Article 11: Assistive Technology

Wahl, L. (2003). Assistive Technology: Enhanced Learning for All. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/assistive-technology-enhances-learning-all

Article Summary:

There are many ways to assist students with disabilities in education today. Assistive technology (AT) refers to valuable tools or strategies that are used to include students in a wide range of learning styles in a classroom. Some AT are devices and services that are federally mandated for students with disabilities while other AT can be useful to regular education students. There are barriers to implementing AT such as the time it takes to assess every child's needs, the lack of AT-experienced teachers and the need for more funding.
There are many success stories for the use of AT in education. There are devices to assist in reading such as yellow film overlays that increase the print contrast, cards with just a window cut out so a student can only read one line at a time, and programs that read to students as they read along in the book or on a computer. Some schools incorporate student helpers to come into classrooms of younger students and provide one-on-one help.
There are many ways to assist disabled learners and learners of all levels with different types of technology, whether it be a computer or something as simple as a slanted desk.

My Thoughts:
Everyone has special needs to some extent. Students with disabilities are often thought of being the only students that need AT, but something as simple as a microphone and sound system for the teacher can benefit every student in the room. It is important to recognize different learning styles of our students and recognize that every student could use assistance once in a while. There are great programs and devices for disabled learners, but we need to be aware of other devices available to all learners. Also, there are many everyday devices that can be used as an educational tool. The iPhone or iPod Touch, for example, have several applications that can be downloaded that can help students of all abilities. The iPhone has an app available that will amplify the sound of someone in the room. A student who has difficulty hearing or focusing on the teacher could use this app and plug in headphones so that he may only hear the teacher. There are also apps available that do sign language or that speak something that is typed.