At a Glance
An Accessibility Statement allows instructors to communicate their dedication to making the classroom a welcoming and inclusive learning environment for all students, including those who need extra support.
Benefits
Accessibility statements remind students of the availability of official accommodations and also invite communication between students and faculty. It can reflect an instructor’s commitment to supporting diversity and the collaborative aspects of course design, teaching, and learning.
Recommendations
Write a friendly, supportive, and personal message to your students (it should not read like boilerplate policy statements!). The Accessibility Statement should encourage students who encounter accessibility challenges to communicate directly with you, regardless of whether or not they are registered with Student Accessibility Services.
Why an Accessibility Statement instead of an Accommodations Statement?
While information about official accommodations should certainly be included on your syllabus, a statement that only directs students to Student Accessibility Services without offering your own faculty assistance might signal negative implicit biases against disabled students. Therefore, you want to make the following clear:
- Disabled students are trustworthy; they are justified to ask for assistance from the instructor whenever they need help.
- Together, the course instructor and student can find solutions to an identified barrier. The disability service office does not always have to be involved for accommodations/strategies and added flexibility.
- Disabled students are equally able to navigate the curriculum and the instructor wants the course design and assessments to be accessible for all.
Examples of Accessibility Statements
Our institution values diversity and inclusion; we are committed to a climate of mutual respect and full participation. Our goal is to create learning environments that are usable, equitable, inclusive and welcoming. If there are aspects of the instruction or design of this course that result in barriers to your inclusion or accurate assessment or achievement, please notify the instructor as soon as possible. Disabled students are also welcome to contact Student Accessibility Services to discuss a range of options to removing barriers in the course, including accommodations.
I am committed to creating a course that is inclusive in its design. If you encounter barriers, please let me know immediately so that we can determine if there is a design adjustment that can be made or if an accommodation might be needed to overcome the limitations of the design. I am always happy to consider creative solutions as long as they do not compromise the intent of the assessment or learning activity. You are also welcome to contact Student Accessibility Services to begin this conversation or to establish accommodations for this or other courses. I welcome feedback that will assist me in improving the usability and experience for all students.
Your success in this class is important to me. We will all need accommodations because we all learn differently. If there are aspects of this course that prevent you from learning or that form barriers to your inclusion, please let me know as soon as possible. Together we’ll develop strategies that can enable you to succeed in the course. I encourage you to visit Student Accessibility Services to determine how you could improve your learning as well. If you need official accommodations, you have a right to have these met. There is also a range of resources on campus, including the Yale College Writing Center, Residential College Tutors, and Academic Strategies.
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