Special Education Technology Strand: Strategies for Enhancing Academic Performance: Using a Technology Toolkit in Teacher Education by Kathleen Puckett

1. Using a Technology Toolkit Approach in
Teacher Education
Kathleen S. Puckett
Arizona State University
College of Teacher Education and Leadership
Project ASPIRE, a TTT grant to prepare Special
Educator in high need and rural school
districts.

2. Using a Technology Toolkit
Approach in Teacher Education
Equipment: Laptop computer loaded with
toolkit software and checked out to
teacher candidates/interns
Assignment: using SETT
framework, determine an academic
application for one of the software tools
and report on progress.

3. Toolkit items
• Solo (Don Johnston)
• Classroom Suite (Intellitools)
• Picture it Power Pack (Slater software)
• Office Suite
• Kurzweil trial versions
• Limited copies assigned as needed:
– Math pad (Intellitools)
– Board Maker (Mayer Johnson)

4. Case 1
• Middle school
• Urban high poverty setting
• Individual student calculations showed lack of
understanding of algorithms
• Instituted Math Pad plus, an older program
from Intellitools, Inc.

5. Percent correct on assignments
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.2
0
1
9/29/2008
10/1/2008
10/3/2008
10/5/2008
10/7/2008
10/9/2008
10/11/2008
10/13/2008
10/15/2008
10/17/2008
10/19/2008
10/21/2008
10/23/2008
10/25/2008
10/27/2008
10/29/2008
10/31/2008
Date
11/2/2008
11/4/2008
11/6/2008
11/8/2008
11/10/2008
11/12/2008
11/14/2008
11/16/2008
11/18/2008
11/20/2008
Percent correct with and without Math Pad
11/22/2008
11/24/2008
11/26/2008
11/28/2008
11/30/2008
12/2/2008
12/4/2008
Case 1 Middle School Multiplication
AT
Not

6. Case 2: Using an AlphaSmart:
Baseline
Journal Entries written with paper & pencil
# # # #
1 2 3 4 #5 Average
# of words 61 75 61 31 122 70
# of words misspelled 0 1 2 0 3 1.2
Sentences 5 4 4 5 10 5.6
Grammatical Errors 0 1 1 0 2 0.8
Rubric Grade 2 2 2 1 3 2

7. Case 2: Using an AlphaSmart
Journal Entries written with word processor
#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 Average
# of words 192 102 386 389 441 302
# of words
misspelled 0 1 0 1 0 0.4
Sentences
/Lines 20 12 35 36 29 26.4
Grammatical
Errors 0 0 0 4 0 0.8
Rubric Grade 4 3 4 4 4 3.8

8. Case 2: Comparison in Number of
Words
500
# o f w o r d s w r itten
450 Journal
400 E ntries
350 written with
paper &
300
penc il
250
Journal
200
E ntries
150 written with
100 word
50 proc ess or
0
1 2 3 4 5
Journal Entries

9. Case 2 Writing Example
P r i soner of my own c olor
When I a r r i ved on board I felt l i ke I was go i ng to c o l lapse. Thousands of
c o l ored people c h a i ned by the ankles, unable to move i n c a ges small
c ould be able to roll o v er. I d i dn ’t th i nk I c ould l i ve
enough that no one
through i t. I kept on ask i ng God i f I had d o ne anyth i ng wrong to deserve
th i s. I t r i ed to c alm down but the memory of my c h i ldren ma d e my sadness
grow. I have two boy s and one g i rl. Th e f i r s t one i s Rodney.
He really lo v es h i s b ooks. He is good fr i ends w i th h is brother , Hank. Han k
i s the a c t i ve one who loves everyth i ng i n v olved w i th outdoor a c t i v i t i es.
The youngest one i s Ashley who loves play i ng w i th her toys o n her bed . I
all …
really m i ss them
On c e the boat set off I was i mmed i at e ly sent to the ho r r i ble c a g es c al l ed
holds.
I d i d not want to even th i n k about how I w as go i ng to surv i ve i n a 1 .5 meter
tall ho l e i n the wall. Bes i des, there wa s ba r ely enough room for me to f i t,
be c ause there was too many slaves i n the r e. When I f i rst wen t i n I though t
that I wa s about to puke. S i n c e we c ould not use the bat h room, we had to go
on the floor. It wa s so c ramped that I c oul d not even move my shoulder.
F i nally, i t was d i nner t i me. I felt l i ke I was go i ng to d i e. But when I saw
what I was ab out t o eat, I wa s sho c ked. Th e only th i ng we c ould eat was
r ic e and horse beans. A t that moment another slave who j u st got o n the
sh i p the same day somehow grabbed the c ha i ns bound at h is ankles and
suffo c a t ed h i mself. What I was soon to f i n d out was t hat at least every
c omm i t su i c i de. And the wh i te ’s d i dn ’t c are . S i n c e
week, a person would
got to the do c k, the wh i te ’s jus t threw
they were not able to work on c e they
them overboard.
F i nally, after four months on the s h i p, I w a s able to get out of the hold an d
’t relax jus t yet. T he wh i te ’s took me
stret c h my legs. Bu t I knew I shouldn
and the other slaves to the ret c hed pla c e called the trad i ng post. Everyone
was star i ng a t me, even though I wa s i n p e rfe c t shape for a slave. I have
bla c k c urly ha i r and a b i g b uff body. I c ou l d not bel i eve that no one was
c hoos i ng me. Then, f i nally, som e one c hose me and took me away. I traveled
for three m i les nonstop unt i l I got to a hu g e farm. There were c ows an d
c rops and all k i nds of farm l i fe.

10. Case2:
• Continuation hopeful; however most teachers
were still insisting on handwritten work
• Portable word processor seemed less
threatening and more accessible than laptop
use
• Dramatic increases in number of words
produced and in rubric scores.

11. Case 3: Learning to Use SOLO
• Language Arts Resource 6thgraders and 8th
graders
• 6 computers, rotating stations
• Training webinar on use of program for staff
• Research project using SOLO and KWRL
template
• District settings prevented log in data to be
used.

12. Case 3: Learning to use SOLO
I know how to open SOLO Literacy suite.
I know the basic functions of Read:Outloud.
I know how to listen to text using
Read:OutLoud. YES
NO
I watched the donjohnston.com product Not Sure
demonstration.
I watched the Setbc.org demonstration.
I need more practice with Read:Outloud.
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

13. Case 3: Learning to Use SOLO
I think SOLO Literacy Suite is helpful?
I can open and complete a template using
Draft:Builder?
I know how to listen to text on the internet
using Read:OutLoud?
I know what informational text is? YES
NO
Not Sure
I know what A KWRL model is?
I know how to use the internet to find an
article?
I know the difference between fact and
opinion?
I look forward to the next lesson?
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

14. Case 3 outcomes
• Implementing SOLO Literacy Suite to an entire
classroom was challenging. Student management
and training time made it difficult to motivate
students and keep them on task.
• It was most effective as a toolbox item for specific
students. When the number of students gets too
large, the time spent instructing and the student
“down time” increased.

15. Conclusions
• Initial results show that a toolkit approach can be
effective in teacher preparation classes.
• Field based instruction still lags behind research
and teacher preparation
• Teacher candidates must negotiate
carefully, since technology instruction is still
neither widely accepted not available to students
with special needs.
• District technology procedures can be a limiting
factor.

16. Suggested materials
• Brozo, W. and Puckett, K. (2009). Supporting
Content Area Literacy with Technology.
Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
• Software:
• Solo www.donjohnston.com
• Classroom suite www.intellitools.com
• Picture it Power Pack www.slatersoftware.com