Assistive Technology for Students with Disabilities

Wahl, Lisa. (2008). "Assistive Technology: Enhanced Learning for All," Edutopia. 2(1): www.edutopia.org/assistive-technology-enhances-learning-all.

Special Needs Article

Summary
Assistive Technology (AT) has become a buzz word in educationese since the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1997. Under this act, school districts must provide assistive technology to eligible students with disabilities to ensure the provision of a “free and appropriate” public education. AT devices range incredibly in their technology and learning aid potentials—from triangular pencil grips or oversized calculators for students with motor skill deficits to a voice amplifier for a student with a vocal cord strain, all AT devices used in the classroom are highly individualized for specific student needs.

Because AT devices are often expensive and many students fall into the “crack” between Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and IDEA, this article suggests practical (and inexpensive ways) teachers can implement AT strategies in their own classrooms. Suggestions vary between student assignment boards to facilitate peer tutoring to Velcro strips for alerting students of the daily agenda and current activity that’s underway.

Reaction
Many of the tips suggested in this article I’d already read or heard about in my Special Education class and I often thought the devices and ideas could be useful for the classroom at large. It was refreshing to hear about enlightened schools and districts who are proactive in the area of AT. The potential for technology for special needs students, as well as for the general population of students who simply have different learning needs is massive. In talking and/or observing practicing teachers, I find that too often, teachers, schools and districts are uninformed about the potential of AT as well as uninformed about the letter and spirit of the law (IDEA) as it relates to AT. I think this article could be immensely useful if distributed at a faculty meeting or even just tucked in faculty mailboxes for skimming. Time to get the idea (or the IDEA) across!