"On Passing By"

This weekend I read a poem entitled "On Passing By" which was written by my grandmother about forty years ago. The poem was about a homeless woman who was huddled in a doorway and was trying to keep warm. My grandmother noticed the woman while she was driving long ago. As I read the poem, I began to wonder what sort of barriers the woman had encountered in her lifetime. I wondered if she had any support to help her climb out of the rut that she was in.

After the poem, I thought about how the barriers a student with learning disabilities lives with everyday. One way we can minimize these barriers is by providing appropriate accommodations for students in the classroom. Environmental, instructional, and assessment accommodations are effective solutions for students with disabilities. Rearranging the classroom structure, giving students a copy of the notes, and permitting students to have a longer time period to write exams are examples of accommodations which can increase students success. As a result, students will increase their self efficacy and the barriers they face everyday will diminish.

If the woman in the poem was given accommodations or help in any kind of way, maybe she could have surmounted past her struggles. Maybe no one could provide the needed support for the woman; however, we have to try.