Assistive Technology Helping Students Increase, Maintain or Improve

Who I am?  Sean Kugler,  Husband  Father  Assistive Technology Specialist  Teacher/Trainer  Coach

What are your careers?  Teacher: Special Education and/or General Education  Transition Specialists  Office Managers/Secretaries  Administrators  Psychologists  Therapists – Occupational, or Physical  Speech Language Pathologists  Counselor – Academic and/or Social  Support staff

Overview  Definition of Assistive Technology  Examples of Assistive Technology  Why use Assistive Technology  Introduction to the AZ-TECH Consideration Guide  Idea sharing activity (time permitting)

Assistive Technology (AT) Defined? Any product or device… used by a person with a disability… to maintain, improve, or increase functional capacity. (off the shelf, modified, or customized) Assistive Technology of Alaska

So, exactly what is assistive technology?  Assistive Technology (AT) describes a wide range of tools used to Increase, Maintain, or Improve functional capability  These tools aid almost every functional skill area such as: vision, hearing, mobility, sitting, communication, accessing a computer, as well as  Every academic area  Employment site  Social setting  Tools range from high-tech (devices, computer software, etc) to low-tech (magnifiers, page fluffers, pencil grips)

The Continuum of Technology Assistive TechnologyNo/Low Tech Simple Little Maintenance Limited/no electronics Mid Tech Some Maintenance Some Training More Electronics High Tech Complex Electronics More Training More Maintenance

Assistive Technology: What exactly is it? Communication DeviceKeyboards

More Assistive Technology

Even More Assistive Technology

…And More Assistive Technology

But wait, there’s even more…

What makes it Assistive Technology?  It is used by someone with a disability to support their needs due to their disabilities.

Why use Assistive Technology?  IDEA 1988 was the first time that IDEA governed the provision of AT  Provides students with another way to access materials  May motivate some students more so than only using traditional means  May help the teacher distribute her time/workload  May help a student achieve and maintain employment  May help student to continue their education

Identify the Skill, not the Technology  When thinking about how best to implement technology it is necessary to determine what skill the student needs support in  After the skill has been identified, then the appropriate technology can be identified as well.  ADE has created a tool to assist teachers in properly identifying both the skill and the technology options to support that skill.

The AZ-TECH Consideration Guide  Guide to access Arizona’s college….. Standards   Specifically addresses:  Reading  Writing  Spelling  Math  Listening  Oral Communication  Activities of Daily Living  Recreation and Leisure  Prevocational and Vocational  Seating, Positioning and Mobility

General Layout Instructional AreaStandard ToolsAccommodations/ Modifications Assistive Technology/Soluti ons Read material from worksheet with comprehension Worksheet Document Camera Color code to emphasize key points Provide peer/adult reading assistance Tracking Strategies Text-to-speech software

Highlighting Tape Simple solution to teach spelling patterns, parts of speech, etc.

More Examples Upper ElementaryLower Elementary

Natural Reader  Natural Reader Video Natural Reader Video

Open Discussion…  What ideas do you have for using AT to help your students?