This report provides state leaders and test developers with initial considerations for improving the accessibility of state-mandated assessments for students with disabilities, specifically those who use assistive technology and accessible educational materials in daily instruction. These findings can be used by states to inform the development of policies and guidelines, and by test developers to inform the design of assessment systems and platforms. Most desirable is that the findings will help initiate improved collaboration between and among states, districts, and test developers.

The 2020 GEM Report on 'Inclusion and Education: All means all' calls on countries to concentrate on those being left behind and to move towards inclusion an...

In this guide you will learn about:What makes an educational resource open; Why OERs are important in the practice of Inclusive Design for Learning; How to find and use OERs; How to jump in and make your own OER.

This module is part of a course on Inclusive Educational Practices that offers professional development for educators who aspire to provide a supportive learning environment for dyslexic and with learning difficulties learners.Students have different needs, interests, and abilities. In order to effectively teach them and provide them with rich learning experiences, lesson plans need to be as diverse as they are. This module aims to help educators analyze different learning styles and accordingly build  their lesson plans as to embrace and support not only the needs of specific learners but provide quality education for all students. To this end, tools, articles, guidelines, videos, and examples are provided. Planning a lesson for an inclusive classroom entails less modifications for future use in a different learning context, facilitates a substitute to take over the class, and ensures learning for every child."It is not the disabilities of the students that prevent the implementation of a long effective instructional model, but the environment that is disabling"                               Katz, 2015 

This is a transition plan resource to help students visually see things that they may need to know to become independent after High School. 

In this module, teaching credential candidates in elementary, secondary, and special education will learn about the assets and inequities that a focus on intersectionality can illuminate, and how this learning will affect their future work in classrooms.      

Introduction
Most of us can hardly conceive of life without the internet. Some have argued that no other single invention has been more revolutionary since Gutenberg's printing press in the 1400s. The world can be “at your fingertips” at the click of a mouse—if you can use a mouse... and see the screen... and hear the audio.

I use this Jeopardy!-style game to test, reinforce, and enhance students' understanding of Special Education Law. Playing the game and discussing the answers takes about one hour. I use a free online multiplayer buzzer system that requires students to respond to questions by typing their answers into a text entry field (www.cosmobuzz.net). I give students plenty of time to answer each question and award points for all correct answers. At the end of the game, I award a prize to the winning student (e.g. a Starbucks gift card). I haven't uploaded the answer key here because I don't want students to see the correct answers online; feel free to email me at david.moss@wayne.edu for a copy of the answer key.

Leadership in Inclusive Technology Systems
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Line drawing of a rocket ship
Effective technology leadership promotes the development of a balanced and inclusive technology infrastructure that examines assistive technology (AT), educational technology (EdTech), and information technology (IT) as part of a technology ecosystem.

The Center for Inclusive Technology in Education Systems (CITES) has utilized a design-thinking process, in partnership with local districts, to refine a set of leadership practices that enhance the development of a balanced and inclusive technology infrastructure.

CITES leadership practices include:

Create vision & goals
Develop a strategic plan
Measure progress
Develop learning outcomes
Plan infrastructure

This guide is designed to support your own professional learning around learner variability as well as ideas and resources for sharing with other educators.

Did you know that there is no such thing as an average learner? In fact, each and every learner is different across a whole child spectrum—from the content they know, cognitive abilities, social and emotional factors, and background. Our experiences and our environment shape the way we think and feel about learning and our readiness to process new information. Understanding the research behind learner variability helps us disrupt the inequities of a one-size-fits-all education.

What is learner variability? It is a recognition that each and every student has a unique set of strengths and challenges that impact the way we learn. Learning science research supports the concept of learner variability and provides pathways and strategies for student success in school and beyond. For example, a factor of learning such as working memory, critical to learning new information, can be affected by emotions or sleep. Additionally, it helps us understand how factors can be affected by context. How students learn in person versus virtually or from one subject to the next can be very different. Students may respond positively to different strategies in different situations or work better with different people in different classes. It also helps us understand important social and emotional connections like how a Sense of Belonging can affect students’ readiness and Motivation to engage in learning.

Did you know that learning styles is a myth? Learning styles is a popular idea that many people learned in school. It says that we are either auditory, visual, or kinesthetic learners. But, that is not what research tells us. Research says we learn best when all three options are present and that which modality we rely on may change according to the task. For instance, the way you remember a phone number may be different from the way you learn about a historical event or a math formula. Furthermore, people who think of themselves as only learning one way, (e.g., I am a visual) learner, can close themselves off from other learning experiences.

