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-First and foremost my classroom will have all accommodations necessary for my student to not only be comfortable but excel academically. I would hope to have a Para as well to help with getting the student to and from their destinations.
-I will allow time, whether it be more time for reading, schoolwork or other assignments I will always allow extra time as long as it is not due to laziness.
-I will also be open minded as to let the student use their own equipment (tablet, laptop or other tech items) if it is physically more comfortable for them and ensures their academic performance benefits from it.
-I will also make available the classroom responsibilities I give the students available to them if they are capable of doing so. I would never allow the student to feel disassociated from their fellow students so I would hold them to the same standards.

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10 Things to Remember when Interacting with People Who have a Physical Disability:
-Never point, laugh, ignore and do not stare.
-Never shout when communicating with someone that has a hearing disability.
-If they have an assistant or caretaker still talk directly to the person and not their assistant or caretaker.
-Kneel or sit when talking to someone in a wheel chair.
-Never pet a service dog without permission.
-Never touch or play with their equipment or devices (they could be for their disability.)
-Be patient and never interrupt people with speech disabilities.
-Respect independence, always ask if they need help rather than just helping without consent.
-They have the same interest in you so indulge in them.
-Focus on what they can do not can't do.

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Here is an inspirational video about how one overcame Cerebral Palsy and is living her dreams. Her parents never put restrictions on her, which in turn she never placed on herself. Gives some information on how Cerebral Palsy is caused by accidents. Then finishes with people with handicaps are the largest minority in the world and the most underrepresented group in Hollywood.

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“I have cerebral palsy. I shake all the time,” Maysoon Zayid announces at the beginning of this exhilarating, hilarious talk. (Really, it’s hilarious.) “I’m like Shakira meets Muhammad Ali.” With grace and wit, the Arab-American comedian takes us on a whistle-stop tour of her adventures as an actress, stand-up comic, philanthropist and advocate for the disabled.

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10 Facts about Physical Disabilities:
-Over 1 billion people live with a disability.
-Disabilities dis-proportionally affect  vulnerable populations.
-They often do not receive health care.
-Children with a disability are less likely to attend school.
-People with a disability are likely to be unemployed.
-They are more vulnerable to poverty.
-Rehabilitation helps functioning and maximizing independence.
-People with disabilities can live in the community and participate.
-Physical barriers can be overcome.
-Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) promotes, protects and ensures human rights for all people with disabilities

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WHO fact file on disability provides 10 facts and images on the health issues.

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Provisions need to be in place for students with disabilities that include:
-Cerebral Palsy
-Muscular Dystrophy               -Coordination and Balance
-Multiple Sclerosis (MS)         -Head injuries
-Parkinson's Disease               -Students with wheel chairs or other devices
-Physical Injuries                      -Long periods in the hospital

Restrooms and other amenities need accommodate these needs also.

Teaching Strategies:
-Review time allowed for student.
-Academic activities off campus should have proper accommodations.
-Allow student to use own belongings for comfort.
-Allow more time to read.
-Have access to tutors.

Assessment Strategies:
-Never lower standards.
-Allow student to chose between written and oral exams/presentations.
-Provide extra time and breaks.
-Allow certain extensions.

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Physical activity and mobility may be impaired by a number of conditions, some of which are permanent, others of a temporary or intermittent nature. These conditions include cerebral palsy, arthritis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson's disease and repetitive strain injury (RSI). Back or neck injuries may also affect general mobility. A stroke may result in temporary or permanent loss of feeling or movement of part of the body - frequently on one side. Speech and vision may also be affected in students with cerebral palsy and multiple sclerosis for example, and in those who have suffered a stroke.

Coordination and balance may be mildly or severely affected by any of these conditions. Movement may be impaired by muscle spasms, numbness or pain. As a consequence, both manipulation of equipment and writing may be difficult. Some students use wheelchairs to enhance their mobility whilst others will walk with the aid of callipers, crutches or walking stick. Some students may experience chronic fatigue and for others there will be extreme fluctuations of energy from day to day.

Physical disability may also result from head injury (ABI - acquired brain injury). Increasing numbers of students are returning to education following vehicle or sporting accidents in which they have sustained some degree of brain injury. Resulting impairment may affect speech, vision or coordination, and the injury may also be responsible for personality disorders or depression.

In providing accommodations for students with physical disabilities we need to remember that some conditions are characterised by periods of remission, so the disability will not always be visible and will not always impact on the student's ability to function in the educational environment in the same way. Each learner with a physical disability should be assessed individually and accommodations should be implemented based on the unique needs of each student.

