Assistive Technology

As I was completing the online module of assistive technology, one point really stuck with me. These tools are being used in order to help make the students more successful. The focus should not be the disability of the student, the focus should be the task to be accomplished or goal to be acquired. We as educators should make use of any and all resources available, and I believe assistive technology to be a wonderful resource. Listed below are ways to use assistive technology with varying groups of students.

Mild disabilities-Mild disabilities may include attention deficits, learning disabilities, and mental retardation. Students with attention deficit disorder are very easily distracted and have a difficult time staying on task and completing assignments. I have had students in my class with attention deficits that struggle reading books or stories to themselves. An assistive technology I would use would include a website that allows students to listen as the story is read to them and the student is able to read along with the website. This helps keep the students engaged. http://www.storylineonline.net/ is free and offers a few online books. www.onemorestory.com has several books, but there is a subscription fee required. I would also encourage the use of word prediction product for students with mild disabilities. These students may have the ability to write an essay, but yet struggle and get discouraged by the size of the task. This program would encourage the student to complete the assignment instead of working against them.

Moderate and severe disabilities-Moderate and severe disabilities can cause problems for students in the regular education classroom if certain accommodations are not made. In these cases, more emphasis is put on learning skills to be used in everyday life such as grocery shopping, money management, and transportation. I would suggest using the iPad app P2K Money. It allows students to enter their income, add items to their wish lists, and keep track of the money they have saved. Depending on the severity of the disability, I would also encourage the use of alternate keyboards for computer use. On this assistive technology, obscure keys that are not needed for specific programs are removed to appear more simple and user friendly.

Physical disabilities-These students struggle with simple daily activities, such as mobility around the classroom and motor skills. An example of assistive technology for these students may include a classroom desk that can be raised or lowered for a student that uses a wheelchair daily. Another assistive technology would be the use of a joystick for computer use instead of a computer mouse which requires those fine motor skills some students with physical disabilities do not have.

Sensory disabilities-This encompasses the visual impaired, hearing impaired, and blind students. For students who are visually impaired, there is an assistive technology program called the optical character recognition software. This software scans the printed material and converts this material to text. The software then reads the text aloud for the student. I have often seen the FM amplification systems in use for hearing impaired students. This piece of hardware can be a small microphone headset worn by the teacher while the student wears a receiver. This assists in focusing the student’s attention on the teacher during class time.

At-risk behavior/situations-These students may not be recognized globally as having a disability. However, their behavior often times causes them to struggle academically. One piece of assistive technology that I use to help my students who struggle with behavior is ClassDoJo. Classdojo.com is a website as well as an app. The teacher can award and take away behavior points for each student and the website keeps track of specific issues the students have trouble with. A “report card” can also be printed out or e-mailed for parents. This can be very motivating for students who are overwhelmed with the thought of their behavior for the whole day. This helps students check their behavior as the day progresses. For struggling students who may not be recognized as having a disability, they may benefit from the use of the website webmath.com. This website allows you to enter numbers or data and will then solve the problem and give an explanation.

Gifts and talents-Assistive technology programs can be used to help maximize the potential of students who are considered gifted and talented. I would encourage my students to research a topic of their choosing and develop a glogster page to showcase their findings and information. glogster.com is an extremely creative way to organize and share information on a given topic. Hoagiesgifted.org is a website created for gifted students, their teachers, and administrators. It has links that includes their favorite apps, software, games, etc. This would be beneficial for students at school as well as at home.

 

Robyler, M.D. & Doering, A.H.(2012). Intergrating educational technology into teaching.

            (6th ed.). Columbus, Ohio: Merrill Prentice Hall.


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