22 minute read
Whole Child
Dr. Andrea P. Dinaro
Dr. Suzanne Stolz
Dr. Yurimi Grigsby
Can Anything Good Emerge in a Pandemic? Using Whole Child Tenets to Consider Better Accessibility
Educators, school systems, families, and learners had to abruptly slam on the brakes in March 2020 as schools were forced to close in an effort to stop the spread of Covid-19. The effects of the pandemic were tremendous and traumatic as individuals and families experienced change, loss, and uncertainty. Amid the chaos though, we look for some silver lining, some hope that we will emerge on the other side with something we can feel good about. The overwhelming challenge catapulted many educators into the realization that things we thought we could not achieve in the past are actually possible. Practices that were previously deemed outside the scope of what could be offered, are now implemented. Accessibility is on everyone’s mind, no longer merely an afterthought or something an advocate must remind us to consider. Through the centering of accessibility, educators are finding more ways of teaching, learning, and supporting. Flexible approaches are now acknowledged and evolving. Artifacts of the status quo are now eligible to be reimagined.
In this article, we use the Whole Child Approach (2013) tenets as a framework for considering accessibility in K-12 education. What is access really? How can we make it a non-negotiable, deserving the highest priority? In our discussion, we compare Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and individual accommodations. We then present recommendations for expanding our conception of access, for building confidence and capacity in inclusive design, and for developing tools and strategies by applying and connecting the Whole Child Approach tenets.
ASCD Whole Child Approach
The ASCD Whole Child Approach provides tenets to guide educators as they plan and implement learning environments for students to be: healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged (ASCD, 2013). By promoting the long-term development and success of all children the Whole Child Approach works to “move from a vision about educating the whole child to sustainable, collaborative action” (para. 1 ASCD Whole Child Initiative).
In the next section, we explore each tenet in relation to access. How do we provide access for students: (a) to enter school healthy and learn about and practice a healthy lifestyle, (b) to learn in an environment that is physically and emotionally safe, (c) to be engaged in learning and be connected to the school and broader community, (d) to access personalized learning and be supported by qualified, caring adults, and (e) to be challenged academically and prepared for success in college or further study and for employment and participation in a global environment (ASCD, 2013). Aligning with the aim of the Whole Child Approach, we want to help educators set goals and renew commitments for prioritizing all students’ comprehensive access needs (ASCD, 2013). The Whole Child Approach provides an opportunity to explore what accessibility really means and how it applies to all student populations.
Access within the Whole Child Framework
Surviving current pandemic circumstances and those that arise in its aftermath and advancing equity in varied learning environments requires that we consider accessibility deeply. Access is usually defined as a “right or opportunity” to benefit from a particular resource, to enter a specific place, or to participate alongside others. In considering the ways in which we often conceptualize access, disability studies scholar, Bess Williamson (2015) points out that it is used in relation to allowances for people experiencing disability and is also used in terms of economic justice (i.e. access to housing, employment, and health care).
Within education systems, the Covid-19 crisis has illuminated the many ways students, families, and teachers need access, as if those who ordinarily hadn’t thought much about access were suddenly enlightened by their own first-
hand experience with the struggle. Will we now be more conscious of those who regularly are not granted access? Access discussions shift conversation from changing people to changing social, economic, and political structures. It is not people’s bodies that prevent them from realizing equality, but changeable social structures that create barriers. Will we change problematic structures? Using the example of building codes in the 1960s that identified the need for physical access for those with disabilities, Williamson (2015) argues that defining and understanding access has been a much easier task than actually creating it.
Commonly, accessibility is perceived to solely refer to disability access. However, accessibility features aim to empower everyone with the same usability of tools for obtaining information, communicating, participating, and contributing. Accessibility reduces barriers for anyone’s benefit. Therefore realizing there are physical, intellectual, and social types of access (Jaeger & Bowman, 2005, p.63) helps promote expanded ways to conceptualize and
create opportunities for access and accessibility across the lifespan.
