Cindy: My son has ANXIETY and ASPERGER’S. He is extremely intelligent and has no problem with math because it’s so black and white. I removed him from his “brick and mortar” school because he held it in all day and by the end of the day, he was mush – it was just so stressful and academically, they held him back as well. He began PUBLIC ONLINE SCHOOLING three weeks ago and is already having trouble in subjects that require any form of ABSTRACT THINKING. I’m wondering if accommodations are possible, what would be helpful, and how they would be implemented in an online learning environment?
The simple answer is, have a chat with your Rep. from the Online School, so have you done that? Most of the time we’ll hit a wall, right? So, you may need to begin an Advocacy process — remind them accomodations for autustic students is the LAW & ask for what you need. Tutoring, more time accomodations, better step by step breakdown of the material, etc.
Please let us know how it went! I’m happy to follow up with you. These are just a few suggestions & simple steps. Don’t settle!
Is there any list of possible accommodations in this environment, in the regular classroom my son, that also has autism, was able to have many accommodations I had to fight and advocate but now I don’t know what’s possible and keep being told it’s a different environment…ugh we need concrete examples to help us navigate please
There are lists of accommodations on a variety of websites. You can google “instructional accommodations for students with disabilities”. Your state parent training & information center can help you find a list & know how to work with the school.
I meant specifically for online school
Try googling “online instructional accommodations for students with disabilities”. Also google something about assistive technology, & online courses.
Thank you Robin for your reply! We do have an IEP meeting set up over the phone (that’s how they do it since they are so far away). My question is…..what kind of accommodations/modifications should I be asking for? It’s obviously a different learning environment and at the local school he had a liason who met with him on a weekly basis to talk about his difficulties and she was able to get his English teacher to modify one assignment. It’s more of a difficult transition for him than I thought. I have spent literally all day online searching for examples but I haven’t found anything yet.
Hello, I am having the same issues. How did the IEP work out for you? did you find out what kind of accommodations/modifications?
Hi Cindy. Did you ever get answers on what accommodations and/or modifications should be ask. My daughter is in public school but also taking online classes. The coordinator refused to accommodate or modify her online classes. My daughter also suffers from anxiety and manic depression. She’s a senior and the stress of her online classes have really taken a toll on her mentally and emotionally. I was advice to seek an advocate. Then by others to advocate for my daughter.
Thank you,
Cynthia
Contact the campus principal about this situation. If your child has not been identified as a child with a disability, you can request a special ed or 504 evaluation.