This presentation covers culturally responsive teaching and assistive technology in the classroom.

1. Diversity and
Assistive
Technology

2. Diversity / Culturally
Responsive Teaching

3. International Society for
Technology in Education
● ISTE created a set of standards for
educators
● to use as a framework for instructing
with technology.
● ISTE Standard 4 focuses on
educators collaborating with peers,
experts, and students
● ISTE 4d focuses on cultural
competency when communicating
and interacting with others. 3

4. 6 Key Factors of a Culturally
1. The teacher understands that a student’s understanding is influenced b his or
her culture.
2. The teacher view students background as an asset.
3. The teacher feels responsible for helping schools become socially responsive
to all students.
4. The teacher understand how students construct knowledge.
5. The teacher knows about the lives of their students.
6. The teacher designs instruction that builds upon students’ prior knowledge
and experiences.
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5. Understanding Your Culture and the
Culture of Others
● To understand your own culture,
complete a self reflection to identify the
different cultural groups you belong to.
● Your educational background, income,
gender, and physical characteristics help
shape your cultural identity.
● Your cultural identity influences your
choices, the way you behave, your
pursuits, and your aspirations.
● It is important for you to share and learn
from others to better understand the
interactions that develop a person’s
perspective.
Schools have their own cultural identities
that impact communication, task
engagement, and organizing ideas.
● Didact - a single speaker speaks and
dominates all others
● Topic Centered - students are taught
to be direct, precise, and to follow
conventions of didactic
communication
● Topic Chanting - a learning
environment or method of instruction
that focuses on strong social context
with cyclical and multipart
conversations.
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6. 6
Using Technology to Work with Students on Developing a Cultural Understanding
● As a teacher, you need to understand your students’ cultures and how those can promote
positive learning experiences.
Digital Storytelling Students can create a story to share about their
culture and family histories.
Concept Mapping Software Students can use the software to help prepare for
discussions. This will help a teacher identify a
student's prior knowledge and gain insight into a
student’s culture.
Lab Management Software Students can work cooperatively with others. They
can share a shared workspace and communicate
through messaging.
Google Earth Students can use online mapping sights to see
where others live.

7. Culturally Responsive Instructional Strategies
Culture affects how people react to technology. Culturally responsive instructional
strategies can support be used to support the different learning needs of students.
1. Acknowledge students’ differences as well as their commonalities.
2. Educate students about the diversity of the world around them.
3. Promote equity and mutual respect among students.
4. Foster a positive interrelationship among students, their families, the
community, and school.
5. Motivate students to become active participants in their learning.
6. Encourage students to think critically.
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8. Assistive Technology

9. Assistive
Technology
Assistive technology is any item, piece
of equipment, or product system used
to increase, maintain, or improve
functional capabilities of individuals
with disabilities
● Individualized learning plans are
created for all students who
qualify for special education. The
IEP is created with parental
involvement, classroom teachers,
counselors, special education
teachers, school psychologists, or
occupational therapist.
● Teachers are required to follow all
IEPS. If assistive technology is
written into a student’s IEP, then
the teacher must incorporate it
during class.
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10. 10
High Tech Mid Tech Low-Tech
High-tech assistive technologies
are more complexed and
expensive. The devices are
multifunctional and settings can be
adjusted to the individual learner.
Examples:
● environmental controls
● augmentative or alternative
communication (AAC)
devices
● speech synthesizers
● voice-recognition systems
● text-to-speech software
● word-prediction software
Mid-tech assistive technologies use
a power source, are moderately
priced, and students will need
training.
Examples:
● word-processing software
● prewriting, organization,
concept-mapping software
● portable word processors
● large-print word processors
● electronic organizers
● leveled voice output devices
Low-tech assistive technologies are
inexpensive tools that lack moving
parts and have limited
functionality.
Examples:
● scanning print using an
optical character recognition
(OCR) scanner
● enlarging print and visuals on
screen
● talking picture frames
● calculators
● timers
Examples of Assistive Technology

11. Commonly Available Assistive Technology
● Word processing application programs - Students can use text to speech or
speech to text commands to complete assignments.
● Word prediction software- The software suggests words based on common
usage, arrangement of letters, and grammar rules.
● Keyboard adaptations- Stickers can be placed on the keyboard to show a student
which buttons to use or they can be used to make the keyboard easier to view.
● Mouse adaptations- Stickers or pom poms can be placed on the right side of the
mouse to show students how to click. Teachers can make the on screen mouse
larger and slow the mouse down.
● Touch screens - Students may use their fingers or a stylus to drag and swipe.
Touchscreens can make it easier for a student to interact with digital content.
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12. Using Assistive Technology in Literacy
Learning disabilities often interfere with students' ability to grasp principles of phonetics,
decode text, or comprehend what they read. In our work with schools, we have seen
assistive technology break down barriers to full literacy in two ways: as a reading
support, meaning that computer based applications help students with learning
disabilities successfully access grade-level text as they read, and as a reading
intervention, meaning that the technology helps students strengthen and improve their
overall reading skills. (Hasselbring and Bausch 2005)
● Document readers can change the font size and read the text aloud.
● Text to speech software uses a computer generated voice to read websites and
documents.
● Audio books use a human's voice to read a book aloud to a student.
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13. The Game Plan : Learning about
Instructional Technologies
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1. Set Goals: learn more about instructional technologies to personalize
instruction.
2. Find technologies that support the learning need in your classroom.
3. Continue to identify instructional technologies that fit the need for
your classroom. You may want to limit your search to specific areas of
study (math, reading, science, etc.).
4. Evaluate and Extend: Review the research or evidence presented for
each technology you choose. Share your findings with others.

14. References
Hasselbring, T. S., & Bausch, M. E. (2005). Assistive Technologies for Reading.
Educational Leadership, 63(4), 72–75. Retrieved from
http://search.ebscohost.com.lib-
proxy.jsu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=trh&AN=19270024&site=ehost-
live&scope=site
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