So, what do the Whole Child Approach tenets have to do with these notions of accessibility? Jaeger & Bowman (2005) assert that “access is a multifaceted concept with impacts on every part of daily life” (p.64) and that is difficult to refute. Since we all need access to physical, intellectual, and social spaces, the Whole Child Approach tenets help to identify strengths and gaps in how we create spaces, usable materials, effective delivery, and engagement opportunities. In examining each of the tenets, we find links to physical, intellectual, and social access, that is to say, access to spaces, information/communication, and participation in society. When we broaden our thinking about what access is and who needs it, we can then reimagine better ways to create it and
sustain it. Here, we consider access issues during the pandemic that relate to each of the five tenets:
Healthy. As schooling went remote last spring, we struggled to find ways to help students stay healthy. Physical proximity became a huge barrier. Many students lost access to the nutrition in meals provided at school sites. Some districts delivered food to families or set up food pick-up times. Although food insecurity was a problem before the pandemic, it became more visible to those of us who don’t face it every day.
While some students have experienced isolation from community, others have been cramped in crowded spaces without much room for exercise. As these issues became widespread, teachers began to focus their work more on health, teaching about hand-washing and wearing masks, talking about mental health and offering social-emotional tools. How else can we build access to healthy practice for students and families?
Safe. Providing school climates that are physically, emotionally, academically, and socially safe is the ongoing work teachers and administrators must always be engaged in. As privacy is a form of safety for some students, teachers have struggled to know if they should require cameras to be on. Feeling vulnerable when teachers and classmates see into their homes, some students have preferred to leave cameras off while attending remote classes. If students are not in the physical schoolhouse, what access to supervision do they have? Studies already are showing a rise in child trafficking (Todrea & Diaz, 2021) due to a number of pandemic-related variables. What options do parents have if they need to work? If they lose their income? As students transition back to the school then, other questions arise. Without access to more classroom space, social distancing requirements have loosened, opening more risks to certain populations.
Engaged. Being engaged is accessing connection, contributing and interacting with peers, teachers and meaningful lessons. Because learning is often a community experience, educators model and facilitate meaningful participation in dialogue and decision making. They work to incorporate creative curriculumrelated experiences. However, without basic access to connection, such as lack of internet, and/or a consistent conducive learning space, engaging learners and providing supports to monitor and direct their own progress, participation has been unsteady for many learners. Still, dedicated educators strive to meet this goal, to ensure learners have access to engagement when no student is
prevented from interaction with others or materials (Jaeger & Bowman, 2005).
Supported. Support comes in a variety of forms: through the use of proper tools, by having multiple means for accomplishing goals, with the presence of caring adults, etc. Access to support has been inconsistent for many students. As teachers built new systems for providing instruction and support
during remote teaching, the need for personalized learning increased while the ease of providing it decreased. Access to school counselors, underfunded before the pandemic, and other structured academic, social, and emotional support systems is a need that grows as students and families experience difficult times. Although this break in access has been detrimental, many educators are amazed by some positive changes in communication with parents and guardians that has come with the increased use of virtual meetings. Barriers that had previously prevented home-school partnerships have diminished. Virtual meetings have made easier access to language translators and to those family members who work long hours.
Challenged. Being prepared for success in a global environment presents opportunities for every learner to be challenged. Teaching and learning in a pandemic has put most into a survival mode, but also highlights our continual
adaptability. Modeling the relationship between these real world/global awareness experiences, as problemsolving competencies can provide multiple opportunities for learning with and through technology (ASCD, 2013). Having access to high expectations, a vital part of challenged, is necessary for transformative self-worth. How can we help learners recognize how their own capacities have carried them through challenging experiences? An opportunity that has arisen in many learning communities at this strange time is ongoing discussion about a shared challenge. Teachers and students alike are
...how do we maintain the team efforts, the empathy, and the openness to more flexible approaches... How can we create communities that look out for everyone all the time?
sharing their survival strategies, unique ideas for getting exercise, new skills they’ve had to master, and strategies for keeping or regaining motivation.
Aiming to meet access needs in all five of these tenets, educators have stepped up to the challenge during the pandemic, working tirelessly to knock down barriers. We might question whether we have put the same effort into meeting the access needs of students from marginalized communities who face inequities when there is no pandemic. And if not, how do we maintain the team efforts, the empathy, and the openness to more flexible approaches when it seems many of our students’ lives are “back to normal”? How can we create communities that look out for everyone all the time?
