Students with disabilities' ability to succeed in school can depend on whether they have effective accommodations as part of their education. Students who have a qualifying disability under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act have a right to accommodations, and schools must provide them.
Accommodations acknowledge that a student learns differently than the general education curriculum or requires additional support. Requiring accommodations doesn't mean a student can't succeed in school, participate in honors classes, or be involved in extracurricular activities.
Federal law gives all students the right to a free public education. For students with disabilities, this right extends to requiring that public schools provide them with access to the accommodations they need. Accommodations are not a bonus or a luxury. For students with disabilities, they're crucial and often required to benefit from their education.
Students with disabilities deserve the right to participate and benefit fully from their education. The Education Law Team at the Lento Law Firm assists families nationwide in finding collaborative solutions. Tell us more about your situation at 888-535-3686 or with this form.
IDEA and Accommodations
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a federal law that provides rights and protection for K-12 students with qualifying disabilities. To qualify for support under IDEA, a child must have a qualifying disability that affects their ability to learn. Public schools must provide special education services to all eligible students who reside within a school's boundaries. Students don't have to be enrolled in a school to qualify for support, and all services must be provided at no cost to families.
Students will undergo an assessment to determine if they have a qualifying disability under IDEA. Westport Public Schools in Connecticut provides a summary of the standard evaluation process.
Reasonable Accommodations
IDEA doesn't require school districts to provide any specific accommodations. A school district can meet its legal obligations as long as it provides reasonable accommodations.
Under IDEA, reasonable accommodations are those that are effective in supporting a student with disabilities. They don't have to be the most expensive, the newest, or even the most effective. They simply have to be effective.
Schools can also decline an accommodation or modification if it creates an undue burden or fundamentally alters a course. Accommodations also don't have to put a student on an identical footing as other students, merely on a similar footing.
Undue burdens can include cost or the expectations it puts on other members of a school community. Accommodations that will require significant time commitments from staff members are less likely to be approved.
In some situations, it may be difficult to determine the difference between an accommodation that fundamentally alters a course and a modification. A class that involves a weekly hike in the mountains may not be expected to have accommodations for students with physical limitations. An accommodation or modification that gives one student an advantage over other students is also unlikely to be approved.
Individualized Education Program (IEP)
https://www.studentdisciplinedefense.com/individual-education-plans
When a student has a qualifying disability, and that disability interferes with their education, that student has the right to an IEP. Once an assessment establishes this, school districts must provide students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP).
IEPs are written documents that, once agreed upon by schools and families, are legally binding. IEPs will list what accommodations and support a school will provide to a student.
IDEA requires an annual review meeting for all IEPs. Even if parents and guardians don't expect any changes, they should still plan to attend these meetings. Parents and guardians may also request a meeting at any point during the year if they believe their child's accommodations are no longer effective or need modification.
What Are Accommodations?
The IRIS Center Peabody College Vanderbilt University defines accommodations as adaptations or changes to help students overcome barriers to learning. Four common types of barriers:
- How information is presented, such as a lecture
- How a student is expected to respond, such as a written report
- The classroom atmosphere, such as the lighting
- The time and length of instruction or assignments, such as the time limit on a test
The purpose of accommodations is to minimize these barriers. For example, a student may be given more time on a test.
Modifications versus Accommodations
Special education students may require accommodations and/or modifications. You may even hear the two terms used interchangeably. There are fundamental differences between accommodations and modifications, and families should make sure they know and understand them.
Accommodations shift how students learn the same content. They don't alter or reduce expectations or requirements. A student still has the same end goal as other students; they just need a different path to get to that point.
Modifications alter what students are expected to learn and may change the student's learning goals. They often change or reduce expectations and requirements.
Types of Diplomas
One example of the difference between an accommodation and a modification is the different types of high school diplomas. For students with disabilities, some states have diplomas that have different criteria for graduation.
Tennessee, for example, has three diploma options beyond its general education diploma:
- A special education diploma
- An occupational diploma
- An alternate academic diploma
One advantage of these options is that, unlike with a general education diploma, Tennessee allows students with IEPs to continue accessing special education services through age 21. These diplomas may limit a student's ability to attend a traditional four-year college, and some employers may not give them the same weight as traditional diplomas.
Tennessee's diploma options highlight an important angle when determining the best accommodations and modifications for your child. During an IEP meeting, before agreeing to any accommodation or modification, you should ask about the pros and cons of that service. It's important to not just support your student but also consider their long-term goals and how certain options may limit their future choices.
Focus on the Individual
Accommodations should be tailored to your student and not your student's disability. Accommodations can vary widely depending on several factors, including:
- A student's disability
- The severity of that disability
- A child's age and developmental level
- A student's strengths
While students with the same disability may have similar accommodations, they may also require entirely different types of support.
