Adjustments

Meeting individual student needs

Adjustments are actions taken that enable students with disability to access syllabus outcomes and content on the same basis as their peers. Under the Disability Standards for Education 2005, all schools must provide reasonable adjustments for students with disability who need them in Kindergarten to Year 12. All decisions about adjustments must be made collaboratively with the parents or carers and the student themselves, if appropriate.  

Adjustments may be evidenced in a student’s personalised plan or teaching and learning programs, depending on the individual student’s needs.

Deciding to make adjustments

The types of adjustments will vary according to the needs of the individual student. Decisions are made at school level to offer adjustments to students with disability in course work and assessment activities. These decisions are best made using collaborative curriculum planning. 

Teachers and schools use their professional judgement when deciding to provide adjustments. They make decisions to provide adjustments at one of 4 levels:

1. support provided within quality differentiated teaching practices
2. supplementary adjustments
3. substantial adjustments
4. extensive adjustments.

Decisions are made in line with Nationally Consistent Collection of Data.

Types of adjustments

Schools can make the following types of adjustments:

• General examples
• Communication
• Writing
• Reading
• Listening
• Viewing
• Field trips and excursion
• Making, performing and constructing
• Group work
• Physical activity
• Learning from home

General adjustments

Examples of general adjustments can include:

• adjustments to classroom organisation. For example, seating, uncluttered wall space, blinds to reduce glare on a whiteboard
• modifications to equipment or furniture
• materials and resources that support teaching and learning activities. For example, hands-on learning materials, visuals and anchor charts to support concept development, word walls to support vocabulary acquisition
• the use of technology. For example, personal devices to access learning, alternate formats such as large print or Braille
• adjustments to the amount of lesson content or the time allocated to complete work. For example, consider core or critical content first, and teach key terminology to reduce cognitive load
• more demonstration of key concepts and skills. For example, modelling of a concept or skill, visual supports, scaffolding processes or instructions
• structured opportunities for guided and independent practice
• extra support through teacher’s aide or peers
• physical, visual, or verbal prompts to undertake tasks. Start by using the least intrusive prompt possible and gradually fade it out as the student becomes more independent.   

Communication adjustments

Students may use a variety of forms of communication. They may also use a range of strategies to communicate with others and to respond to and demonstrate their learning in the classroom. 

A student may take part in communicating by:

• answering closed questions on a topic
• using changes in facial expression, a nod or gesture to respond to a closed question. For example, ‘Are you playing in a sports team at school?’
• selecting photographs, pictures or symbols from visual aids. Aids may include a double item choice board or keyring cluster. For example, the student can choose between 2 photographs to express a preference
• selecting symbols from a communication board to express an opinion
• using a communication device such as a voice output communication aid (VOCA), or a text-to-speech device
• using assistive listening devices. These allow the student to take part in and contribute to small-group and whole-class discussions
• communicating orally or using assistive technology such as speech-to-text devices
• using key word sign or Auslan.

For more information read our Communication forms page.

Writing adjustments

A student may take part in writing or recording by:

• writing simple answers to questions
• using a word bank or reference list
• ticking pre-prepared checklists
• using graphic organisers or scaffolds
• using photographs, pictures or symbols. For example, the student:
  • sequences pictures to tell a story
  • combines symbols to convey meaning
  • circles a selection of symbols on a page to create a list.
• using assistive technology such as speech-to-text
• using a scribe to record responses.

Reading adjustments

A student may take part in reading activities by:

• building background knowledge before reading a text
• reading simplified texts
• reading texts that use pictures or other visuals to convey an idea (symbolated texts)
• following a text that is being read by a peer or adult
• reading a text accompanied by visual images to represent characters, settings and events
• using a scaffold such as 3-level guide to support text comprehension
• following a visual sequence of instructions. This may include a visual recipe or a visual timetable.