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Individual Accommodations
Perhaps UDL strategies are a good place to start. The impact of inclusive design strategies to achieve access in healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged ways (ASCD, 2013) allows a greater diversity of people the opportunity to benefit from access with the employment of multiple modalities. The concept of universal design and UDL centers on inclusive design—considering a wide range of users or participants and then building flexibility into the environment to ensure that it works for everyone.
Inclusive design is beneficial, yet it does not always account for or address a specific individual accommodations. We have seen this to be true with many disability-related accommodations. For example, access for a Deaf/HOH learner may require a qualified sign language interpreter. Access for a learner with low vision may require specialized speech to text software.
As we hone our skills in using UDL concepts, we can keep in mind that we still need to be mindful of setting up individualized accommodations, always on the look-out for access needs that are not yet being met. Proactive planning creates a welcoming inclusive environment, while individualized accommodations or supports become naturally considered and available. Is there a qualified interpreter at the Zoom
meeting? As moderator did I remember to explain how to ‘pin’ the interpreter? Did I consider a professional live transcription? Note that other attendees, in addition to the Deaf/HOH attendee, may also benefit from the transcript. Any efforts in creating physical, intellectual, and social access will likely benefit more than the individual.
Has Access Increased or Decreased During the Pandemic?
Remote learning and teaching has impacted access in many ways. As educators and students navigated through the new and complex demands resulting from various stay-at-home orders and half in-person/half online hybrid approaches, the benefits and challenges of remote learning became clearer. The pandemic caused an increase, out of necessity, in the use of instructional technology. Features and characteristics of teaching and learning changed rapidly. The traditional classroom went online with video conferencing platforms like Zoom and Jitsi. While these platforms enabled some students to access schooling online, the too-often ignored digital divide left many students without any contact with their teachers (Anderson, 2020).
Many school districts partnered with internet providers to offer families affordable connectivity and some sent buses out with hot spots (Camera, 2020). For those who could connect, educators took advantage of the increased connectivity to expand the walls of their classrooms. Suddenly, they were able to expose students to more and different learning experiences. Because much of life in the virtual classroom was so new, teachers had the opportunity and ‘permission’ to think outside the brick and mortar, try new resources, and revamp their lessons for an online environment.
For example, technology-infused lessons had the benefit of supporting English learners’ (ELs’) engagement with and practice of the target language in meaningful and authentic ways. With opportunities to receive digital class notes before or after lessons, ELs could better follow along and gain deeper access to the teacher’s instruction. Further examples of access as engagement are using digital
storytelling and digital stories
(Grigsby, Theard-Griggs, & Lilly, 2015)— an interdisciplinary, technology-enhanced activity that supports writing, reading, new media, and research skills. Providing multiple means to engage in physical, intellectual, and social ways of access has been crucial. There are some simple actions to take to provide access and support multiple learning styles and preferences; these often provide access since all potential students have been
considered—not excluded by design. For example, most remote learning inaccessibility issues experienced by students has to do with posted content
(Harvard, 2020). For more remote learning and teaching examples see Table 1 Inclusive Design Starter Quick Tip Examples for Access. a ‘new normal’ has been established, online learning resources and webbased applications will continue to offer a wealth of opportunity that will
CHALLENGES AND IMPLICATIONS
A Call for Non-Negotiable Status
These pandemic times have demonstrated and highlighted creativity in interdependence as well as the need to grow within uncomfortable spaces. We undoubtedly have been stretched and are emerging with new knowledge as educators. Now, how can we make prioritizing access for all be our new normal, a non-negotiable?
Many school districts are implementing new or changing protocols in response to their fluctuating Covid-19 rates, and there is uncertainty still about what the post-pandemic classroom will look like. Yet even after Covid-19 is halted and enhance the face-to-face classroom. What seems to be clear, however, is that online learning can no longer be on its former fringe—we know too much about how well some students respond, how increased access may help to reduce some unknown and known barriers, and empower newly accepted ways to participate and communicate for students and educators. We get to collectively create a new set of nonnegotiables—things that we design and come to expect, for the purpose of having the greatest impact and benefit.