Impact of a physical disability

The impact of physical disability on learning will vary but for most students the issues of most significance relate to physical access, manipulation of equipment (e.g. in a laboratory), access to computers, participation in field trips and the time and energy expended in moving around campus. Students may be affected in the following ways:

When there is limited time to move between venues, students may miss the beginning of a class.

Fatigue is common for many of these students. Using facilities that others take for granted, such as toilets, food-outlets, libraries and lecture rooms, may be a major undertaking.

Some students may experience functional difficulties: an inability to write using a pen; reduced writing speed; involuntary head movements which affect the ability to read standard-sized print; and reduced ability to manipulate resources in the learning environment. They may have difficulty turning pages or using standard computers.

Students may have frequent or unexpected absences from class owing to hospitalisation or changes in their rehabilitation or treatment procedure. Earlier periods of hospitalisation may have meant gaps in schooling.

Students with a long-standing mobility disability may have experienced gaps in their schooling due to periods of hospitalisation.This may have affected their confidence in learning.

Students with a mobility impairment may have fewer opportunities for interaction with other students. Feelings of separateness in the learning environment may have an impact on learning.

Teaching Strategies

There is a range of inclusive teaching strategies that can assist all students to learn but there are some specific strategies that are useful in teaching a group which includes students with physical impairment.

The fact that students have a mobility disability may not always be immediately apparent. Needs will vary, and difficulties may fluctuate. Some students will choose to disclose their disability; others will not. At your first lecture, you might invite any students who have a disability to contact you for a confidential discussion of their specific learning needs. You might also ask students what, if any, information would need to be shared with other members of staff, or with other students in the class. Below are some further suggestions:

Students who use wheelchairs, callipers or crutches, or who tire easily, may find it difficult moving about within the constraints of lecture timetables. Absence or lateness may be a result of the distance between teaching venues, so at the end of a lecture you may need to recap any information given at the beginning.

Check that academic activities which take place off-campus (such as industry visits, interviews or fieldwork) are accessible to people with a mobility disability. Consider supplementary laboratory practicals, films or videos as alternative options to field trips.

Students with a mobility disability may sometimes wish to use their own furniture, such as ergonomic chairs or sloped writing tables. Extra space may need to be created in teaching rooms, but this should be done unobtrusively.

Some students with back problems may prefer to stand in lectures or classes, rather than sit.

Some students may need to use a tape recorder or note-taker in lectures. Extra time is involved in processing information acquired in this way. It is common practice in some departments to routinely tape all lectures. This is a practice which will assist a variety of students, including those who may be absent from time to time because of their disability.

Students may need extensions to deadlines for work involving locating and using library resources. Provide reading lists well before the start of a course so that reading can begin early.

Academic isolation may be an issue for students who are unable to participate in some class activities. One-to-one sessions with a tutor may help fill this gap in participation.

Assessment Strategies

In considering alternative forms of assessment, equal opportunity, not a guaranteed outcome, is the objective. You are not expected to lower standards to accommodate students with a disability, but rather are required to give them a reasonable opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.

Students with a mobility disability may need particular adjustments to assessment tasks. Once you have a clear picture of how the disability impacts on performance you can consider alternative assessment strategies, such as those suggested below:

A reader or an oral examination (either presenting answers on tape or participating in a viva) are alternatives to the conventional written paper. An oral examination is not an easy option for students. Give the same time for an oral examination as for a written exam, but allow extra time for the student to listen to and refine or edit responses. In your assessment, allowance should be made for the fact that spoken answers are likely to be less coherent than written answers.

For some students the combination of written and oral examination will be most appropriate. Allow students to write answer plans or make outline notes, but then to answer the question orally. Your assessment should be based on both the notes and the spoken presentation.

Students may need to use a personal computer or a personal assistant in an examination. If so, it may be necessary to provide extra space for equipment, or a separate examination venue if the noise from equipment (e.g. a voice synthesiser) is likely to be distracting for other students.

Provide extra time in examinations for students who have reduced writing speed. Some students with a mobility disability may need rest breaks. Take-home examinations and split papers may be options, given that some students may need double time to complete examinations.

Allow extensions to assignment deadlines if extensive research involving physical activity (e.g. frequent trips to the library or collection of data from dispersed locations) is required.

