Academic Accommodations
Academic accommodations are based on disability-related needs and are intended to minimize the impact of functional limitations due to disability. Accommodations are not intended to provide unfair advantage, because students are still expected to meet the same course objectives and complete the same set of course requirements as all other students in the course.
Student registration with PMC
Carleton students with disabilities are responsible for identifying their needs for disability-related accommodation to the Paul Menton Centre and providing appropriate disability documentation. All documentation must be current and provided by a regulated health practitioner (e.g. physician, a medical specialist, psychiatrist, psychologist).
Documentation must include a statement:
a) that the individual has an ongoing diagnosed disability, and
b) that the functional limitations of the disability warrant academic accommodation.
Students with learning disabilities must provide a written report from a comprehensive psycho-educational assessment conducted by a registered clinical psychologist that formally diagnoses a specific learning disability.
The student’s PMC coordinator will review the appropriateness of documentation, discuss possible accommodations, and establish an accommodation protocol. Factors taken into consideration when establishing an accommodation protocol are the specific impact of the student’s disability on academic functioning, the degree of the impact, the extent to which the documentation supports the requests, and whether the accommodation will significantly compromise the essential requirements and/or academic integrity of the course or program.
Letter of Accommodation (LoA)
Each term, a student registered with PMC with a documented disability must make a request for accommodations for each course in the term. A request can be made in person at an appointment with a PMC Coordinator, or through Carleton Central for returning students with no restrictions on their accommodation protocol. See Deadlines section below for information on last dates for submission of requests for accommodations. Students registered with the PMC are encouraged to come in early in the term to request accommodations, however due to a large number of registered students, and lack of a follow-through on our recommendation, students make requests for accommodations at any time in the term prior to the deadlines. Also, some students will only request test/exam accommodations for final exams, late in the term but before the deadline (last day for course withdrawal).
After a student makes a request for accommodations, a PMC Coordinator produces and emails the formal Letter of Accommodation (LoA). The LoA is emailed to the course instructor’s email address as available from Carleton Central, and to the student’s Connect email address. The LoA outlines classroom and/or test/exam accommodations which have been approved for the student for the course for which it is issued, on the basis of a review of course requirements from the course outline, and the student’s disability documentation. The LoA email also contains important information about responsibilities of all parties in the accommodation process.
The student is responsible for connecting with the course instructor soon after the LoA is issued to discuss accommodation arrangements. The course instructors are encouraged to reply to the LoA email with any questions or concerns regarding the accommodations as outlined on the LoA.
Accommodation Arrangements
After a student’s Letter of Accommodation (LoA) is issued for a course, the course instructor is responsible for making arrangements for classroom and in-class test/exam accommodations.
Most common classroom accommodations include provision to voice-record lectures, request for a volunteer in-class peer notetaker, preferential seating, referral to Library Transcription Services for course readings in electronic format, consideration for spelling and grammar on in-class assignments, etc.
In-class tests and exams are those that are conducted within the classroom, or any tests that are NOT administered by Scheduling & Examination Services (SES) during the formal exam periods, regardless of when they are held during the term. With the exception of some CUTV courses, instructors are responsible for providing accommodation for all in-class tests/exams. To arrange for test/exam accommodations, the course instructors should contact their departmental administrator for assistance, or submit a test/exam booking request to the McIntyre Exam Centre through the Faculty section on Carleton Central. For more information, please refer to section Tests and Exams.
Deadlines
- In-class tests: 2 weeks before the date of the in-class test/exam.
- Formal Exams (December, April, July, or August): Last day for course withdrawal in the term. See Carleton dates and deadlines for specific dates.