Samuel Rogers ITEC 7530

1. Assistive Technologies in the Classroom

2. Inclusion Having regular education students and students with special needs in the same classroom for instructional time. Benefits Increases social interactions, develops positive relationships, and develops networks with typically developing peers. Provides peer role models for academic, social, and behavior skills Enhances skill acquisition and generalization Increases achievement of IEP goals

3. Least Restrictive Invironment Definition: LRE requires that at the highest level possible, children with disabilities must be educated with typically developing peers unless the nature of the disability is such that even with the use of student supports, the child can not be educated in this environment. There is a continuum of services that an IEP team can consider for students. These services range from a separate school (highly restrictive) to options such as consultative services or co-teaching (less restrictive). The students should be served as far to the less restrictive side of the continuum as possible. Many students with disabilities such as ADHD, hearing impairments, and learning disabilities can be included and successful in general education classrooms when provided with Assistive Technology and other student supports such as accommodations and modifications. In this case, the LRE for these students is in general ed classrooms.

4. ADHD Assistive Technologies Low-High Tech Voice recorder for note taking Manipulatives Tracking (reading window) Allows the students to only focus on the sentence they are reading currently. If the student loses focus, their spot is marked on the page.

5. ADHD Additional Student Supports No Tech Highlighted key points Frequent breaks Extended Time Shortened Assignments Eliminate distractions

6. Auditory Disabilities Assistive Technologies Low-High Tech Voice to text software Hearing aid Real time captioning of lecture One to one communicator Personal frequency modulation systems (FM Systems) Transmitter microphone is used by the speaker and a receiver is used by the listener

7. Auditory Disabilities Additional Student Supports No Tech Preferential seating Teacher proximity Eliminate extraneous noise Directions repeated and given in small steps Visual aids Sign language

8. Learning Disabilities Assistive Technologies Low-High Tech Portable word processor with built in spell check Computer with word prediction software Books on tape E-dictionary

9. Learning Disabilities Additional Student Supports No Tech Extended time High interest reading material Word banks Custom made word list for spelling difficulties

10. References Kids Together, Inc. http://www.kidstogether.org/inclusion.htm Georgia Project for Assistive technology http://www.gpat.org/resources.aspx?PageReq=GPATImp Kids health http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/learning/iep.html ATSTAR http://atstar.org/atinfo/info_disabilities_add.htm LD Online http://www.ldonline.org/article/8808 Teacher Vision http://www.teachervision.fen.com/assistive-technology/teaching-methods/3791.html Assisted Listening Devices http://www.asha.org/public/hearing/treatment/assist_tech.htm