Schools Just Don't Understand

Two months ago, there was this video going viral on Tiktok where a female deaf student was being disrespected by her professor for not paying attention in class without not realizing that the reason she hasn't responded is that her sign language translator must translate for her first for her to understand.

When I first watched it, I of course felt annoyed as I am hard of hearing myself. The professor just didn't understand the implications of what it means to be deaf or hard of hearing. Unlike most disabilities, hearing impairment interferes with a person's ability to effectively communicate because it prevents the person from hearing the speaker to understand. Luckily I can hear somewhat without my hearing aids, but some deaf people rely on a sign language interpreter or translator, and it takes time for the person who is signing to translate, especially in a lecture when the professor isn't taking breaks when he speaks.

This video has now circulated the internet and many news outlets like CNN. They have informed the public that the professor has now been sent on paid leave while the school investigates this human right violation.

This story reminded me of my own experiences of when the school just didn't understand the implications of what it means to be a person with disability. One of the reasons I attended the University of Toronto was because of their accessibility services. I was impressed with the number of accommodations they offered and how serious they were with it. Now they are not perfect, but based on the research I conducted, they hold up against most schools.

Yet, back in February, I received a bit of a scare when my teaching assistant (TA) for one of my classes announced that in two days we would be having a test. Even though the syllabus does say we will be having tests in the course, it doesn't tell you when.

So right before our second tutorial, they dropped the bomb.

Naturally everyone was panicking because they only had two days to study for a test they didn't know beforehand.

But I was furious because the two days would not be sufficient time for me to ensure that I would be accommodated for the tests, such as getting extra time. At the University of Toronto, we have an accommodated test service (ATS). Anyone registered with Accessibility Services can sign up for any test or exam to receive their needs. Personally, this is kind of silly in an online setting, as students are no longer going to the Exam center. But I digress, the real issue is that the student must make arrangements at least two weeks before the test date. Students can try signing up through the emergency option and ask their advisor to give ATS the green light, but it isn't guaranteed.

So you can see why I was freaking out when I got that email from the TA. I was even more upset when at the beginning of the term I emailed my professor my accommodations letter that informs him of all my necessary accommodations. Yet for some reason, my TA never got it. So now it has become my new rule to email both my professor and TA. But even if they got that letter, the letter does not explain the process a student goes through to get that accommodation.

I ended up explaining to my TA of the process so that other students in my class and I could take the tests and be accommodated.

I might have been lucky this time, but I know that this is just one of many issues that spring up around the problem of the disconnect between the academics and accessibility side of university.

If that Tiktok video says anything it shows just how clueless some professors are when dealing with disabled students. It’s even worse in elementary and high schools. Depending on where you are, some teachers are not entirely sure about how to teach students with a disability.

Most schools tend to use segregation to handle disabled students, because most students prefer a quiet space to work and cool down. As a result, schools hire special education teachers/ specialists to teach the students. As much as I treasure my special Ed teachers, it would have been nicer if I didn’t have yet another responsibility to educate the other teachers who have no idea of the specifics of my disability.

Teachers should be not only aware of different disabilities and how to handle them in the classroom, but also have a detailed description of that disability and the necessary accommodations needed then consider these when teaching disabled students. There should also be a better overlap of sharing information between the accessibility provider, the students and the academic institution, to prevent such lapses and these situations from happening again.