Enabling Dreams With Assistive Technology

In the classroom, teachers educate a variety of students. Students differ in ethnicity, background, skill sets and much more, so teachers must have the ability to adapt. One of the most important, parts of being a teacher is accommodating students with disabilities to ensure that they get a great education. As technology continues to progress, certain types of technology can be used to help students with disabilities. These are known as assistive technologies. In the video Assistive Technology: Enabling Dreams, Susanna Martini describes how her education as well as her livelihood depends on these assistive technologies. She explains that without access to them, she would not be who she is today. Other students throughout the video use different assistive technologies based on their disability and needs to do their schoolwork, projects, or to even go about their daily routines.

On Youtube there is a video series entitled Assistive Technology in Action that promotes the use of assistive technology for students with disabilities. Mason, who is visually impaired, uses the Mountbatten Brailler for written classwork. With the machine Mason is able to write things with the Braille alphabet, which other people can touch and read. This is another example of how assistive technology opens up new opportunities for students with disabilities. Mason can become a great novelist when he grows up.

Stanberry and Raskind, in Assistive Technology for Kids with Learning Disabilities: An Overview, list assistive technologies for students who have learning disabilities. With these assistive technologies, students are able to  “use their abilities (strengths) to work around their disabilities (challenges).” In my experiences as a student in the classroom, several teachers would try to teach students with disabilities the same way as students without disabilities. The only major difference was the teacher gave the students with disabilities more time and simpler questions for their assignments. Looking back, I know now that this may seem like the teacher is accommodating the lesson for the student’s needs, but I question how effective this method was. Instead of allowing the students to use their strengths, the teacher only made the lesson less challenging and stimulating. Perhaps this method will work for some students, but students are not the same, especially students with different disabilities.

When creating a lesson plan, teachers should include opportunities for students with disabilities to be successful participants. The way to do this is to have consulted with the school and the student’s parents for an individualized education plan. As a teacher, I would be aware of the student’s particular needs and circumstances and take it into consideration under the “Analyze Learners” section of the lesson plan. Group collaboration, if the student is comfortable with working in close proximity to others, would also be a good way to involve the student. Next is where assistive technology comes into play. Like the videos mentioned earlier, students with disabilities can be active participants in their education if they have the tools. Students with speaking disabilities can use computer recording software or programs to structure sentences and voice it out loud. One particular technology also helped a student, whose only source of free mobility was his eyebrows, communicate his answers by selecting through rows and columns of different choices.

One of the major obstacles in providing students with disabilities the assistive technology to enhance their education is providing the funds to get the necessary tools. I recall some teachers talking about how there are devices that may help a student who has a disability such as blindness or difficulty hearing, but there is not enough money to purchase those devices. Unfortunately, this is the reason why so many students with disabilities are underserved in their education. Millstone has listed some suggestions in her post Who Pays for Assistive Technology? Parents or Schools? how students can be provided the assistive technology they need. Some options are health insurance companies, nonprofit organizations, or even donations by companies and corporations. However, these possibilities do not automatically ensure that the needs of every student with disabilities are met and accommodated. Sometimes an old-fashioned one to one aid is all that is afforded. That aid helps the student move around school, communicate with others, and complete the assignments. There is no doubt that providing assistive technology to students with disabilities may be difficult to achieve but they are still deserving of a good education. Teachers should try to do their best in incorporating and working with the needs of the student’s disabilities in the classroom.

References

[Edutopia]. (2010, July 28). Assistive technology: Enabling Dreams [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXxdxck8Gic

Millstone, J. (n.d.). Who pays for assistive technology? Parents or schools? Retrieved from https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/assistive-technology/assistive-technologies-basics/who-pays-for-assistive-technology-parents-or-schools

[pacercenter]. (Last updated on 2014, November 9). Assistive Technology in Action [Video Files]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMe9zDtTPTVe62Gb6b9Dkk_IPBUTGQHoD

Standberry, K. and Raskind. M. (2009). Assistive technology for kids with learning disabilities: An overview. Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/assistive-technology-kids-learning-disabilities-overview