3.4 Adaptive and Assistive Technology
Candidates facilitate the use of adaptive and assistive technologies to support individual student learning needs. (PSC 3.4/ISTE 3d)
Artifact: Assistive Technology Field Experience
Reflection:
As part of ITEC 7445, I was tasked with working with a student with disability (SWD) to learn more about that student’s specific needs and to help create a plan for using assistive technology (AT) to help that student. I chose to work with a student in the self-contained Autism Level 3 class at our school; I referred to him as “John” in the report and will do so here to maintain confidentiality. I worked with John’s case manager and Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team to complete the WATI Assistive Technology Consideration Guide (IRIS Center for Training Enhancements, 2010) to determine which AT would be most beneficial for John. I then worked with John’s case manager and IEP team to complete the Assistive Technology Implementation Plan (IRIS Center for Training Enhancements, 2010) to create a plan for how to actually implement the AT we decided to try with John.
This artifact demonstrates my ability to facilitate the use of assistive technology in many ways. First, I helped the IEP team in considering a specific AT to use with John. He had been using a Dynavox device with some success, but it had several drawbacks. As per my suggestion, the IEP team adopted the Co:Writer software to help John with functional, instructional, and social communication. I helped facilitate the implementation of this AT by working with the IEP team to complete the AT Implementation Plan, which included details about the necessary equipment, members of the implementation team, equipment tasks, classroom and home implementation plans according to specific IEP goals, and a plan for monitoring and evaluating John’s success with the AT. I also helped facilitate this student’s use of the AT by attending the training along with my colleagues to learn more about the AT and how to help John use it in my class.
I learned many things about assistive technology as a result of this field experience, including processes for determining student needs and finding AT that best aligns with those needs, creating an AT implementation plan, taking data to evaluate student AT use, and general information about AT. I learned that not all AT is created equal, and there is not “perfect fit” for every situation every time. I learned that much thought and effort goes into choosing the most appropriate AT for students’ specific needs, and there is no formula for prescribing AT based on a student’s disabilities. AT must be chosen with specific students’ needs, interests, and desires in mind. That said, there were some drawbacks to the Co:Writer software that we selected and implemented with John. For example, because it is software that was downloaded to a notebook, the physical device itself was not as durable as the Dynavox and there is concern that when John becomes upset he may do damage to the notebook device. Another drawback is that John did prefer the Dynavox because it is based on using visual icons to express oneself, which appeals to John because he is a very visual learner. If I were to go through this process again, I would perhaps try to find another AT that combined the positive attributes of both the Dynavox device and the Co:Writer software to maximize John’s success. More generally, I would like to continue to learn more about assistive technology and continue to research devices that may help students with a variety of disabilities.
This field experience impacted the faculty development and professional knowledge of my fellow Special Area teachers and myself as we sat through training on the new AT to be implemented and I helped take data on its effectiveness. It impacted the learning and general success of the student in question through the use of a more effective form of AT for that student. We assessed the student learning and success through multiple strategies for data collection, such as a tally mark for every time he used the AT unprompted and a +/- chart to track appropriate and inappropriate uses of the AT. I was able to assess the faculty development of the other Special Areas teachers through ongoing conversations throughout the process, as I observed that those teachers became more comfortable with the idea of helping the student use the AT in their classes.
IRIS Center for Training Enhancements. (2010). Assistive Technology: An Overview. Retrieved from http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/at/
As part of ITEC 7445, I was tasked with working with a student with disability (SWD) to learn more about that student’s specific needs and to help create a plan for using assistive technology (AT) to help that student. I chose to work with a student in the self-contained Autism Level 3 class at our school; I referred to him as “John” in the report and will do so here to maintain confidentiality. I worked with John’s case manager and Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team to complete the WATI Assistive Technology Consideration Guide (IRIS Center for Training Enhancements, 2010) to determine which AT would be most beneficial for John. I then worked with John’s case manager and IEP team to complete the Assistive Technology Implementation Plan (IRIS Center for Training Enhancements, 2010) to create a plan for how to actually implement the AT we decided to try with John.
This artifact demonstrates my ability to facilitate the use of assistive technology in many ways. First, I helped the IEP team in considering a specific AT to use with John. He had been using a Dynavox device with some success, but it had several drawbacks. As per my suggestion, the IEP team adopted the Co:Writer software to help John with functional, instructional, and social communication. I helped facilitate the implementation of this AT by working with the IEP team to complete the AT Implementation Plan, which included details about the necessary equipment, members of the implementation team, equipment tasks, classroom and home implementation plans according to specific IEP goals, and a plan for monitoring and evaluating John’s success with the AT. I also helped facilitate this student’s use of the AT by attending the training along with my colleagues to learn more about the AT and how to help John use it in my class.
I learned many things about assistive technology as a result of this field experience, including processes for determining student needs and finding AT that best aligns with those needs, creating an AT implementation plan, taking data to evaluate student AT use, and general information about AT. I learned that not all AT is created equal, and there is not “perfect fit” for every situation every time. I learned that much thought and effort goes into choosing the most appropriate AT for students’ specific needs, and there is no formula for prescribing AT based on a student’s disabilities. AT must be chosen with specific students’ needs, interests, and desires in mind. That said, there were some drawbacks to the Co:Writer software that we selected and implemented with John. For example, because it is software that was downloaded to a notebook, the physical device itself was not as durable as the Dynavox and there is concern that when John becomes upset he may do damage to the notebook device. Another drawback is that John did prefer the Dynavox because it is based on using visual icons to express oneself, which appeals to John because he is a very visual learner. If I were to go through this process again, I would perhaps try to find another AT that combined the positive attributes of both the Dynavox device and the Co:Writer software to maximize John’s success. More generally, I would like to continue to learn more about assistive technology and continue to research devices that may help students with a variety of disabilities.
This field experience impacted the faculty development and professional knowledge of my fellow Special Area teachers and myself as we sat through training on the new AT to be implemented and I helped take data on its effectiveness. It impacted the learning and general success of the student in question through the use of a more effective form of AT for that student. We assessed the student learning and success through multiple strategies for data collection, such as a tally mark for every time he used the AT unprompted and a +/- chart to track appropriate and inappropriate uses of the AT. I was able to assess the faculty development of the other Special Areas teachers through ongoing conversations throughout the process, as I observed that those teachers became more comfortable with the idea of helping the student use the AT in their classes.
IRIS Center for Training Enhancements. (2010). Assistive Technology: An Overview. Retrieved from http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/at/