Supporting all Students’ Learning in UIC Coursework Michelle Parker-Katz, Ph.D. Clinical Professor

Students with Disabilities In K – 12 schooling, close to 60% of students with disabilities spend 80% of the school day included in general education classes and experiences ~ 2/100 students in a college lecture class has a mild “higher incidence” disability (attention issues, learning disabilities) In the last decade, the proportion of undergraduates designated as learning disabled (LD) or as having ADD/ADHD has almost doubled, to reach more than 2 percent of the total U.S. undergraduate population, or 394,500 students Controversies about how to diagnose “disability” and why it is often diagnosed in public education at disproportionally higher rates in populations of color that are also lower income. But Vickers (2010) notes that undergrads with either ADD or LD are “…exponentially more likely to be white, male, and from a family with high income and college-educated parents, than female, nonwhite, or with parents with lower income or level of education”.

Entering Higher Ed with a Disability a transition made even more complex than non-disabled peers  moving from IEP school-mandated services to ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 civil rights  need to seek out supports and advocate for oneself  need to choose if, how, and when to disclose

Supporting All Students How to teach content to all students???? Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Specific supports to help manage barriers/challenges in order to provide access to all

Universal Design for Learning universal access for all people make curriculum inclusive for all learners reduce barriers to learning by thinking about the what (multiple means of representation), how (multiple means of action and expression), and why (multiple means of engagement/motivation)

Supports Use differentiated (“tiered”) instruction in which we teach the same content but varied images, methods, assignments, products Some key components to consider - clear expectations - varied possibilities - choice (e.g., about product(s) produced, processes used - collaboration (e.g., collaborative final product in which students work in small groups and assess each other; pts. for collaborative study)

Supports strategies for “executive functioning” to help organization of information and use of it strategies for learning content vocabulary strategies to enhance comprehension of expository and fictional texts (pre-reading (predicting what is to come), during reading (making connections to texts, self and world), and after reading strategies for writing expository and creative text (pre, during and post) and general communication of ideas

Graphics Evolving Main Idea Important Summaries and Supporting Ideas Less Important InfoOld Main Ideas Adapted from Zwiers, J. (2004). Building comprehension habits in grades 6 – 12: A toolkit of classroom activities. Newark, NJ: International Reading Association., pp. 43 and 155.

Resources Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Graphics Software such as Inspiration Strategies and instructional planning to embed comprehension Hughes, M., T. & Parker-Katz, M. (2013). Integrating comprehension strategies into social studies instruction. The Social Studies, 104(3), DOI: / (*** See sample resources, ideas for planning teaching to infuse reading supports)

Contact Michelle Parker-Katz, Ph.D. Clinical Professor Masters Programs Coordinator Special Education and Teacher Education (office) (department office) (FAX)