| Technology and
Special Needs
The provisions of NCLB and the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act require that schools
must help students with special needs to access, participate,
and progress in the general curriculum. Technology
can help school fulfill these requirements and help
all students succeed. An increasing array of technologies
can help personalize instruction for students with
special needs—and improve learning in the general
student population as well. Many new assistive technologies
available today yield results for all students, making
it possible for education to be a more inclusive endeavor
than ever before.
Here are some best practices:
| • |
Most classrooms today still rely on textbooks
for teaching and learning. Long-standing adaptations
of textbooks include Braille, audio and large
print versions for students with vision, hearing
and cognitive disabilities. Today, multimedia
technologies can incorporate these and other solutions
into accessible, digital textbooks that feature
high-quality audio, images and video and interactivity
that supports students with pronunciations, definitions,
comprehension prompts and translations for English
language learners, for example. Studies show gains
in student achievement for students who use accessible
textbooks. |
| • |
Seventh graders with a variety of physical,
cognitive, and emotional disabilities benefited
from the use of laptop computers, provided to
students as part of Maine’s Laptop Technology
Initiative. “Overall, special education
teachers viewed the laptops as highly beneficial
to their students with few exceptions,”
according to a teacher survey. “The laptops
were credited with improving the engagement of
students with disabilities with their school work;
increasing their motivation and ability to work
independently; and improving their class participation,
interaction with other students, interaction with
teachers, and class preparation. Special education
teachers and parents indicated that the laptops
also increased students’ personal organization.
Another important finding of this study was that
special education teachers perceived their special
education students to have increased the quality
and quantity of their writing. For many of these
students, the laptops removed the motor coordination
challenge of writing with pen and pencil and allowed
them to produce work that was easily edited and
looked as good as the work of their non-disabled
peers.” (Harris & Smith, 2004) |
| • |
A new leadership project by the Consortium for
School Networking (CoSN) powerfully outlines the
need for school district IT professionals (CTO’s)
to work more closely with special education leaders
responsible for assistive technologies. The initiative
highlights creative solutions for thinking about
technology in a networked environment that not
only provides access for those with legally defined
special needs, but also enables all learners. |
| • |
Another promising technology that has emerged
from “the margins” is now available
for mainstream use: soundfield amplification.
This wireless infrared technology enhances and
distributes the teacher’s voice above background
noise in the classroom, making the sound more
audible to students. The enhanced quality of the
teacher’s voice, not the “loudness,”
makes a difference in student learning, research
shows. Originally developed for students with
mild hearing losses, this technology enabled these
students to stay in regular classrooms, rather
than be moved to more expensive special education
classes. Research shows that all students, and
especially those with attention deficit problems
and those for whom listening is an effective learning
style, also benefit from this technology. For
example, in classrooms where background noise
is a concern, this technology makes it possible
for students in the back row—and every row—to
hear as clearly as those in the front of the class.
(Evans, 2001; Gertel & Schoff, 2004, “Hot
Technologies for K–12 Schools,” 2005) |
Citations
Accessible Technology for All Students
(2005). Consortium for School Networking. http://www.accessibletech4all.org.
Evans, G. W., Lercher, P., Meis, M.,
Ising, H., & Kofler, W. (2001). Community
Noise Exposure and Stress in Children. Journal
of the Acoustical Society of America, 109, 1023.
Gertel, S. J., McCarty, P. J. &
Schoff, L. (2004). High Performance Schools Equals
High Performing Students. Educational Facilities International
Journal, 39,
http://www.cefpi.org:80/pdf/efp04_hps.pdf
Maine Education Policy Research Institute.
(2004, February). Laptop Use by Seventh-Grade Students
with Disabilities: Perceptions of Special Education
Teachers. Harris, W. J., & Smith, L.
http://libraries.maine.edu/cre/MEPRIP/MLTIResearchReport2.pdf
Consortium for School Networking. (2005).
Hot Technologies for K–12 Schools: The 2005
Guide for Technology Decision Makers.
http://www.cosn.org/resources/emerging_technologies/hot.cfm
National Center on Accessing the General
Curriculum. (2004). The Promise of Accessible Textbooks:
Increased Achievement for All Students. Stahl, S.
http://www.cast.org/publications/ncac/ncac_accessible.html
Web Sites
http://www.cast.org
http://www.washington.edu/doit/Brochures/Academics/instruction.html
http://www.listentech.com/resources/literature/MARRS_study.pdf
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