Modifications are critical and essential for some students.
A modification reduces the depth, breadth, and/or complexity of a task or lesson.
Modifications are determined by the IEP team to ensure the student has access to the instruction.
Modifications are only used as a last resort.
But what are they???
Defining modifications is challenging because they are not a “thing” that can be held, but rather, a process for evaluating a lesson, determining essential learning objectives, providing targeted activities, and assessing for learning.
Still confused?
Let’s talk about what they aren’t. Modifications are not prepackaged products, worksheets, a set of curricular materials, or different tests. Modifications cannot be bundled up and put in a box.
Modifications are systematic decisions. Decisions about what to teach, what vocabulary to use, the amount of guided or modeled instruction versus independent practice, determining what the objective is for the moment, the day, the week or the unit, and analyzing the student’s interaction and engagement with the learning to determine if they met the modified expectation.
So, let’s try defining it again.
Modifications are systematic, individualized, instructional targets specifically designed for students who cannot access, participate, and/or demonstrate their learning without them.