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 Evaluation Report
Reflection:
The Assistive Technology module, as summarized by the Assistive Technology Evaluation Report, was completed during course ITEC 7445, Multimedia and Web Design. For this artifact we were asked to document our experience of working with a student using assistive technology. The Assistive Technology Evaluation Report describes my experience working with one student over the course of the semester. The report was completed alone.
Standard 3.4, Adaptive and Assistive Technology describes a candidate’s ability to facilitate the use of adaptive and assistive technologies to support individual student learning needs. Before working with a student, we were asked to complete a module created by the IRIS Center for Training Enhancements on working with students with disabilities using assistive technologies. It described obstacles we might encounter and strategies for working with assistive technologies. During the completion of this artifact, I worked with a student with a visual processing disorder that causes him to skip words and/or lines when reading. To meet this individual student’s learning needs, we used an assistive technology (AT) called WordTalk, which is a free plugin for Microsoft Word. Using WordTalk as an Assistive Technology I was able to create an authentic learning experience for this student to assist him with reading fluency and comprehension. I was also able to assess the student and analyze data to determine the effectiveness of the AT.
Through this experience I learned many strategies for working with students with disabilities using assistive technology. I also learned to research and suggest appropriate assistive technology, train others to use it, implement it with a student, and evaluate its effectiveness. Due to this artifact being completed during the summer semester, I do not feel that I had enough time to fully evaluate the effectiveness of this assistive technology. If I could change anything about this, I would have liked to have had shorter sessions over a longer period of time. Unfortunately, the summer semester did not allow for this.
Learning to help a student with a disability using assistive technology will impact student learning. Since adaptive and assistive technologies are used to meet an individual student’s needs, their impact will need to be measured on a student-by-student basis. The impact of this particular experience can be seen by looking at the student’s progress using this specific assistive technology.
The Assistive Technology module, as summarized by the Assistive Technology Evaluation Report, was completed during course ITEC 7445, Multimedia and Web Design. For this artifact we were asked to document our experience of working with a student using assistive technology. The Assistive Technology Evaluation Report describes my experience working with one student over the course of the semester. The report was completed alone.
Standard 3.4, Adaptive and Assistive Technology describes a candidate’s ability to facilitate the use of adaptive and assistive technologies to support individual student learning needs. Before working with a student, we were asked to complete a module created by the IRIS Center for Training Enhancements on working with students with disabilities using assistive technologies. It described obstacles we might encounter and strategies for working with assistive technologies. During the completion of this artifact, I worked with a student with a visual processing disorder that causes him to skip words and/or lines when reading. To meet this individual student’s learning needs, we used an assistive technology (AT) called WordTalk, which is a free plugin for Microsoft Word. Using WordTalk as an Assistive Technology I was able to create an authentic learning experience for this student to assist him with reading fluency and comprehension. I was also able to assess the student and analyze data to determine the effectiveness of the AT.
Through this experience I learned many strategies for working with students with disabilities using assistive technology. I also learned to research and suggest appropriate assistive technology, train others to use it, implement it with a student, and evaluate its effectiveness. Due to this artifact being completed during the summer semester, I do not feel that I had enough time to fully evaluate the effectiveness of this assistive technology. If I could change anything about this, I would have liked to have had shorter sessions over a longer period of time. Unfortunately, the summer semester did not allow for this.
Learning to help a student with a disability using assistive technology will impact student learning. Since adaptive and assistive technologies are used to meet an individual student’s needs, their impact will need to be measured on a student-by-student basis. The impact of this particular experience can be seen by looking at the student’s progress using this specific assistive technology.