Accommodations:
(General, Notetaking, and Captioning Services)

 
  General Questions

• What is the purpose of academic accomodations?
  Students who are deaf or hard or hearing are capable individuals who experience some limitations that may require adaptation of materials, methods, or environments to facilitate learning. Accommodations may also ensure that when students are evaluated, they are able to demonstrate what they learned rather than the effects of their hearing loss.
  
     
  
  
• Will accommodations compromise the integrity of my class or academic program?
  No. When providing accommodation for disabilities, institutions of higher education are not required to lower academic standards or compromise the integrity of the school or program. Essentially, accommodations and auxiliary aids and services are provided to "level the playing field" for the student who is deaf or hard of hearing, enabling the student to compete with hearing peers.
  
  Once you have provided accommodations, you should grade the work of a student who is deaf or hard of hearing as you would grade the work of any other student. There is no need to give them a break by being unduly lenient. To grade students more harshly because they have had the opportunity for additional time for exams or other instructional modifications would nullify the effect of the accommodations.
  
     
  
  
• How will I know that a student in my class is supposed to have an accommodation?
  It's fairly common practice for the Disability Services office to notify faculty members of the type of accommodations that will be provided each semester. Some of these accommodations, such as sign language interpreters, may be provided by the Disability Services office itself, while other accommodations, such as extended time for exams, may be provided by the faculty member. Typical accommodations for a student who is deaf or hard of hearing may include notetakers, sign language or oral interpreters, assistive listening devices, computer-assisted captioning, open-captioned videos or films, and extended time on exams. Not every student needs every accommodation, and the Disability Services office is the best campus resource for working with each student to determine the accommodations that are recommended.
  
  Occasionally a student may ask you to provide accommodations, but you never received notification from the Disability Services office. To protect yourself, the student, and your institution, you should insist that the student channel any requests through the Disability Services office.
  
  Students have a right to privacy in disability matters, and their confidentiality must be maintained. Please file notices of accommodation in a secure place and refrain from discussing their disabilities and necessary accommodations in the presence of fellow students or others who have no educational need to know.
  
     
  
  
• How do I decide which accommodations are appropriate for a particular student?
  Because appropriate documentation is usually provided by the student to staff within the Disability Services office, faculty members are not responsible for making decisions about accommodations. Disability Services professionals recommend the accommodations which will be most effective in assuring the student's access to academic programs. Students have the responsibility for requesting accommodations and services, and must provide documentation of conditions that may warrant academic accommodations. Before providing particular accommodations for a specific course, the disability specialist carefully considers the nature of the student's disability and how this disability may affect the student's ability to learn, and to demonstrate achievement, in the course.
  
     
  
  
• What is the role/responsibility of vocational/technical programs (less than two years) in providing accommodations?
  The ADA states that any public accommodation, which includes all places of education, must provide auxiliary aids and services. This includes sign language interpreters, notetakers, television decoders for closed captioning, assistive listening devices and headsets, and telecommunication devices (TTYs or TDDs). Vocational/technical programs have the same level of responsibility as other postsecondary institutions.
  
     
  
  

• What do I do if I can’t find an interpreter?
  Another type of accommodation should be used while your institution tries to locate a qualified interpreter. It is vital that an interpreter be found; notetaking alone will not suffice for an accommodation. Notetaking services for a student who is deaf allow the student to focus on the interpreter without having to look down to take notes. However, notetaking services typically do not allow the student immediate access to the information discussion during the class, limiting the student’s opportunity to participate in the class.
  
  If there is not an interpreting agency in your town, your institution must contact the one closest to you in order to schedule and contract an interpreter for the student. Other resources may include local K-12 programs, social service agencies, or the state office of vocational rehabilitation.
  
     
  
  
• What are the pros and cons of paid notetakers vs. volunteer notetakers?
  Volunteer notetakers, according to some disability support services staff, sometimes lack commitment. They may not take a great deal of responsibility upon themselves to provide quality notetaking. However, there are always exceptions. Some volunteer notetakers are very committed to providing high quality notes, and they are often students in the class themselves, sharing notes they are already taking for themselves. Often, the student for whom the notes are being taken has a say in the quality of the notetaking when the notetaker is being compensated for his/her work. Again, though, this depends on the situation and the institution. At St. Petersburg College in Florida, for example, the students using volunteer notetakers can and do complain when the quality of the notes they receive is questionable. If a complaint is made, the staff from the disability support office will check with the instructor to see if the notes are actually incomplete. If the notes are consistently poor, then the staff will work with the notetaker. Sometimes the instructor supplements the student’s notes with handouts and/or outlines, or a new volunteer notetaker is recruited. With paid notetakers, a support staff person may have more leverage and can even require the notetaker to take a training session in better notetaking. It is important to remember, however, that steps can be taken and alternative solutions can be found if the notes from the volunteer notetaker are poor as well.
  
  The obvious primary advantage of volunteer notetakers is the money saved by an institution, as these notetakers are not paid. Another advantage is that the community can become aware that students are involved with helping their peers through volunteerism. Also, it’s not uncommon for an institution with a volunteer notetaker program to see students become repeat volunteers, as they may see their own success in class increase as a result of being a notetaker. However, it may be extremely difficult to locate notetakers for some classes.
  
