[nabs-l] Is providing tutors or aids under the ADA forpublic colleges?

Sat Dec 7 17:48:10 UTC 2013

Also, it's hard to know if the reason you're struggling is because of
not seeing the pictures, or because the teacher is just not very good
at making the content user-friendly for anybody. I suspect that maybe
other students are also struggling in the class. Is it possible to get
a different teacher for the next two  quarters?

In my own experience (majoring in biology, taking lots of science
classes along with foreign language) everything that was important was
either verbalized by the teacher or written down in the textbook, or
both. If something wasn't in the text and the teacher didn't verbalize
it it usually wasn't important. However, your particular teacher might
not be very good at verbalizing what is important. You may need to
meet with her several times and nudge her to make the verbal part of
her class more accessible to you, e.g. by spelling new words out loud
slowly. This is something that would help everyone not just you. If
you want to advocate, I think working with the teacher or finding a
new one is a more effective tack than trying to persuade the school to
provide tutor service which isn't directly related to your disability.

Arielle

On 12/7/13, Arielle Silverman <arielle71 at gmail.com> wrote:
> The K-12 schools aren't required to provide aides specifically.
> They're required to provide whatever the IEP team decides the
> particular student needs at that particular time. Often that plan
> includes an aide, but not always.
>
> On 12/7/13, Brandon Keith Biggs <brandonkeithbiggs at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hello,
>> If the part of the ADA I quoted is not the part the colleges follow, I
>> would love to know. Section 504  also deals with grade school and high
>> school, so much of the text says children rather than student.
>> If what I did quote is indeed what the colleges have to follow, I have
>> enough of a legal leverage to require an aid if not a tutor as well. My
>> mom works in the lower education schools and they are required to
>> provide aids for students.
>> Thank you,
>>
>> Brandon Keith Biggs
>>
>> On 12/7/2013 8:37 AM, Jewel wrote:
>>> Here in North Carolina, a tutor would get paid by the department of
>>> services for the blind. After requesting the service and getting
>>> approved, one would interview and hire their own tutor. Then, the
>>> tutor would fill out a  timetable of the hours they worked and turn it
>>> into the DSB. The tutor would be paid at the end of each month for the
>>> hours they worked. As far as I have seen, DSB sets a limit of hours,
>>> such as 7  hours a week (basically an hour a day) or 20 hours a  month
>>> (1 hour a day during the week), and anything over that is the
>>> student's responsibility. The hour limit is based on an assessment
>>> done by DSB to figurre out how many hours a week or month you'll need.
>>> And if that tutor sucks, you have the right to fire them and hire a
>>> new one that will do the job the way you want for the hours you need.
>>> Jewel
>>>
>>> On 12/7/13, RJ Sandefur <joltingjacksandefur at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> They don't have to do that because when I was in university for
>>>> undergraduate work, I requested for something to be brailled and they
>>>> told
>>>> me to learn how to use ascanner, and they were not going to braille
>>>> anything. RJ
>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>> From: "Steve Jacobson" <steve.jacobson at visi.com>
>>>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>>> Sent: Saturday, December 07, 2013 10:48 AM
>>>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Is providing tutors or aids under the ADA
>>>> forpublic
>>>> colleges?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> Approach this as asking for reader service.  I am not sure if there is
>>>>> a
>>>>> requirement that tutors or "aids" be provided without other criteria.
>>>>> You
>>>>>
>>>>> are asking
>>>>> for more than "eyes" or for making the course "accessible."
>>>>>
>>>>> Best regards,
>>>>>
>>>>> Steve Jacobson
>>>>>
>>>>> On Fri, 06 Dec 2013 21:50:29 -0800, Brandon Keith Biggs wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Hello,
>>>>>> I am taking a class at my college and the Accessibility services
>>>>>> department insists the ADA doesn't say they need to provide an aid or
>>>>>> tutor for me in a language class. In my last college I had aids for
>>>>>> all
>>>>>> my math and science classes. At this new college, language is just as
>>>>>> hard and both colleges are state colleges.
>>>>>> I am wondering what is the deal with one giving aid and tutoring and
>>>>>> the
>>>>>> other firmly saying they don't need to?
>>>>>> I believe section 504 of the ADA is where all this is talked about.
>>>>>> This is from:
>>>>>> http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/section504.ada.peer.htm
>>>>>> "no qualified individual with a disability in the United States shall
>>>>>> be
>>>>>> excluded from, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
>>>>>> discrimination
>>>>>> under" any program or activity that either receives Federal financial
>>>>>> assistance"
>>>>>> Isn't not providing eyes for a class that is focused on pictures
>>>>>> discrimination? Then isn't not providing eyes for notes with pictures
>>>>>> discrimination?
>>>>>> "providing an opportunity to participate or benefit that is unequal
>>>>>> to
>>>>>> that provided others,"
>>>>>> Despite the improper English, That means that I need to be able to be
>>>>>> equal with my class mates in and out of class. In order for me to be
>>>>>> able to ask the teacher questions, I need to be able to understand
>>>>>> the
>>>>>> materiel enough to ask questions.
>>>>>> "providing different or separate benefits or services, unless it is
>>>>>> necessary to provide benefits or services that are as effective as
>>>>>> those
>>>>>> provided to others."
>>>>>> In this case it is necessary to provide a tutor so that I am able to
>>>>>> completely understand lectures and complete assignments in a timely
>>>>>> manor that helps me understand, like the assignments are supposed to
>>>>>> do.
>>>>>> "For benefits or services provided to be "equally effective," they
>>>>>> must
>>>>>> afford students with disabilities an equal opportunity to obtain the
>>>>>> same result, gain the same benefit, or reach the same level of
>>>>>> achievement as other students."
>>>>>> Without a tutor and an aid, the class that I am in is not providing
>>>>>> me
>>>>>> with enough materials for me to succeed. I must have a tutor and an
>>>>>> aid
>>>>>> to both grasp what is talked about in class partly and to go over
>>>>>> materiel after class to bridge any gaps I miss-understood or recorded
>>>>>> wrong because the teacher was spelling too fast on the board.
>>>>>> "have the effect of defeating or impairing accomplishment of the
>>>>>> objectives of the education program"
>>>>>> I am not learning my language, so I need help!
>>>>>> "Examples of accommodations and modifications include modifying
>>>>>> rules,
>>>>>> policies or practices; removing architectural or communication
>>>>>> barriers;
>>>>>> or providing aids, services, or assistive technology."
>>>>>> HM, says I need an "Aid" right there... Not tutor though.
>>>>>> http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/section504.ada.peer.htm
>>>>>> If that is not the section state colleges fall under, please let me
>>>>>> know. Or if there are any other laws that I should know about, please
>>>>>> let me know. Otherwise I will send this email to my counselors and
>>>>>> their
>>>>>> boss so they can see the quotes from the ADA.
>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>> --
>>>>>> Brandon Keith Biggs
>>>>>
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
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