As educators, the main ‘silver linings’ we cling to in the context of teaching, learning, curriculum, and supervision are (a) the abrupt opportunity we have had to acknowledge the access/accessibility knowledge, skill, and performance gaps that were a part of our pre-pandemic times, (b) the permission to experience and share the trial and error of lessons
learned, and (c) realizing we are much more capable of providing access/ accessibility than we might have previously thought or were encouraged to do. It seems natural that more learners emerged demonstrating they will benefit from inclusive design.
Remember high tech cannot replace high touch learning environments
Much time and effort has to be devoted to developing activities that integrate technology effectively and have an explicit learning outcome. Instructional goals must be paired with the appropriate technologies and multimedia resources to facilitate the desired learning outcome(s). But the fundamental principle of teaching remains true: teaching is, above all, a human activity. Culturally responsive practices and inclusive instruction cannot be forgotten aspects. “High tech” classes of diverse learners must also include “high touch” (Goodwin, 2016); that is to say human connection and empathy. This concept promotes the importance of also teaching how to think and communicate in real time, and the necessary warmth and empathy that is strongly linked to student success (Cornelius-White, 2007). Pair this with accessibility, and students’ needs and rights are more likely being met.
The conversation about the Internet being a fundamental right must not fade into the background. In 2016, the United Nations again declared online freedom and access a human right and one that should have protection (see U.N. resolution A/HRC/32/L.20). Whether the Internet is the right or whether it is a tool which enables the rights, not having access to the Internet means not having access to a vital resource of information exchange.
Solidarity in Progress: What’s Next?
Technology is rapidly changing but its integration can provide the optimum learning opportunities that a nontechnology-integrated classroom cannot. With technology permeating and changing how we live, work, and learn, it is evident that multiple modalities are needed now more than ever so technology is needed for optimal access. Alice Wong, author of Disability Visibility emphasized the need for seeking and valuing all perspectives to prevent exclusion, and to create inclusiveness:
I do see the future as a time when we really need a lot of solidarity with
one another. We need to show it. We need to really understand that asking for help, needing help is not a weakness….there are obvious gaps–knowledge gaps in the way that we design things…. The whole pressure to return back to what we think of as normal really wasn’t great in the first place [inclusive design and access].
(podcast interview Nikolov, 2021)
Ultimately, the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions and unexpected sudden remote teaching experiences have opened up our perspectives. We believe it is likely that as learning communities, we did not have an opportunity to have accessibility be a non-negotiable in past practices because it was so specialized and seemingly unattainable to know where to start or how to implement. Inclusive design is a genuine form of access and shows us, more clearly, ways for educators to reach everyone, and when disability related accommodations are needed, now they may be more readily available and accepted as a more welcoming new normal.
In her book, Being Heumann, internationally recognized disability rights leader, Judy Heumann (2020) asked “To...move forward we must ask: What is our vision for our society?” (p. 207). With a Whole Child Approach and inclusive design strategies, access as a non-negotiable is our vision. Moving forward let’s ask ourselves:
• Have I given myself credit and celebrated all that I have accomplished in contributing to access?
• How can I promote access as a nonnegotiable among my colleagues and with the students and families I serve?
• Where do I need support to integrate physical, intellectual, and social access? What examples can I share of accessibility in reaching the goals of healthy, safe, engaged, supported, challenged?
We began with the question “Can something good emerge from the pandemic?” and have considered how Whole Child Approach tenets might deepen our understanding of access and accessibility. This jolting opportunity has allowed us to assess what we think we know about access, celebrate what we learned, identify gaps/what we know we don’t know, and the capability by example to advance the ways we design for all.
Table 1. Inclusive Design Starter Quick Tip Examples for Access
Mental Health and Fatigue (Safe, Healthy, Engaged)
Select videos and recorded presentations that have been transcribed or utilize videos that have been professionally captioned (live and/ or post-production captioning) to allow any learner to read and listen. This helps to reduce fatigue (i.e., screen or auditory fatigues) and, by utilizing two modalities, to increase comprehension (i.e., listening and reading along with text) (Harvard, 2020). NOTE: understand that many YouTube auto-captioning is less than the 99% accurate threshold to be considered a legally compliant accommodation (Harvard, 2020).
