3.27 Accommodations and Modifications

General Guidelines Curriculum adaptations include accommodations, modifications, and supports that allow a child with a disability access to the general curriculum and assessments. LEAs/districts are responsible for ensuring that each teacher and provider is informed of his or her specific responsibilities related to implementing the child’s IEP and the specific accommodations, modifications, and supports that must be provided for the child in accordance with the IEP (34CFR 300.342 (b)(3)).

What are accommodations? Accommodations are adaptations that enable a student with a disability to participate in educational programming and complete school work or tests with greater ease and success. Accommodations DO NOT fundamentally alter the curriculum or lower expectations or standards in instructional level, content or performance criteria. Accommodations are changes made to the curriculum in order to provide equal access to learning and equal opportunity to demonstrate what is known.

What are modifications? Modifications are adaptations that provide a student with meaningful and productive learning experiences based on individual needs and abilities. Modifications DO fundamentally alter the curriculum or lower expectations or standards, in instructional level, content or performance criteria to meet the student's needs.

Adaptations to Assessments Accommodations and modifications should not simply be applied at the time of testing as a means of support. In order to justify the use of accommodations/modifications during testing, a student should also have access to the needed supports during instruction in the classroom.

Grading when adaptations have been made to the curriculum Because accommodations do not fundamentally alter the curriculum, student’s grade should not reflect that accommodations have been made. Accommodations provide students with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate in the general education curriculum. If modifications have been made to the curriculum of any course, it is important that the student’s grade reflect the student’s achievement in the modified curriculum, as long as modified grades are available to all students. However, any modifications to programming, instruction, and grading must be documented in the student’s IEP and be directly related to the student’s disability. To automatically give modified grades to all special education students would be discriminatory and potentially violate Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

El Dorado County Charter SELPA Procedural Guidelines

CURRICULUM ADAPTATIONS