"Not Special Education, but It's My Education"

"> This first episode of "Not Special Education, but It's My Education" is an overview of what assistive technology is, how it is different from technology in the classroom and some examples."Not Special Education, but It's My Education"

Assistive Technology

Technology.  Educational Technology. Computer Technology.   Assistive Technology.  These are all technical terms that seem to be the language of our times.  No matter what part of the education field you are in, technology is important.  From the classroom to the life skills classroom to the principal’s office, technology is used.  Technology is even more important to students with disabilities.  Technology can allow a student that is nonverbal to be able to communicate.   It can also enable a student who is unable to read to learn the basic phonemic awareness skills needed to read.  Technology can allow a student with a learning disability in a classroom to be on even playing fields with a student without a disability.  Students with many different handicapping conditions can benefit from technology. 

            When technology is used with students with disabilities the term used is Assistive Technology.  Based on the Texas Assistive Technology Network, Assistive technology (AT) is any device, system or piece of equipment, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, used to compensate for a student’s disability.  (Considering Assistive Technology in the IEP Process-Resource Guide, 2007). The AT device is the tool itself and AT service is anything that gets that tool up and running.  There are many AT devices that may be used depending on the disability.  Students with learning disabilities (LD) can especially benefit from this type of technology.  www.texasat.net

            Students with learning disabilities may benefit from assistive technology because these tools will provide students with support to work independently and successfully.  There are many tools for students with reading or writing deficits.  The most popular tool is the computer and the word processor.  Using the word processor’s built in features, it cut down on the student being worried about the spelling or grammatical errors and allow them to focus on writing.  The student who has bad handwriting no longer has to worry about getting a zero on the paper because the teacher cannot understand his handwriting.   Christopher Lee, Director of Georgia’s Assistive Technology Project “Tools for Life” states:  “The keyboard was tactile; I could feel it, I could connect letters with physical actions.”  (Jenron, 2011)  The computer became his best friend.  For students with deficits in math, there are talking calculators with built-in speech synthesizers to speak numbers, symbol or operation keys as they are pressed.   There are electronic math worksheets that help students organize, align and navigate basic math problems on a computer screen.    There are also programs that will help a student with a reading disability.  There are tape recorders for books on tape.  There is Text Reading Systems (Text to Voice) that allows the text on the screen to be read aloud to those students whose learning style may be an auditory learning.  There are reading pens where the student scans single words on a hard copy page and have the word read aloud.  This is something like the technology on the market called Leapfrog.   Students with Speech Impairments (SI) may also benefit from the Leapfrog.

            Students with speech impairments are sometimes related to students with Down syndrome or autism.  Devices used with these impairments could consist of equipment or a device that will supplement a child’s attempt to verbally communicate with others.  One device is the communication board that has symbols which are simple to interpret and may include drawn pictures, letters, and photos of items desired or needed.  Another device comparable to the communication board is the picture exchange communication system which was developed specifically for children with autism.  Picture communication boards can be accompanied by any written word or message.  The symbols can be made in any size and tend to be universally understood.  Students may use these devices to tell a teacher what he wants, address needs, learn the names of fellow classmates, to answer a question or participate in a reading group to repeat lines from a story.  Other communication devices include smart boards for transferring teacher written notes to student computer for viewing and printing.  Voice to text software can also connect teacher lecture to text.

            These are only a few examples of technology used with students with disabilities.  Technology devices vary depending on the handicapping condition, but they have improved the quality of life for many students with disabilities.  Which devices are best?  That answer depends on the disability.  It depends on the devices available and most importantly it depends on the needs of the individual student.

Assistive technology

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