Sample+Paper




 * Serving Students with Developmental Disabilities ||


 * LIS 701, Dominican University ||




 * **Lies V.A. Garner** ||


 * **12/17/2007** ||



Libraries have a history of serving disabled populations, beginning in the nineteenth century with specialized service to hospitalized and visually impaired individuals (Rubin 385). Today libraries serve several categories of disabled patrons, including the physically and mentally impaired, with a variety of media tailored to meet their needs. This is done partly in response to laws requiring accessibility, but also because librarians see their mission as providing service to //all// in their communities. One area that I believe libraries will need to focus in the future is providing service to those with developmental disabilities. This is particularly true for school media centers. Libraries in public schools have been subject to laws regarding accommodation of special needs individuals since 1975. At that time, Public law 94-142, the Education of All Handicapped Children Act, was adopted. This law states that “handicapped children should attend public school in mainstream classrooms except where other placement is required”. In 1978 it became known as Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (Alexander 250; Foos and Pack 76; Applin 6; Lang & Berberich ix) and Congress updated IDEA most recently in 2004 to align it more closely with President Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act (IDEA 2004 News). IDEA requires schools to assess a child’s educational needs, include parents in the planning of the child’s educational program, educate students in the least restrictive environment and create Individualized Educational Programs (IEPs) for each student (Foos and Pack 76). Lang and Berberich summarize by saying, “Children with disabilities must be educated to the maximum extent possible with their nondisabled age-appropriate peers (ix).” (It should be noted that schools are only subject to this law if they choose to receive federal funding.) The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into federal law in 1990 (Foos and Pack 78; Alexander 250). Title II of the ADA provides that “no qualified individual with a disability shall…be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of services, programs, or activities of a public entity” (par. 5 ADA Regulations). Federally funded libraries thus are not only required to be physically accessible, but must also be sure all services are adapted to meet the needs of their users. Private schools often used these laws as guidelines to make their facilities in mainstream settings. (Petrie 8). Because these requirements were already being met in schools, media centers were not significantly impacted by the requirements of the ADA (Carter 13; Foos and Pack 78). In 2001, the American Library Association Council adopted a “Library Services for People with Disabilities Policy” which was written by a group under the direction of the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA), a division of the ALA (Library Services). This policy was created in response to federal laws including the ADA as well as the recognition that patrons included large numbers of disabled and that patrons supported disability rights. The policy addresses the scope of disability laws, library services, facilities, collections, assistive technology, employment, and training and development of librarians (Association of Specialized Libraries). I found it surprising that it took the ALA so long following the Americans with Disabilities Act to create a disability policy. This is particularly true given the ALA’s Bill of Rights, which states a basic policy of “providing services for… all in the community the library serves,” and the ALA Code of Ethics, which states “we provide the highest level of service to all library users” (Bill of Rights and Code of Ethics). Alexander reminds us that, “The goal of libraries is to provide equal access to all patrons, using responsive and perceptive staff, state of the art equipment, and other resources” (248-249). The Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies has a section for “Libraries Serving Special Populations (LSSPS).” LSSPS is “charged to improve the quality of library service for people with special needs, including people who have…developmental differences ” (Libraries Serving Special Populations). I was disappointed that although forums exist within the LSSPS for those with physical disabilities, I did not find a profession-wide source for answers about supporting people with developmental disabilities. Developmental disabilities include the broad category of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). As a spectrum disorder, autism can impact individuals slightly or significantly (Autism Spectrum Disorders). Development is disrupted in three main areas: 1. Communication (including verbal and non-verbal communication), 2. Social skills (holding conversation, understanding how others think and feel), 3. Routine or repetitive behaviors (such as repeating words, obsession with routine or schedule) (Autism Spectrum Disorders; Akin and MacKinney 35). The Center for Disease Control gives a prevalence rate for autism in the US population as 1 in 166. The number of children being serviced for autism in public special education programs rose