Assistive Technology

 

 

Assistive Technology is used to assist students with disabilities using technological devices and programs that give them an equal opportunity to learn. The most common assistive technology device that teachers have seen is alphasmart. An alphasmart is a word processing device that is portable and can hold up to 8 files. It is used for students with very poor handwriting and receive OT (occupational therapist) services.

 

 

JAWS is a software program that is directed towards the visually impaired. It reads text allowed enabling people to surf the World Wide Web and do tasks just as if they had vision.



 



Trackball is a ball with zooming wheel and buttons.It was designed for students who lack the fine motor skills to help navigate around a computer.

 

The Rollup keyboard is a keyboard that is for students who are super sensitive to background noise.

 



 

ZoomText Xtra is a software program that magnifies text and pictures on the computer.

 





 

 

I have only named a few of the MANY assistive technology devices that are out there to assist students and people with disabilities. Most of us will not come encounter with these devices or programs while teaching but it is GREAT knowledge that those devices and programs are available if a student is required to have them in their IEP (Individualized Education Plan) for them to receive the same education.  Remember: The county must provide these accommodations to these students and IT IS THEIR RIGHT!

 

I have been fortunate to see many of these devices while getting my bachelors degree in ESE at Daytona State College. The college has a department for students who have these disabilities for them to get the same college education as us. I have talked to many students who used these devices and they even showed me a short turtorial on "how to's"

 

Here is a link that you can click on and get familiar with the types of devices that are available. It would be great if everyone is aware because you never know when that child will walk through your door of your classroom. :)






School of Public Health and Health Professions (2005). Turtorials: JAWS. Retrieved from
 http://atto.buffalo.edu/registered/Tutorials/jaws/index.php

Alyssa. (2007, April). Adaptive/Assistive Teachnologies. [Web Blog]. Retrieved from http://adaptivetechw412.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html

Assistive Technology [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXchQnJ6PoE




Staying Connected...

 

 

 

As educators we are constantly battling with technology defeat; its ever-changing and we are always playing "catch-up" especially in the classroom. With limited resources we feel that its impossible to be technology savvy; do not fret and take breath. I have encorporated a map below that shows teachers how we can stay connected whether we are using it for our personal use to stay "in tune" with the lastest in education or if we plan on taking that  E X T R A step and intergrate it into our lessons.

 

 

 

My primary focus is on ePals Global Community;  After researching, I thought it was an excellent way for the class intergrate technology into the curriculum for many subject areas and communicate with other students across the world. A teacher can chose a project for the class to participate in based on his/her preference. The students are able collaborate with other students, participate in learning language, and be involved in cultural diversity.

 

&& guess what teachers?

 

ePals even provides you with a lesson plan, the standards, and a timeline to follow. The best part about this is once you have your class set up, it can be put into a center activity (it is part of writing). Phewww; you thought you needed X amount of computers for this lesson. Don't Worry; our lack of technology resources will not stop us.

 

 

 

ePals: The introductory Project. Check it out! I am sure you will be just as fascinated and eager to start this with your students as I am!!!





Is it out of our hands?

 

Dr. McLeod presents a great question for the minds of educators to ponder, "Are we doing what is best for our students or Are we doing what is most convenient for us?" I would be more inclined to give this question more of my attention if I thought this was the root of our problems within the classrooms today; maybe 3-5 years ago, yes! The question we should be answering is:

 

Is it out of our hands? 

 

 

According to a recent survey done by CDW-G (a provider of brand-name technology to educational institutions and government agencies) of more than 600 k-12 teachers, 51% of them claimed the most challenging obstacle in the classroom was there was not enough computers. The teachers that participated in this "teacher talk tech" survey were:

• 40% were between the ages of 35 and 49
• 45% were between the ages of 50 and 64.
• The teachers had an average of 17 years teaching experience   

 

Even if the classrooms were filled with the technology "hardware", 76% percent of the teachers said that training is the key to increased technology use (Starr 2003). Even though this survey was almost 10 years ago, we still face the same problem today. So I propose my question again:

 

Is it out of our hands?

 

Through my short experience of teaching and knowing people in the education system, I found the most problematic issue with technology was lack there of. My first year teaching, the school I employed by was a TITLE 1 school in the ESE department. Title 1 funding is given to schools with low economical status to "provide additional academic support and learning opportunities to help low-achieving children   master challenging curricula and meet state standards in core academic subjects" (U.S Department of Education 2011). The Exceptional Education Program is funded through the Florida Education Finance Program and the ESE Guaranteed Allocation which gives students the resources they may need based on their disability (Florida House of Representatives 2011).

 

 Why was I still teaching old school?

 

 

Why was all the teachers, who wanted the technology to incorporate in the classrooms, teaching like the "stone age" in that school? It was not because they were too old or afraid, it's because they did not have access to it. Where was the funding going?

 

Another example I would like to use was at a school I was interning at. They had technology galore; white boards, smart boards, clickers, and they were getting ipads. They raised there funds through Smoothie Tuesdays. The school was in partner with Smoothie King and sold smoothies for $2 in order to keep up and add technology.

 

 



The following year a new adminstrator came in and demolished that custom because she did not want the students "eating in the classrooms." This was a large part of the technology funds in order to up-keep, purchase, and allow teachers to attend the proper training. Shameful.

 

I do believe the amount of teachers who think technology is "inconvienent" to their teaching styles is rather low and the main factor we have issues with is not having the proper funding to get the technology we need or want. Do you think:

 

Is it out of our hands?

 













Florida House of Representatives. (2011). How is Exceptional Education Funded?. In Exceptional Student Education (n/a). Retrieved from http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/FileStores/Web/HouseContent/Approved/Web%20Site/education_fact_sheets/2011/documents/2010-11%20Exceptional%20Student%20Education%20(ESE).3.pdf

 

U.S Department of Education (2011). Improving Basic Programs Operated by Local Educational Agencies (Title I, Part A). Retrieved from http://www2.ed.gov/programs/titleiparta/index.html

 

Starr, L. (2003). How Teachers View Technology. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech180.shtml