Students with chronic illness, and accommodations for academic success

This research paper was completed and submitted at Nipissing University, and is made freely accessible through the University of Toronto’s TSpace repositoryPediatric illnesses that were once severe diseases and diagnosed as terminal are now treatable and considered chronic (Perrin, et al., 2014). The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of students who have a chronic illness, while away for medical intervention and their re-entry into the classroom. Through narrative inquiry, semi-structured interviews were conducted with five student participants who are chronically ill and two teacher participants. After thorough analysis, it was reported that students received basic accommodations for academics, which included extra time or alternative assignments and external therapies to assist with psycho-social issues. Findings include: the ability to effectively accommodate the chronically ill student and utilize the available resources is strictly based upon the relationships formed and the availability of resources. For both the students and teachers, communication was key when seeking supports. Creating proper open lines of communication between teachers and health care personnel would assist educators with understanding specific supports, which would meet the student’s specific needs (Bouchard & Berg, 2017). The information gained from this study may help to enhance the present accommodations currently in place, so that expansion and continuation of these resources could occur to assist students who have a chronic illness both academically and socially