylvania State “School” for the Feeble-minded and Epileptic”, and exemplified some of the worst treatment of residents of these institutions on offer…
- And the Federal Government did not have clean hands on disability issues either:
the U.S. Supreme Court even ruled that the forced sterilization of those with intellectual disabilities was constitutional in “Buck v. Bell” ruling of 1927
over 6000 were sterilized in Virginia and California as a result… Shockingly, this ruling still technically stands…though no states enact such policies in the present day…”
- Slide - Struggle for Awareness, Rights and Accommodations
So needless to say, the progress of U.S. society toward a more enlightened treatment of people with disabilities has been slow…
Government pensions were granted for wounded veterans of the American Revolution…
This was in fact the earliest law passed expressly for the benefit of those with physical disabilities, under a series of so-called “Pension Acts” of the 1790s
- The early 19th century saw the rise of schools for those are deaf and…
…the invention of braille, by Louis Braille, which modified an earlier form of tactile writing called “night writing”, quickly became the major communication form for people with low-vision/blindness
- Eventually, the world wars produced large masses of physically disabled veterans…
…at the same time, rises in cases of physically debilitating diseases like polio and rubella prompted heightened awareness of physical disability needs…
polio famously paralyzes the extremities of the body and rubella can ravage the brain and create lasting mental impairments
- However, it wasn’t until 1973 that we got our first Federal law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability…
…as the Rehabilitation Act guaranteed equal employment opportunity in any organizations/agencies that were federally established or funded
- Finally, in 1990, we saw the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act
– the first comprehensive mandate of equal treatment of people with disabilities across most sectors of American society…”
And of course, the U.S. government didn’t wake up one morning in 1990 and suddenly decide to make this a legislative priority…it took decades of activism (as the photos on the right here show) to push the needs of Americans with disabilities into the public consciousness.
Slide- Video: What is the ADA?
Naturally, the ADA didn’t immediately compensate for all the disadvantage, ableism and lack of accommodation in U.S. History, but it was a monumental move in the right direction…
- In fact, it is so significant in its implications for U.S. society and law, that we are going to do a video exercise focused solely on that act right now…
- As the video plays, go ahead and fill in the ADA video worksheet…Once the video is done, we’ll come back together and discuss the follow-up questions…” [play video]
- “Okay, great! So what are the three definitions of disability that the ADA establishes? Examples? [allow responses]
Right!
The 1st definition is what we are mostly likely to think of with someone who has a disability - Example: Someone has hardness-of-hearing or is Deaf.
An example of the 2nd definition would be: Someone who in remission for cancer perhaps
And an example of the 3rd definition might be someone with burn scars that prejudice people against them because of how they look, even though they have no lingering impairment.
Why does the definition need to be so broad though?
As the video mentioned, disabilities are highly variable, and even the same disability can manifest in a variety of ways.
Additionally, more people than just those who have impairments are impacted by ableism, stigma and ability-based disadvantage.
Finally, many disabilities are not visible, but still must be accommodated in a truly egalitarian society….more on this group of disabilities later
Slide- The ADA in Higher Education: Theory vs. Practice
As mentioned before, the ADA was far from a comprehensive fix for gaps in access for U.S. residents with Disabilities
and as with so many other facets of American life, higher education institutions still play host to significant barriers to accessibility
- These barriers are of three general types.
There are programmatic barriers – relating to academic programs and coursework. Can you all think of some examples? - Example: An instructor requires equal performance despite unequal starting ability
There are structural barriers- relating to the design of systems and spaces. Examples? Example: Accessibility services offices are difficult to find/navigate or language of accommodations request documents is complex and difficult to understand
Finally, there are social barriers - related to social and cultural factors. An example might be stigma and a lack of the feeling of belonging and inclusion in the student community.
