Module 13.1

Let’s explore how research-based strategies apply to three core subject areas, with practical approaches you can implement immediately.

Mathematics: Making Numbers Accessible

Mathematics presents unique challenges across different types of learning needs. Visual impairments affect access to graphs, diagrams, and geometric shapes. Learning difficulties can impact both reading comprehension of word problems and spatial organization of calculations. Physical challenges may affect writing equations or using geometric instruments.

Students with Visual Impairments

The challenge: Mathematics is heavily visual—graphs, geometric figures, spatial arrangements of equations, diagrams showing relationships between numbers.

What works: Provide tactile representations using 3D printed models, raised-line drawings, or physical manipulatives. Describe visual information verbally before presenting it. Use mathematical notation software compatible with screen readers—for instance, LaTeX-formatted equations that screen readers can interpret, rather than images of equations. For geometry, provide models students can touch and rotate rather than relying solely on diagrams.

Assessment adaptations: Allow oral responses or typed solutions using accessible software. Provide extended time not for cognitive processing but for the physical act of accessing information through technology. Consider that a student using a screen reader experiences mathematics sequentially (one element at a time) while a sighted student sees it all simultaneously—this affects how quickly they can process complex equations.

Students with Learning Difficulties

The challenge: Word problems combine reading comprehension with mathematical reasoning. Spatial organization of work on a page can be difficult. Sequencing multi-step problems requires executive function skills that may be challenging.

What works: Break complex problems into smaller steps with explicit checklists. Use color-coding to help track different problem elements. For word problems, consider separating reading from mathematics—provide audio recordings, offer simplified text alongside standard versions, or read problems aloud. Provide graph paper, templates, or digital organization tools for spatial arrangement. Allow calculators to reduce cognitive load of arithmetic, focusing assessment on mathematical thinking rather than computation speed.

Remember: One student in the research explained, “I prefer notes our teacher prepares for us. There are too many pictures and words in the textbooks—there is a lot of mess there. I cannot concentrate.” Textbooks designed for general audiences often overwhelm students with learning difficulties. Your simplified, clearly organized materials aren’t “dumbing down” content—they’re removing visual clutter that interferes with mathematical thinking.

Students Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

The opportunity: Mathematics can actually be more accessible than language-heavy subjects because it relies heavily on visual and symbolic communication. However, this only works if you make visual information truly clear and provide written explanations alongside verbal ones.

What works: Write each step as you explain it. Face students when speaking and avoid talking while writing on the board. Provide vocabulary lists for mathematical terminology. For group work, keep groups small enough for clear visual communication and provide written problem statements so students don’t rely solely on hearing peers’ explanations. Ensure that any video resources include accurate captions—automatic captions often mangle mathematical terminology.

Science: Multiple Pathways to Understanding

Science education combines specialized vocabulary, complex texts, visual representations (diagrams, graphs, microscope images), and hands-on laboratory work. This multimodal nature creates both challenges and opportunities for inclusive teaching.

The Disciplinary Literacy Challenge

Science has its own language—technical vocabulary, passive voice constructions, cause-and-effect relationships, dense informational text. Students with reading challenges often struggle not with scientific concepts but with accessing those concepts through text. Recognizing this distinction changes everything. Supporting science literacy becomes part of teaching science, not a separate concern for the language teacher.

What works: Pre-teach key vocabulary with visual supports and multiple exposures. Break dense texts into manageable chunks with comprehension checks. Provide graphic organizers for note-taking. Most importantly, use multimodal presentations that combine text, images, demonstrations, and hands-on experiences—don’t rely on any single mode of information delivery.

For assessments, separate scientific understanding from literacy skills. A student who struggles to write a traditional lab report might demonstrate the same understanding through video documentation, oral explanation with visual aids, or annotated diagrams. What matters is the scientific thinking, not the format.

Visual Information in Science

The challenge: Science textbooks overflow with diagrams, graphs, illustrations, and photographs that carry essential information. For students with visual impairments, this presents an obvious barrier. But visual complexity also challenges students with learning difficulties who may struggle to extract key information from busy diagrams.

What works: For students with visual impairments, supplement or replace visual diagrams with tactile models, 3D structures, or detailed verbal descriptions. For microscopy, use digital microscopes that display on large screens, provide photographs students can enlarge, or describe what you observe. For all students, provide written descriptions of diagram content—this helps students with visual impairments, supports students with learning difficulties, and benefits everyone by explicitly stating what the diagram shows.

