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Faculty Awareness and Training in the Post-Secondary Community: An Annotated Bibliography

University of New Brunswick

Fredericton, New Brunswick

Student-Faculty Handbook for Accommodating Students with Disabilities

Guidebook

This 34-page guide begins with a discussion of the importance of keeping an open mind when working with people with disabilities, and of accommodating students with disabilities. It also stresses the need to put the person before the disability.

Following that is a page on appropriate terminology to use in conversations with and about people with disabilities. Two columns show both the words to use, and those to avoid using. Next is a brief general overview of best teaching practices and effective lesson planning techniques, which are beneficial for those working with students with or without disabilities.

The section on accommodations looks at a number of specific disabilities (ADHD, vision impairments, hearing impairments, learning disabilities, mobility impairments, invisible disabilities, psychological, and psychiatric disabilities) separately. Short blurbs discuss the disability and how it might affect an individual. Recommendations on disability-appropriate classroom and exam accommodations follow. Roughly two pages are devoted to each disability.

A seven-page glossary then lists some 60 disabilities, briefly defining each. Finally, there is an appendix on Epilepsy, outlining what to do if someone has a seizure.

The document falls short in discussing invisible, psychological and psychiatric disabilities. No disability under these categories is discussed in detail, and only three general accommodations are outlined in each category. But ultimately, the book does an effective job outlining specific disabilities and appropriate accommodation methods for each.

The faculty handbook was prepared by the UNB Coordinator of Services to Students with Disabilities in September 1999.

Contact:
Sandra Latchford
Faculty of Education
University of New Brunswick
Fredericton, New Brunswick
E3B 6E3
Phone: 506-452-6021 or 506-453-3515
Email: sandral@unb.ca
Web site: http://www.unb.ca/home/units/Student_Services/swd.html