College Syllabi: Providing Support for Students with Disabilities

Educational Forum, The, Fall 2006 by Broadbent, Gloria, Dorow, Laura G, Fisch, Lois A

For students with visual impairments, reported accommodations include the adoption by faculty members of textbooks that provide electronic access (DO-IT 2000) or audio versions (Kim-Rupnow, Dowrick, and Burke 2001). Testing accommodations incorporate large print, shorter formats, braille, extended time, oral instruction (Frank 2000; Thomas 2000), small group administration, readers (Bielinski 2001), or MegaDots translation programs that turn computer type into braille (Dote-Kwan and Senge 1998).

Recommended accommodations for students with hearing impairments include readers, sign language interpreters, real-time captions, note takers, test accommodations, alternate texts, priority registration, tape-recorded lectures, and academic adjustments such as extending the time allowed for test taking and completing course work, substituting specific courses to meet degree requirements, and modifying test taking or performance evaluations (Kim-Rupnow et al. 2001; Simon 2001). White and Poison (1999) reported that the most frequently used accommodations for adults with hearing impairments are the use of visual cues and seating placement in the room. Kalivoda and Higbee (1998) also identified tape-recorded lectures, the use of spell-check software, written papers instead of oral presentations, course substitutions, and time extensions as often-used conformations.

According to Byrnes (2000), giving students with a motor disability extra time reduces the degree of impairment. Kalivoda and Higbee (1998) reported that students with traumatic brain injury should have the following accommodations: taped lectures, spell-check software for written work, course substitutions, and time extensions. College students who have difficulty expressing themselves benefit from accommodations such as extra time, written response format, alternative forms of information sharing, and the use of organizational aids (White and Poison 1999).

Current literature supports the continued provision of accommodations for disabled students pursuing postsecondary degrees. An analysis (Broadbent 2003) of recommendations for a variety of disabilities revealed that commonalities exist across disability accommodations. Further, this analysis (Broadbent 2003) showed that though some recommendations are unique to a specific need, many benefit all students, including those without disabilities. In fact, the case could be made that most of the recommendations should be available to any student, because they neither impede instruction nor reduce academic rigor and high standards.

Course Syllabi

The course syllabus is the one ubiquitous component found in all college courses. A syllabus serves three major roles: a contract, a permanent record, and an aid to student learning (Parkes and Harris 2002). Because of its universal use, the syllabus becomes an ideal place to embed information on support accommodations for all students, particularly those with disabilities.

The syllabus serves as both an information source and an advanced organizer for the course. It can provide students with knowledge of the type of accommodations that are available at the college and can indicate faculty members' willingness to provide accommodations, support, and extra help. If pertinent information is included in the syllabus, all students can be better prepared for class, can be better time managers, and can be enabled to access accommodations such as books on tape or computers. Because much of the information identified in the literature as being useful to students with disabilities also has been shown to be beneficial to a wide range of students, embedding universally strong teaching practices and approachable formatting can assist students in accessing course content and ease their efforts to meet high expectations.