Classroom Accommodations

This accommodation supports equal access to course content and the note-taking process. Students with various disability impacts utilize this accommodation to retrieve missed information or for further clarification on concepts discussed in class. Federal disability law recognizes audio recording as a potential auxiliary aid when necessary to provide access to orally delivered information.    

Audio recording accommodations are intended to support access to lecture-based instruction and are generally not intended for student-centered discussions, small-group activities, or the sharing of personal information by other students.  

Students approved for this accommodation understand that recordings are for their personal use only and may not be shared, distributed, posted, or otherwise made available to others. Misuse of recordings may result in referral to the MSU Student Conduct System through the Office of Student Support & Accountability (OSSA). If concerns arise regarding sensitive discussions, instructors and students are encouraged to work collaboratively on appropriate recording practices, and a recording agreement may be utilized when needed.

Best practice: If an instructor has concerns about the recording of sensitive content shared in class, instructors can 1) make an announcement to make other students aware of possible recording and 2) facilitate an agreement with the student who is recording to stop during discussions that share personal and/or sensitive information.    

Audio Recording Agreement

Possible accommodations: 

• Faculty facilitated Notetaking assistance by shared lecture notes or established partnership between students
• Instructor-Provided Notes: Access to lecture notes/slides/handouts prior to class
• Provide all course lecture notes/handouts/power points electronically (or uploaded to D2L when possible). 

Note taking accommodations are intended to be a supplement to student notes when disability directly impacts the note taking process.

• Receiving note-taking assistance does NOT relieve students from the responsibility of attending and actively participating in class.
• Students who are granted this accommodation understand these notes are for personal use and are not to be shared with others. If notes are used inappropriately, instructors can refer the matter to the student conduct system for review. The MSU Office of Student Support & Accountability offers resources and processes for handling code of conduct concerns. 

Faculty Responsibilities

• To implement this accommodation, you may share slides or other lecture notes directly with the student or confidentially connect the student with supplemental class notes via a peer or TA/GA/etc. note taker.
• For example, you may find a student in the class who is willing to share notes, have that student email the notes to you after each class, and then send the notes to students who have a note taking assistance accommodation (use a blind copy if there are multiple students). In cases where a call for volunteer note takers is made in class, please avoid identifying the specific student(s) who need the notes in order to maintain confidentiality.
• Some students need access to notes in advance of class, which will be noted specifically on their Accommodation Letter. These students need time to review the material before class starts. We understand last minute changes to lecture materials are made at times; if this is the case, please discuss with the student and specialist to create a plan.

Asynchronous Classes

• When course content is posted for students to review at their own pace and as often as needed throughout the semester, note-related accommodations may be irrelevant. When students are able to access the material and lectures and pause/rewind/re-watch as needed, they can take better control of their own note taking skills.

Synchronous Classes

• When a course meets at a specific day/time via live lecture and content is not recorded/posted, students may still need to request accommodations for notes. This can be facilitated in a variety of ways:
  • Sharing slides or other lecture notes directly with the student
  • Confidentially connecting the student with supplemental class notes via a peer or TA/GA/etc. note taker
  • Allowing the student to record the live lecture for their own use, by recording via Zoom or an audio recorder (if audio quality allows)
  • Recording the lecture and sharing with the student

Possible accommodations: 

• Disability may require departure from class without penalty. If use of this accommodation becomes excessive or affects course integrity, please contact the student and specialist.
• Allow student to leave classroom for breaks to manage condition without penalty. 

Students with this accommodation may need to step out of class for a brief period to manage their condition. This might also mean leaving class early if their condition is unable to be managed in or near the classroom.  

Students with this accommodation are still required to meet all course requirements, including completing exams, quizzes, and homework. 

Student Responsibilities:

• Use this accommodation only for reasons related to your disability.
• Communicate with your instructor regarding use of this accommodation immediately after the departed class period.
• Meet with your instructor to inquire about recovering missed material from them or a classmate and/or making up missed assignments. 

Sample Email: Due to my disability, I needed to leave class today and will need to implement my accommodation for departing from class without penalty. Can you please let me know what course content I am missing and when we can meet to discuss a way to make up any missed work?

Faculty Responsibilities:

• Have an interactive discussion with the student regarding communication expectations when using this accommodation and strategies for recovering missed material.
• The student should not be penalized for missing class and faculty should support make up of attendance, participation, quiz, etc. points. This may be facilitated via written responses from the student, a conversation during office hours, etc.
• An absence due to disability impacts should not be included as an “excused absence” under an instructor’s attendance policy.
• If you believe departures/breaks are becoming excessive, communicate with the student and their specialist.

Possible accommodations: 

• Disability may cause periodic unavoidable class absences. If absences become excessive or affect course integrity, please contact the student and specialist.
• (New Accommodation Language): Modified Attendance: Disability may cause periodic unavoidable class absences. Student and instructor(s) will review implementation responsibilities on the RCPD website and discuss application to the specific course.   

