Summer School and Disability
- Annie Kroll
- Aug 10
- 3 min read
Ever since high school, I have taken summer school to get ahead on classes. The main reason I sign up to do summer school when I can is so I have fewer classes during a full semester. My summer semester ended last week, and I took two classes. This week, I want to share how I manage summer school as someone with a disability.
Sign up for asynchronous classes
If you are able to learn independently, I prefer classes that are completely online because I can work around things like medical appointments or flare-ups. Over the summer, I wrote about having a medical flare-up where I couldn't leave the house for a week or two, and online summer school meant I could complete my work around the times I could only lay in bed.
Make your own assignment schedule that is ahead of the class schedule
One of my classes was a 10-week class, that I was mostly finished with in 5 weeks because I made my own schedule. The main reason I do this is because I don't want to fall behind when I have flare-ups. Sometimes classes do not unlock modules until the week something is due. I try to avoid these classes whenever possible, as they make it harder for me to have schedule flexibility.
While 5-week summer school classes sound easier, the 10-week classes tend to be more manageable
At my university, summer school classes can either be 5 weeks or 10 weeks long. I initially thought the shorter classes would be easier, but they have much tighter deadlines and expect students to work almost every day. The 10-week-long classes are able to space assignments out in a more manageable way that makes the workload feel less demanding. Having done both lengths of classes, I think the 10-week classes allow for more flexibility for anyone who might need extensions and weekly flexibility to complete assignments. My 5-week course had assignments due every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, with some assignments being dependent on others turning in work.
Don't be afraid to ask for what you need.
At the beginning of my 5-week summer class, I found some disability representation for a class assignment that I did not like. After talking to others in my community, I decided to email my professor and explain what parts of the representation I found problematic and how I would like it to be changed. I was worried this would hurt my academic relationship with the professor, but it ended up going very well. I think the corrected information made the assignment better and more accurate, and I was able to have an honest conversation about my lived experience as a disabled person in academic spaces.
Community helps lessen isolation and opens new dialog.
Over the summer, I hosted Zoom meetings with some of my classmates to talk about our summers and discuss classwork. Because my classes were online, I wasn't regularly seeing anyone from my master's program even though we were in the same classes. This Zoom meeting provided a sense of community in an accessible way because no one had to leave their house to stay connected. I was also able to learn from my classmates by hearing about their projects.
Thank you for reading about my tips for summer school as a student with a disability. If you have any questions or comments, please comment on the blog, reach out at @Anniekrollblog on Instagram or Facebook, or email me at Anniekrollblog@gmail.com. I hope to see you next week!
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