Age and Accommodations
A student's age and grade level influence the support and services they require. What works for a child in first grade may no longer be effective in fifth grade. Younger students usually need more support and supervision than older students.
Schools and states should provide accommodations that support a wide range of ages and development levels. Illinois, for example, has a dedicated page for early intervention services. The state has a separate page for school-aged students that divides the services by disability.
One reason why IDEA has the annual meeting requirement is that students grow and mature. While an IEP is legally binding, that doesn't mean any of its accommodations or provisions are set in stone. IEPs can and should be revised as needed to reflect a student's development.
Types of Accommodations
School districts have no legal requirement to provide specific accommodations. That another school district offers a service or support doesn't mean a school district has to offer it or is violating federal or state law by not offering that accommodation.
Schools often do provide similar services and support, and districts should make it easy for parents and guardians to learn about what resources a district has. Arlington Independent School District in Texas includes the following services and support as part of its special education program:
- Academic & Behavior Learning Environment (ABLE)
- Adapted Physical Education
- Alternate Curriculum
- Assistive Technology
- Audiology Services
- Deaf Education & Regional Day School Program for the Deaf
- Dyslexia Services
- Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE)
- Educational Diagnosticians
- Homebound Services
- In-home and Parent Training Services
- Music Therapy
- Occupational Therapy
- Physical Therapy
- Psychological and Counseling Services
- Resource (Reading, Language Arts, & Math)
- Social, Emotional, and Academic Success (SEAS)
- Special Education Services
- Special Transportation
- Speech and Language Therapy Services
- Transition Services
- Vision Services
- Vocational Services
Some of these services, such as speech and language therapy, are common. Music therapy, in contrast, is a less common support.
Knowing what accommodations other districts offer can be useful as a point of comparison. Not all accommodations are expensive or require significant resources.
The School Matters
Schools don't have to provide identical accommodations, and some schools may provide better support or accommodations for certain disabilities. A school district that has top-notch services for students with vision impairments may have a less robust system of support for students with hearing impairments.
There's an enormous gap between top-tier schools and legal requirements. A school's budget or staffing issues can affect what accommodations they can offer.
When a student switches schools, one of the challenges may be that their new school has different special education services than their old school. Even schools within the same district may offer different levels and types of support.
When possible, families should inquire about special education services and support before enrolling. In some cases, parents or guardians may want to ask about specialized programs or the ability to transfer to another school within a district. Some students may benefit from a more specialized program or school.
Most states have schools for the deaf and the blind. These schools are often funded by the state, meaning they have no or minimal costs to families. These schools often have residential options in addition to summer programs and other outreach efforts.
The oldest continuing operating school for the deaf, the Ohio School for the Deaf, is a good example of these state schools. OSD has programs beginning with early intervention through transitional services, a high school, and statewide services and outreach.
School districts may also have dedicated schools to assist students with disabilities. Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia has eight special education schools. One of them, Burke School, works exclusively with students who qualify for special education services due to emotional and/or behavioral needs.
State Support
While IDEA establishes several requirements for special education, states have flexibility in how they put these requirements into practice. Some states may let school districts set their special education and accommodations. Others may have more state-level support and programs.
California has Special Education Local Plan Areas (SELPA). These are regional organizations that allow school districts to pool their resources for special education services. SELPAs coordinate with school districts and county boards of education to support students with disabilities.
SELPAs may cover a county, several school districts, or may be tied to a single school district. Pasadena Unified School District, located in Los Angeles County, operates its own SELPA. A few hundred miles north, San Luis Obispo County has a countywide SELPA that includes several school districts.
On the other side of the country, Georgia has a strong state-level program for special education, sometimes referred to as exceptional education within the state. School districts' special education pages, such as DeKalb County School District's Department of Exceptional Education, tend to direct families to the state's resources rather than district-level support.
No option is automatically better. For families, the focus should be on how to best support their child. State-level and school-district consortiums can potentially mean more types and levels of support because they pool resources. District-level support may allow students to participate more in the general school community or form better relationships in the smaller setting.
For families, what matters is being aware of all possible accommodations and services that are available or potentially available to their students. Accommodations and support will often be from a combination of sources.
Accommodations Support Education
For students with disabilities, effective accommodations are essential for their education. Students who require accommodations still have to meet the same course requirements; they simply need support to reach those goals.
When school districts fail to provide effective accommodations or follow an IEP, students are more likely to fall behind in their classes, have behavioral or disciplinary issues, or drop out of school altogether. Disagreements between schools and families can begin during initial assessments and occur until a student graduates.
If a school isn't willing to work with you and help you identify effective and reasonable accommodations for your student, the Education Law Team at the Lento Law Firm can help. We assist families nationwide in securing the accommodations, modifications, and services their students with disabilities require as part of their education.
In the United States, special education accommodations and services are a right, and the Lento Law Firm helps families protect that right. To learn more about how we can help your student, call us at 888-535-3686 or fill out this form.
