Access to the Stuff of Learning:
Breaking Down Barriers Posed by Print Disabilities
Beth Mineo Mollica and Eden Melmed
Delaware Assistive Technology Initiative
Children cannot learn if they cannot access the curriculum. Lots of children are precluded from accessing educational content because of differences in language, culture, learning style, interests, perceptual ability, cognitive ability, motoric ability, and/or attention. The Universal Design for Learning approach requires that we consider all of these potential differences and develop learning opportunities that maximize each student’s ability to connect with and benefit from the curriculum.
This session will focus on a new provision in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) that requires districts to ensure that students with print disabilities have alternative ways to access the information contained in textbooks and other print materials. We will review this law and its implications for students, families, and educators, and we will look at some products that afford alternate access to print.
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