Related Resources

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Inclusive teaching practices for students with physical disability

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Enacted in 1980 this act prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in all areas of public life, jobs, schools, transportation, and public or private places open to the general public. It is divided into 5 titles.
-Title I (Employment)
-Title II (State and Local Government)
-Title III (Public Accommodations)
-Title IV (Telecommunications)
-Title V (Misc. Provisions)

Further ADA issues include:
-Lack of funding for healthcare and community support.
-Aging population (75 million) being combined with the already 45 million people with disabilities.
-Ensuring people with disabilities an use the ever changes in technologies.

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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law in 1990. The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public. The purpose of the law is to make sure that people with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. The ADA gives civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities similar to those provided to individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications. The ADA is divided into five titles (or sections) that relate to different areas of public life.

In 2008, the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) was signed into law and became effective on January 1, 2009. The ADAAA made a number of significant changes to the definition of "disability." The changes in the definition of disability in the ADAAA apply to all titles of the ADA, including Title I (employment practices of private employers with 15 or more employees, state and local governments, employment agencies, labor unions, agents of the employer and joint management labor committees); Title II (programs and activities of state and local government entities); and Title III (private entities that are considered places of public accommodation).

Title I (Employment)

Equal Employment Opportunity for Individuals with Disabilities

This title is designed to help people with disabilities access the same employment opportunities and benefits available to people without disabilities. Employers must provide reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants or employees. A reasonable accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or the work environment that will enable an applicant or employee with a disability to participate in the application process or to perform essential job functions.

This portion of the law is regulated and enforced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Employers with 15 or more employees must comply with this law. The regulations for Title I define disability, establish guidelines for the reasonable accommodation process, address medical examinations and inquiries, and define "direct threat" when there is significant risk of substantial harm to the health or safety of the individual employee with a disability or others.

More information and events related to ADA Title I (Employment).

Title II (State and Local Government)

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in State and Local Government Services

Title II of the ADA prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in all programs, activities, and services of public entities. It applies to all state and local governments, their departments and agencies, and any other instrumentalities or special purpose districts of state or local governments. It clarifies the requirements of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, for public transportation systems that receive federal financial assistance, and extends coverage to all public entities that provide public transportation, whether or not they receive federal financial assistance. It establishes detailed standards for the operation of public transit systems, including commuter and intercity rail (e.g., AMTRAK).

This title outlines the administrative processes to be followed, including requirements for self-evaluation and planning; requirements for making reasonable modifications to policies, practices, and procedures where necessary to avoid discrimination; architectural barriers to be identified; and the need for effective communication with people with hearing, vision and speech disabilities. This title is regulated and enforced by the U.S. Department of Justice.

More information and events related to ADA Title II (State and Local Government).

Title III (Public Accommodations)

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Public Accommodations and in Commercial Facilities

This title prohibits private places of public accommodation from discriminating against individuals with disabilities. Examples of public accommodations include privately-owned, leased or operated facilities like hotels, restaurants, retail merchants, doctor's offices, golf courses, private schools, day care centers, health clubs, sports stadiums, movie theaters, and so on. This title sets the minimum standards for accessibility for alterations and new construction of facilities. It also requires public accommodations to remove barriers in existing buildings where it is easy to do so without much difficulty or expense. This title directs businesses to make "reasonable modifications" to their usual ways of doing things when serving people with disabilities. It also requires that they take steps necessary to communicate effectively with customers with vision, hearing, and speech disabilities. This title is regulated and enforced by the U.S. Department of Justice.

More information and events related to ADA Title III (Public Accommodations).

Title IV (Telecommunications)

This title requires telephone and Internet companies to provide a nationwide system of interstate and intrastate telecommunications relay services that allows individuals with hearing and speech disabilities to communicate over the telephone. This title also requires closed captioning of federally funded public service announcements. This title is regulated by the Federal Communication Commission.

More information and events related to ADA Title IV (Telecommunications).

Title V (Miscellaneous Provisions)

The final title contains a variety of provisions relating to the ADA as a whole, including its relationship to other laws, state immunity, its impact on insurance providers and benefits, prohibition against retaliation and coercion, illegal use of drugs, and attorney's fees. This title also provides a list of certain conditions that are not to be considered as disabilities.

Future ADA Issues

What Barriers Still Exist For People With Disabilities?

[Captioned Video -- 1:10 min.]

Disability and Our Aging Population

[Captioned Video -- 1:42 min.]

Changes in Technology 2

[Captioned Video -- 1:11 min.]

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What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)?

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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law in 1990. The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public.