  If an institution decides not to pay notetakers, other rewards might be offered, such as community service credit/recognition, a certificate of appreciation, a recognition ceremony, offers to write letters of recommendation, etc. The institution mentioned above, notetaker is being compensated for his/her work. Again, though, this depends on the situation and the institution. St. Petersburg College offers a 10% discount at the college bookstore and early advising, which results in the first choice of classes for the session following the one during which the student volunteered.
  
  In summary, it is important to remember that hiring a notetaker does not necessarily guarantee quality. Hired notetakers may create sketchy and incomplete notes if they have no stake in getting the information themselves; however, the volunteer notetaker could perhaps do the same if they are not motivated by payment. Some disability support staff report that the budget for maintaining hired notetakers can be staggering and that it is often difficult to recoup the money spent on a paid notetaker who drops a class or simply does not work without telling the disability support office until weeks after failing to continue notetaking.
  
  To add, some institutions report that disability support offices must be careful about assuming that students with a 4.0 GPA are the best notetakers. Often they know the information already and, therefore, may take sketchy notes, or they may only need to write a few words to trigger their memories, which results in incomplete notes for the student needing the notetaker.
  
  Volunteer and paid notetakers can take pride in what they do and take detailed, elaborate notes; it truly depends on the individual.
  
     
  

• Am I required to provide both an interpreter and a real-time captionist?
  According to Rawlinson and Kincaid, providing both an interpreter and a captionist would be justified “in only the most extraordinary circumstances” (p. 25). The ADA does not require that the student be given every accommodation that exists. It is, however, common practice for a student who is deaf to have both a notetaker and an interpreter so that the s/he can focus on the interpreter without missing interpreted information by looking down at his/her notes.
  
  Get to know the student and understand his/her degree of hearing loss and communication preferences. Ongoing communication with the student is important as well. Be sure to regularly assess whether or not the primary accommodation provided is effective.
  
     
  
  
• What are the pros and cons of hiring interpreters/captionists staff vs. hourly?
  There are many benefits to having staff interpreters in a postsecondary setting. Scheduling them can be easier and more flexible, as some hourly interpreters may have to place restrictions on their schedules, due to other freelancing assignments they have accepted. Staff interpreters are also in the position to establish a strong rapport with the faculty, staff, and students who are deaf and hard of hearing, because these people see the staff interpreters every semester. To boot, staff interpreters who often repeat interpret a course will be more familiar with the material in and terminology of the course. This can aid in a smooth interpretation, which will benefit the student. Consistency is another benefit; an interpreter coordinator with a staff of interpreters will know that these interpreters will be there to work a certain number of hours per week. They also benefit from the fact that staff interpreters working in an office setting can fulfill the responsibilities of the coordinator when s/he has to be out. The level of responsibility of a staff interpreter, therefore, can be greater. Finally, a staff interpreter will be more vested in the office of disability support services’ goals and mission. They can be more willing to provide input and discuss solutions for problems. An hourly interpreter’s primary responsibility typically is interpreting only. Also, when using staff interpreters, a higher cost-effectiveness can result when the number of students using interpreting services increases substantially. It can be costly - when such an increase occurs - to rely on contract interpreters only.
  
  Several advantages to hiring contractual or freelance interpreters also exist. First, having a long list of freelance interpreters to access in order to fill assignments provides more diversity in many institutions. A staff of interpreters will have variety as well, but most institutions have a greater number of hourly interpreters than staff interpreters, and this allows for more variety. Another benefit lies in the fact that the institution in need of interpreters does not have to provide benefits to hourly interpreters; therefore, hourly interpreters are less expensive. It also may be easier for an institution to terminate employment when necessary for an hourly interpreter, as they are less vested in the institution than a staff interpreter. Using contract interpreters most often occurs in an institution where there are fewer students who are deaf and hard of hearing. Contract interpreters will also most likely be used when students who are deaf are taking courses sporadically, as opposed to many courses clumped together, if you will, in which interpreters are needed.
  
     
  
  
• Is there anything special I need to do when I plan to show a film?
  Videotapes and films can be a source of great frustration for interpreters and students who are deaf and hard of hearing. Most movies and programs made recently are closed captioned, which means that -- with a few simple modifications -- the words will appear at the bottom of the screen for the student to read. Almost all programs taped from television are captioned, even though you can’t see it without a decoder. Again, with a few simple modifications, the captioning can be opened. However, these adjustments take time, so it would be helpful to the interpreters to have a few days notice that you will be using a videotape. Unfortunately, not all films are closed captioned, so making the video available for interpreters to preview is extremely beneficial, because this allows them time to prepare and become familiar with the material that will be presented on the tape.
  
     
  

Postsecondary Education Consortium
Center on Deafness
Claxton Complex A508
The University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN  37996-3454
(865) 974-0607 (v/tdd)
(865) 974-3522 (fax)
E-mail address:  pec@utk.edu