One in five students in the U.S. are estimated to have learning and attention issues. Specific learning disabilities can include dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia, while attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) centers on an individual's challenge with focus. Learning and attention issues often co-occur. These brain-based differences are not the result of low intelligence, poor vision, or hearing. Although young people will not ‘grow out’ of their learning or attention challenge, the appropriate, evidence-based programs and strategies can support a learner to become successful in school, work, and life.

It is particularly important that these interventions occur early on (ideally prior to third grade) to provide students the support they need at critical periods of learning and development. While learning and attention challenges affect all learners from every income level and across all races, genders, and ethnicities, students who are Indigenous, Black, Brown, living in poverty, or learning English are more often over- or under-identified with specific learning disability diagnoses.

This module is designed for pre-service teachers who are learning about low-incidence disabilities. The following are included: Multicultural and Bilingual Aspects of Special EducationLow-Incidence, Multiple, and Severe DisabilitiesAutism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Learners with Emotional or Behavioral DisordersLearners who are Deaf or Hard of HearingLearners with Blindness or Low VisionLearners with Physical Disabilities and Other Health ImpairmentsGifted

Mada’s Glossary is the first dictionary of its kind, which includes terms related to ICT accessibility and assistive technology (AT) in the Arabic language. The Glossary was developed to serve as a vital resource for capacity building within ICT services, accessibility, and assistive technology in Qatar and beyond. Mada’s Glossary is essential to educate professionals, researchers, and individuals interested in the basic terms used in these fields. It is considered one of the first initiatives to provide such resources in Arabic.

A free online course to assist all educators, including those new to the profession, in improving the accessibility of the materials their students use for learning...

On May 26, 2020 the U.S. Department of Education issues a Notice of Interpretation (NOI) permitting the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) to accept files derived from digital instructional materials. These FAQs will be updated as more is learned about the implementation of the NOI.

or some students with disabilities, the text in instructional materials is a barrier to their participation in the general education curriculum. Some students may have visual disabilities that make it difficult for them to see the text. Other students may be unable to hold materials because of a physical disability. Still others may be unable to read or derive meaning from the text because of their disability-related needs. For these reasons, some students with disabilities need instructional materials that are converted into accessible formats in order to learn the same curriculum that is being taught to other students in the class.

In 2004, provisions were added to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to help improve the quality and delivery of accessible formats to students with disabilities who need such materials. Among these provisions, States were required to adopt NIMAS, which stands for the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard. NIMAS is a technical standard used by publishers to prepare “electronic files” that are used to convert instructional materials into accessible formats. The “electronic files” are known as NIMAS source files. The purpose of NIMAS is to help increase the availability and timely delivery of instructional materials in accessible formats for qualifying students in elementary and secondary schools.

NIMAS Q&A
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This Q&A provides states, state educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), and other interested parties with information to facilitate implementation of the NIMAS and coordination with the NIMAC.

The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) in the U.S. Department of Education issued a Q&A document in August 2010 to provide states, state educational agencies (SEAs), local educational agencies (LEAs), and other interested parties with information to facilitate implementation of the NIMAS and coordination with the NIMAC. OSERS has updated this document to reflect changes in the NIMAS resulting from the 2020 Notice of Interpretation (NOI) [3] and the Marrakesh Treaty Implementation Act (MTIA). [4] This Q&A document supersedes the previous document and will be updated with new questions and answers as important issues arise or to amend existing questions and answers, as needed.

The Marrakesh Treaty has resulted in changes to the disability categories used to determine eligibility for NIMAS-derived materials. Additionally, the term “accessible formats” replaces “specialized formats.”

The terms “eligible person” and “accessible formats” are now used in relation to the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) provisions of IDEA.

The National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) is a technical standard publishers can use to produce source files (in XML) that may be used to develop multiple accessible formats (such as Braille or audiobooks).

In addition to the technical specification, our NIMAS Exemplars provide NIMAS-conformant filesets you can inspect to learn more about best practices based on the technical specification and the DAISY Structure Guidelines.

MathML is the recommended way to represent mathematical notation in NIMAS. For more information, visit MathML in NIMAS.

Visit Resources for Publishers and Conversion Houses on the NIMAC website for additional resources related to the production of NIMAS files.

Both State education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) have responsibilities related to the provision of accessible formats from NIMAS files through the NIMAC for qualifying students. The State Director of Special Education leads the following activities on behalf of the SEA and LEAs.

Are some terms new to you? See the definitions section on this page or visit NIMAS & NIMAC. The NIMAS Q&A also provides answers to common questions related to the implementation of the NIMAS and coordination with the NIMAC.