Avoid using flashing gifs or video with sudden bright flashes—this may reduce screen fatigue, headaches or migraines, as well as avoid triggering a potential seizure. If the content is necessary, provide a warning prior to the start and description of the content.
Simple mental health access can include providing Content Warnings (CW) or Trigger Warnings (TW) because it provides a way for a student to have readiness of upcoming content that might be triggering to a person’s mental health (i.e., CW: neglect, substance abuse, blood, racism, animal cruelty, disability discrimination, etc). Read An-Introduction-to-
Content-Warnings-and-Trigger-Warnings-Draft.pdf
(umich.edu) for example tags/wording.
Organization, Study, Templates, Contrast, Font or Readability (Supported and Engaged)
For hashtags, use an uppercase letter for the first letter of each word #UpperCaseLetters.
Use easy-to-read fonts; avoid using green and red fonts since those are the most common color blindness areas; provide light-on-dark, or dark-on-light background contrast with text contrast (such as navy blue background, white font) to supports learners with ADHD and reading disabilities, as well as low vision.
Another tip is to remember that the typical minimum font size for a Word document is 12; a basic guide for accessible font size in a Word and in an online document/website is at least 18, for PowerPoint presentation slide is 18 and 24 (Making Illinois accessible for people with disabilities and visImpd_typogTM.pdf (textmatters.com).
ADA-friendly font/character styles are sans serif fonts such as Arial, Verdana, or Tahoma, Calibri, Helvetica, and Times New Roman. (Great Lakes ADA Center, 2016)
Templates are another helpful tools for efficiency and access. Several links and study tips are provided in a How to Study with Dyslexia
and Dysgraphia | Affordable Colleges Online.
Use the embedded default access features of templates. Format your Word document using the Heading Styles formatting (Header 1, Header 2 and Header 3)—then it is accessible for most, as well as easier to convert to other formats and creates an automatic updating table of contents (Convert Word
to PowerPoint: 5 Common Mistakes to Avoid
(nutsandboltsspeedtraining.com).
Accessible pdfs are crucial for access and efficiency. Read the article Make PDFs ADA Compliant for more information.
Visit the ADA Checklist: Website Compliance
Guidelines for 2021 in Plain English | by Kris
Rivenburgh | Medium for helpful resources that provides specific requirements with ‘do and don’t’ guidance (note: scroll halfway through the article to the WCAG 2.0 AA checklist, start at Section 1).
Provide a digital shared space such as a Google doc for shared notes (i.e, collective class notes with peers); host small group work in a shared Google slides so educators can monitor synchronous or asynchronous group work; enable videos Zoom, Microsoft Teams with AI closed captioning; select YouTube videos that are captioned, preferably professionally captioned. Share resources for internet access with families if needed (Free & Low-Cost Internet Plans | National Digital Inclusion Alliance).
NOTE: The content of Table 1 does not provide legal advice about the ADA, Section 504, or Section 508 accessibility compliance; the tips listed are compiled guidance for UDL access and various disability-related accessibility to support educators’ learning how to build inclusive design capacity in providing access for all learners in remote instruction.
Thank you, educators, for every single thing you tried, for every ounce of energy you contributed to helping students, families, and colleagues survive in the face of adversity.
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Dr. Andrea P. Dinaro is Interim Chair of the Teaching, Learning, and Diversity department and an Associate Professor of Special Education at Concordia University Chicago. Contact: andrea.dinaro@
cuchicago.edu
Dr. Suzanne Stolz serves at the University of San Diego as an Assistant Professor. A former high school English teacher and administrator, she has expertise in online instruction, curriculum design, school culture, inclusive education, and disability studies. Contact: sstolz@sandiego.edu
Dr. Yurimi Grigsby is Ia professor at Concordia University Chicago. She teaches Language and Linguistics, Assessment of Language Minority Students, Methods and Materials for Teaching CLD Students, Applied Philology and World Englishes, Second Language Acquisition and Issues in Second Language Rhetoric and Composition in the College of Education in the Department of Teaching, Learning, & Diversity. Contact: yurimi.grigsby@