Considerations

• A major consideration for this accommodation is whether attendance is an essential, fundamental component of the course. Even though attendance is considered important and should be required, it may not be essential if the student could obtain the information, occasionally, from other sources such as classmates’ notes, lecture materials from the course website, and meeting with professors for summary information.
• There are instances where attendance flexibility is less reasonable or not reasonable. Lab courses without alternative sections, most language courses, and classes which are extensively based on participation are all examples where attendance is essential as the information from such classes cannot be reproduced. This should be an individualized determination on a course-by-course and case-by-case basis.
• “Periodic” can ultimately depend on the course structure, attendance policy stated in the syllabus, whether in-person student participation is essential to the course, the impact that missing class will have on the experience of other students (ex: group project, discussion), and other factors related to the course and/or the student’s condition.
• For example: If the course attendance policy allows three unexcused absences per semester and in-class participation is an essential element for meeting course objectives, two additional absences due to disability impacts may be reasonable.
• Students with this accommodation are still required to meet all course requirements, including completing exams, quizzes, and homework.
• If a disability-related absence occurs on a scheduled exam and/or quiz day, it is reasonable to permit a make-up assessment. This does not cover the student to reschedule/miss assessments regularly or for non-disability related reasons.
• Absences for non-disability reasons are not excused by this accommodation.
• Providing documentation to a professor is not required when a student is absent due to a disability flare up.
• Like all accommodations, the accommodation periodic unavoidable absences cannot be implemented retroactively. Absence accommodation requests made late in the semester may not apply to absences that occurred earlier in the course.  

If the student and/or instructor become concerned about the use of this accommodation, they should immediately communicate with the student’s assigned Access Specialist. Waiting until the end of the semester to discuss attendance concerns will cause extreme difficulties with intervention and making reasonable determinations.  

Student Responsibilities 

Use this accommodation in rare circumstances only for reasons related to your disability. Illness, personal conflicts, or other non-disability reasons are not covered by this accommodation and are held to the course policies.  

Students using this accommodation should communicate with their instructor(s) before class begins or immediately after the missed class period to inform them of the intent to use this accommodation AND create a plan for making up work or recovering missed material. If you don’t promptly communicate with your instructor, the absence will not be considered an accommodation and will be graded based on the course policy.  

• Sample Email: “Due to my disability, I will be absent from class and will need to implement my attendance accommodation. Can you please let me know what course content I am missing and when we can meet to discuss a way to make up any missed work?” 

If your absences are becoming frequent due to disability impacts and are affecting your ability to be successful in the course, consult with your Access Specialist and/or academic advisor to discuss further options.  

Faculty Responsibilities  

• The student should not be penalized for missing class and faculty should support make up of attendance, participation, quiz, etc. points. This may be facilitated via written responses from the student, a conversation during office hours, etc.
• An absence due to disability impacts should not be included as an “excused absence” under an instructor’s attendance policy.
• Have an interactive discussion with the student regarding communication expectations and recovering missed material from you or a classmate. This might include sharing lecture slides, having a conversation during office hours, etc.
• If you believe absences are becoming excessive, please communicate with the student and RCPD immediately.

Questions we consider when determining how many absences are reasonable...

• Is there regular classroom interaction between the instructor and the students and amongst the students?
• Do student contributions in class constitute a significant component of the learning process?
• Does the fundamental nature of the course rely upon student participation as an essential method of learning?
• To what degree does the student’s failure to attend class constitute a significant loss of the educational experience of the other students in the class?
• What do the course description and syllabus say regarding attendance?
• How is the final grade is calculated? 

Possible Accommodations: 

• In rare circumstances, student may need extended time for assignments. Student will contact professor if needed to request an alternate deadline. If use of this accommodation becomes excessive or affects course integrity, please contact the student and specialist.
• (New Accommodation Language) Modified Deadlines: Disability may require periodic extensions on assignments. Student and instructor(s) will review implementation responsibilities on the RCPD website and discuss application to the specific course. 

Considerations

• Students use this accommodation when their condition is unpredictable and/or chronic in nature and they need to request a deadline extension for reasons directly related to disability impacts.
• Students and instructors must discuss use of this accommodation at the beginning of the semester to determine how much notice is needed for deadline extension requests.
• The student may need to notify the instructor before the deadline if answers are released immediately, grading begins immediately, or other students’ work would be impacted by an unexpected extended deadline. Students and instructors should determine how much notice is needed (for example: before X time on a due date, X hours in advance of the deadline, etc.)
• Notice after the deadline may be appropriate as well. Unpredictable disability impacts may prevent students from reaching out in advance of the deadline. However, students are responsible for reaching out to the instructor as early as reasonably possible to request the extension and establish a new due date. Blanket requests to make up missed work at the end of the semester are not covered by this accommodation.
• Extended deadline timelines may be advised by how long the assignment has been assigned for (with complete guidelines and materials available), the course schedule, if/how course assignments/concepts build on each other throughout time, and the student’s specific request.  
• An alternative due date should be explicitly set

Student Responsibilities   

• Use this accommodation periodically only for reasons related to your disability impacts.  
• Determine a specific due date and turn in your assignment according to this plan. Your instructors are not typically required to provide additional extensions if you cannot meet the new due date. 
• Sample Email: “Due to my disability, I will be unable to meet the [INSERT DUE DATE] deadline for [INSERT ASSIGNMENT NAME]. I would like to request additional time, per my Accommodation Letter. I request the opportunity to submit the assignment on [INSERT NEW REASONABLE DEADLINE].” 

Faculty Responsibilities   

• Have an interactive discussion with the student who has/requests this accommodation, so expectations are clear. 
• Use the student’s request, above guidelines, and your judgement to assist in determining an alternative due date in partnership with the student. If you are unsure, reach out to the student's Access Specialist.
• If you believe requests for extensions are impacting course integrity, communicate with the student and RCPD immediately.
• Do not require students to provide additional documentation beyond the accommodation letter to support the extension request (i.e., a doctor's note).