Laboratory Work

The challenge: Laboratory work involves physical manipulation, visual observation, and often timed procedures—all of which can present barriers.

What works: For students with visual impairments, ensure adequate lighting and contrast, use talking equipment (thermometers, calculators), and pair with lab partners who provide verbal descriptions. For students with mobility challenges, adjust work surfaces, provide adaptive equipment, or modify procedures. For students with learning difficulties, provide clear step-by-step written procedures, allow extra time, and emphasize that the goal is understanding scientific method, not perfect execution. Consider that students might demonstrate understanding through designing an experiment, explaining methodology, or analyzing someone else’s data rather than performing all physical manipulations themselves.

History and Social Studies: Beyond the Textbook

History and social studies are particularly text-dependent, often requiring students to read complex primary sources, synthesize information from multiple documents, and organize chronological information. These literacy demands can overshadow students’ historical thinking abilities.

The Reading Barrier

The challenge: Historical sources were rarely written with modern students in mind. Primary sources use archaic language and assume contextual knowledge. Secondary sources pack dense information into every paragraph. For students with reading challenges, accessing historical content becomes the barrier to demonstrating historical thinking.

What works: Provide multiple text formats: audio versions of readings, simplified versions alongside original sources, texts with embedded definitions. Use text-to-speech for digital materials. Importantly, when using primary sources, provide substantial scaffolding—historical context, vocabulary support, guiding questions. Consider offering pre-reading guides that outline main ideas. Don’t assume that if students can’t read complex historical texts independently, they can’t think historically. Supplement text with other sources: video documentaries, podcasts, artifacts (or photographs of artifacts), oral histories, maps, and timelines.

Chronological and Organizational Complexity

The challenge: History involves tracking multiple people, places, dates, and events across time. For students with organizational challenges or memory difficulties, this complexity can be overwhelming.

What works: Provide organizational scaffolds: timelines, graphic organizers, concept maps, summary charts. More importantly, allow students to create and maintain their own reference materials—personalized timelines, character maps, geography references. These aren’t “cheating”; they’re cognitive supports that allow students to focus on historical thinking (causation, change over time, perspective-taking) rather than pure memorization. For assessments, emphasize analysis over recall: open-note exams, take-home essays, presentations, debates, creative projects that demonstrate understanding of historical concepts and patterns.

Cross-Cutting Strategies: What Works Everywhere

Regardless of your subject, students identified strategies that support learning across all disciplines:

1. Multimodal Information Presentation

Never rely on a single mode. If you present verbally, also provide visually. If you use visual diagrams, also describe them verbally. If you assign reading, offer audio versions. This isn’t redundancy—it’s recognition that learners access information through different channels. The student who can’t see your diagram might understand perfectly through verbal description. The student who struggles with reading might grasp concepts immediately through visual representation.

2. Explicit Structure and Clear Expectations

Many students expressed need for clear organization, step-by-step instructions, and explicit expectations. As one student said, “I need explanation about the mistakes I make, analysis of these mistakes and then I want more exercises to solidify my competences.” Provide checklists, rubrics that break down expectations, examples of successful work, and regular check-ins during longer projects. This structure doesn’t limit creativity—it provides scaffolding that allows students to focus on content.

3. Separating Content from Format

Ask yourself: Am I assessing subject understanding or ability to produce a specific format? Unless writing is your learning objective, allow flexibility. One student explained, “I cannot write correctly—I have dyspraxia. I want to be assessed not for the quality of my writing, but my actual knowledge.” The same applies to your subject. Assess mathematical thinking, not penmanship. Assess scientific understanding, not report-writing ability. Assess historical analysis, not typing speed.

4. Thoughtful Use of Technology

The research revealed that students have access to assistive technologies but often lack adequate training and support. The screen reader that works in English class should work with your digital materials—but only if those materials are properly formatted. The speech-to-text software should work for science lab reports and history essays, not just language assignments. Collaborate with technology specialists to ensure your digital materials are accessible and that students receive training in using tools within your subject context.

5. Flexible Collaboration

Peer support matters enormously, but group work must be thoughtfully structured. Students expressed varied preferences. Some prefer pair work: “I prefer to work in pairs, so the other person has a more supportive role.” Others need individual work: “I prefer to work alone. I want to be responsible for the result.” Consider group size, physical arrangement, roles within groups, and how to ensure all students can participate meaningfully. Ask students about their preferences rather than assuming one format works for everyone.