six-fold between 1994 and 2003 (Autism). This creates a significant impact on schools and their media centers. In addition to the statistically large number of students affected by autism, school media centers can expect to service more of these children because of the current emphasis on “mainstreaming” or including special needs students in a regular education setting (Walling 146; Alexander 249). Schools integrated special needs students into regular education classrooms following Public Law 94-142 in 1975, but only moved toward accepting these students as full members of the classroom community in the late 1980s. Schools that have adopted inclusion goals strive to welcome and value diversity. They focus on allowing children to learn with peers of their own age, engage in appropriate learning and work with a heterogeneous group (Lang and Berberich 17-19). Because of their central role in schools and familiarity with all students and faculty, Library Media Specialists are in a strong position to take leadership roles supporting the expectations of inclusive learning (Hopkins 17, 19). This is in keeping with librarians’ emphasis on taking socially progressive political positions and addressing the needs of the underserved (Rubin 325). To support inclusion, school librarians must adapt or modify resources so all students can use the media center. Lang and Berberich outline four critical elements in establishing inclusive learning settings: create safe, accepting and caring environments that see challenges as opportunities for growth; use strategies that maximize each student’s participation, development and interaction; manage the classroom and environment to best provide for special needs kids; and become aware of wider issues such as parental involvement, support people and attitudinal development. (2) The first step in creating a media center that supports inclusion is to determine if the school’s library is in compliance with applicable laws (Foos and Pack 84). The analysis should also review whether the media center can help other educators create more inclusive classrooms and review the library staff’s attitudes toward users with disabilities. Hernon and Calvert offer assessment samples in their book __Improving the Quality of Library Services for Students with Disabilities__ (193-200). They suggest a basic way to evaluate attitudes is to see if staff teach, joke with, touch, maintain eye contact with and talk about other topics with those with disabilities to the same extent they talk to other students (25). Following evaluation, if new accommodations are determined necessary, it will be important to proactively budget funds for changes (Applin 6). The next step in creating an inclusive media center is to write a Disability Services Policy. The policy should include statements regarding access, staff awareness and expanded services (Alexander 249). Staff may need more knowledge about the media-related needs of disabled students and ways materials can be adapted to meet those needs (Petrie v). A disability services policy can serve as a touchstone and support in making sure needs are met. I would like to focus on how school media centers can become inclusive learning centers for students with autism. To do this, we must understand what this population is like. Socially, you may find autistic children “aloof, passive, or active and odd” (Akin and MacKinney 35). Often these children have difficulty transitioning to a new task (such as coming to the library or changing from instruction to the abstract task of finding a book to check out). Their language skills range from nonverbal to incredibly verbose. Skills will be unevenly developed (e.g. able to read well but unable to tie shoelaces). Children with autism often have a preoccupation with certain skills or behavior (known as “perseveration”). It is common for children with ASD to be hypo- or hypersensitive to sounds, textures or smells. They may also use actions like rocking or spinning as self-stimulatory or calming behaviors (Akin and MacKinney 36). Media centers must consider how their physical space affects students with autism. Universal design, which focuses on products and environments being useful for all, must be integrated in such things as how chairs are arranged and the process for checking out materials (Wojahn 47). Lighting is important – the space should not be dim and glare should be avoided (Wojahn 48; Lang and Berberich 29, Petrie 89; Bennett 25). Sound levels should be controlled, possibly allowing different areas for quiet and noisy activities (Bennett 28; Becker 249; Bredekamp and Copple 125; Wright and Davie 104; Petrie 89). Temperature also affects students’ ability to learn; for young children a relatively cool setting is best (Wright and Davie 27; Petrie 89). Students with ASD would especially benefit from a choice of areas offering solitude or company (Bennett 30; Bredekamp and Copple 125; Lang and Berberich 29; Wright and Davie 104). A textured mural offering opportunities to stimulate senses would be a wonderful gift to students with ASD. The mural could include colors and lighting with kinesthetic opportunities like mirrors, brushes, flaps and latches. A sensory mural would “enhance perceptual, motor and sensory skills” (Matthews 24). Overall, the media center should be active, but orderly and predictably structured (Bredekamp and