Are they accommodations or supports? How you view them makes a difference
Adria Gold’s podcast offers the perfect example of the “UDL takeover” that happens when there is full implementation of the framework. Her story comes from the angle of identifying supports that are, at times, reserved for learners with Individual Education Plans (IEPs), but that same support can benefit all learners. The particular support she discusses is chunking.
The National Center on Educational Outcomes describes chunking as a structure that can support learners who are “classified as poor or low-ability readers” (NCEO, n.d.) The only caution is over-chunking, or breaking up the text so much that it can stifle learners’ comprehension of the passage. Though this particular support could be used as an accommodation, in Adria’s classroom it is a support offered to all. What’s the difference, though, between an accommodation and a support?
First, an accommodation is something that changes how a student learns. The term accommodation is used when describing supports offered to learners with disabilities. It isn’t unheard of for people to confuse accommodations and modifications. This piece from Understood.org lays out the difference between them (namely, modifications change what a student is taught or is expected to learn). With that understanding, we can look at a list of common accommodations that are discussed in another article on Understood.org titled, “Common classroom accommodations and modifications.” These include:
- Audio recordings instead of reading text
- Recording notes instead of writing notes
- Using a word processor to type notes or give responses in class
- Sitting where the learner learns best
In a learning environment like the one Adria describes, these accommodations are seen as supports for any student who choose to use them because the teacher understands what she/he/they want(s) the learners to accomplish. Instead of individual students using these supports at specific times, they are supports provided to all learners based on the goal of the lesson or task. For example, if you want your learners to comprehend the text, listening to the story lowers the barriers of decoding. If you want your learners to capture key elements of a lecture, recording the notes can lower the barriers or slow writing or typing. For other learners, the barrier might be writing, so using a word processor will lower the barrier. And classrooms across the US (and the world, for that matter) are adopting flexible seating which involves learners not only suggesting the surface on which they will sit so they can learn best, but also the location in the learning environment. In each case, you have to know and your learners have to know what they are working toward so they can make informed choices.
In environments designed using the UDL framework, these options are made available to all learners, just like chunking is made available to all learners in Adria’s classroom. Adria uses chunking to help her learners break down the success criteria (the components they need to identify to successfully achieve the standard) and asserts her choice by saying, “So why not offer them a little bit of structure or chunking or just breaking down your expectation so that they know what they’re being held accountable for?” The learners can pay attention to the colored chunking, they can use the checklist to help them chunk, or they can move through the assignment without giving the colors or checklist any attention. They decide what will help them achieve the goal. Adria recognizes that the support is helping her learners understand their job in the learning process.
Above, I referenced a “UDL takeover” that happens when the framework is fully implemented. That framework is driven by the variability of our learners. We recognize that they all learn differently and it depends on the context. This podcast really focuses in on the access Adria provides to those variable learners. She wants every student to spend time in deep thinking, not wondering whether they will skip a step. She wants them to blend information, not see it as disparate parts. She wants them to think about and talk about the big ideas, not get stuck in the process. Adria understands that access is based on a mindset of inclusion. It is that mindset that drives the design of her learning environment and the focus is on the maturation of expert learners.