Listening adjustments

A student may take part in listening activities by:

• working in a quiet environment with minimal background noise
• listening to a text that is being read by a peer or adult
• accessing an audio text, multimedia presentation, or film using captioning
• feeling vibrations of sound on a speaker. For example, instruments of different pitches
• responding to tone of voice together with facial expressions, gestures and/or physical prompts
• using visual supports to explain abstract concepts
• using assistive listening devices
• using oral sign interpreters.

Viewing adjustments

A student may take part in viewing activities by:

• viewing a film with captioning
• reading summaries or descriptions of the visual input from photographs, multimedia presentations, films, pictures and posters
• listening to a peer or adult describe the visual input from photographs, multimedia presentations, films, pictures and posters. This could happen while they ‘view’ the visual media or multimedia together
• viewing enlarged images or using contrasting negative colour
• accessing black and white stimulus, or tactile maps
• responding to sensory stimuli, facial expressions, gestures, or physical prompts. This could be in conjunction with tone of voice.

Field trips and excursion adjustments

Locations should be accessible to all students. A student may take part in field trips and excursions by:

• preparing for field trips and excursions using virtual reality, or images or maps of locations
• engaging in virtual field trips and excursions
• capturing virtual evidence in place of written evidence
• using scaffolded supports for note-taking
• ticking pre-prepared checklists
• accessing support from a peer to measure and/or record collected field data
• accessing one-on-one support from a teacher or teacher’s aide.

Making, performing and constructing adjustments

A student may take part in making, performing and constructing by:

• using peer or teacher support. For example, hand-over-hand support when using tools
  following a visual scaffold or sequence
• having tools preset. For example, a wrench jaw fixed to a predetermined size, or a compass hinge adjusted to a set radius
• using everyday objects to support tasks. For example, using a bottle to draw a circle
• using assistive or adaptive devices. For example, desktop magnifiers, digital microscopes, adaptive grip paintbrushes, and large-handled scissors
• additional safety guards or personal protective equipment (PPE)
• communicating instructions to the teacher for the teacher to operate the tools
• delivering a performance via video recording or in front of a teacher rather than a group
• having extended time for practice before a final performance
• using a script to support memory of words and lines in a performance
• following tape that has been used to mark positioning in a performance space
• accessing lighting and acoustic adjustments to performance spaces
• using adaptive or electronic instruments. For example, switch-adapted instruments or adaptive instrument mounts.

Group work adjustments

A student may take part in group work by:

• understanding group norms, rules and roles of team members
• following timelines for individual and group tasks
• participating in facilitated or structured group meetings or check-ins
• accessing structured support when working individually for group tasks
• being explicitly taught social cues, appropriate ways to contribute to group discussion, negotiation and conflict resolution skills
• contributing remotely to group tasks using online collaboration tools.

Physical activity adjustments

A student may take part in physical activity by:

• accessing modified rules
• following sound or visual cues such as lights that demonstrate the start or end of an activity
• having skills modelled by staff or peers to support understanding
• having extra time to complete skill or activity
• having a peer support or perform one or more elements of the skill, activity or routine. For example, when playing t-ball, the student hits the ball and instructs a peer or teacher to run to the base instead of completing the run themselves
• using adaptive equipment for sporting or practical activities. For example, audible balls, handcycle bikes, adaptive racquets, bats and clubs.

Learning from home

At times throughout their schooling, students with disability may not be able to attend school due to their disability. Schools must continue providing reasonable adjustments to learning and assessment activities for students with disability when they are learning from home or hospital.

Adjustments could include:

• information and resources in a range of formats such as video, print text, websites, audio and visual
• extracts from texts rather than the whole text
• websites that include an audio icon. This allows students to access the written text via audio if reading is difficult
• text-to-speech or speech-to-text tools available through Microsoft/Windows or Mac
• videos with an option to turn on closed captioning
• presentations with captions in the slides
• reducing instructions or providing instructional markers. For example, structure learning using markers such as 'read/watch/listen to', 'think about', 'do'
• reducing the amount of content or activities expected in a particular timeframe so students have more time to complete tasks
• substituting assessment tasks that cannot be completed at home with a task that can be, ensuring the same outcomes are assessed.