Copple 125; Akin 39). Computers are now central parts of media centers (Hernon and Calvert 106); however, they may present problems for students with ASDs. Because so many people with autism have sensory challenges, librarians should be alert to whether a student would do better with a screen reader, larger type on the screen or high contrast settings on the monitor (Carter 145). Contrast can be modified by simply taping a report cover over the screen (Minkel 26). Type size and contrast can be adjusted through settings in operating systems; in addition, Windows includes a basic text-to-speech reader (Wojahn 48). Students with autism often have challenges with fine motor skills (Autism Symptom Checklist) so they might benefit from on-screen keyboards or keyboard shortcuts instead of a mouse (Carter 15). Windows also has keyboard options such as “sticky keys” that allow the user to depress a key longer than average without a string of the same letter appearing on the screen (Wojahn 48). The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) created web accessibility guidelines in 2004, and the Center for Applied Technology established a program known as “Bobby” to check websites’ compliance with these accessibility standards (Carter 15; Hernon and Calvert 99). Another free service for evaluating website accessibility is Wave 3.0 (Hernon and Calvert 99). Librarians should use these tools when evaluating materials for students with cognitive and visual processing challenges (Walling 137). It is important for media centers to support their special needs students by training them to use technology. Bredekamp and Copple call the internet “the great equalizer” (41). Having accessible equipment in the library allows special needs students “access to a learning environment during breaks outside class time” (Hopkins 18-19). Independent work lets students build their self-confidence and frees up staff to work with other students (Petrie 75). Additionally, accommodating student diversity through technological support increases the media specialist’s value to all teachers (Hopkins 19). As educators, media specialists have much to offer students with ASD to make their experience meaningful. The first step is for media specialists to establish good relationships with special education teachers as sources of information and assistance (Hernon and Calvert 100; Hopkins 17; Petrie 21; Wojahn 46). Parents can also be used as information sources (Bredekamp and Copple 139). Time spent in the media center should support students’ individual education plans (IEPs), which in the case of students with ASD often include aspects of social functioning. Media specialists can work with teachers to determine the best way to introduce and evaluate this development (Akin 39). Akin reports that “young people with autism benefit from oral reading, story times, multimedia, song and literacy efforts” (35). All of these can be provided in a library story time. When using books to teach social skills, Gerber recommends illustrations in which “features are prominent, obvious or exaggerated” (243). Another factor to consider when selecting books or activities for story times is to have a theme that will help children build connections (Akin 36). “Multi-sensory approach” is a current buzz-word in teaching. It is an attempt to meet a variety of learning styles through reaching many senses (Becker 249; Carter 14; Gorman 22). Presenting the same material in a variety of ways, can tap into different students’ primary and secondary strengths, which is particularly helpful for students with ASD (Carter 14; Petrie 19). Since students with ASD often possess expressive or receptive processing difficulties, it is important to provide both oral and written instructions, rephrase key points, use simple language and follow concise, sequential lesson plans. It is best to give immediate hands-on experience after directions are given (Carter 14). Material may need to be broken down into smaller bits (Gorman 24; Lang and Berberich 50). An example of a modification for students with ASD would be to walk them to the material they are seeking, not just point or tell where to find the item. It is crucial that educators are aware of their attitudes when dealing with students with disabilities. They must possess a commitment to inclusion (Lang and Berberich 21; Wojahn 46). Carter’s research found that “attitudes of the library staff were often more important than their actual words” and “that one bad experience in the library can turn a person with disabilities away permanently” (16). An important way to show support is to use “people-first language” (Walling 146). This means referring to a student as a “person with autism” rather than an “autistic person.” If we truly support the ALA Code of Ethics obligation to treat all users equally (Rubin 351), we need to recognize the needs of the growing population of individuals with autism spectrum disorders. After library staff members in California were trained to support patrons with disabilities, studies showed that satisfaction ratings from all users went up, and staff enthusiasm for their jobs also increased (Will 130). Media specialists are in an ideal position not only to support inclusion in their schools but to become advocates for the students with developmental disabilities.

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