Thread by @DisabledAcadem

From the thread yesterday, it's clear that many educators are not using Universal Design, guiding their students to Disability Services, or implementing accommodations on a 1-1 basis. 1/9

I've posted a LOT on UDL (Universal Design for Learning) before and we have a whole guide on our resources page on the DAC website. Build access into your course with flexible deadlines, assignment choices, captions, etc. 2/9

You should also consider Day 1 of class a time to talk about the accommodations process. Don't just add it as a copy paste section of your syllabus. Walk students through the process, tell them what they can expect, remove the stigma and fear from it. 3/9

And familiarize yourself with what your uni even offers or recommends. Is your Disability Services dept equitable? Are they helping students secure medical care? Are they waiving fees for diagnostic testing? Are they telling students their requests are unreasonable? 4/9

Remember that Disability Services is designed to drive costs down while meeting bare minimum ADA stds. Staff are rarely trained in Disability Studies or disability justice. And while many come into the role with good intentions, they still work in an exploitative system. 5/9

So maybe it's worth asking your students 1-1 how you can best accommodate them. Without asking what kind of medical condition they have or if they have a current dx. It's none of your business. But it is your job to provide access for all learners. 6/9

On day 1 I have my students fill out a survey in class on access needs. And I specifically ask non-disabled students to consider how their access needs are already met by the institution, so that they can practice recognizing their own privilege. It's a great exercise. 7/9

If you're worried that students are slacking, putting in minimal effort, trying to cheat for grades, then you need to step back and consider the ableist assumptions of those statements. And you need to reconsider what college is for, and what our role is in that system. 8/9

We're not there to police students. We should be giving students every access need they imagine might benefit their work so that they can put out their very best. And so they feel comfortable advocating for the same in their future jobs. 9/9 #AcademicChatter #HigherEd