I Can..........!!!!!!

Do you know what assistive and adaptive technology is?  Does it affect your classroom?  Now that we have inclusion classrooms, with students with special needs, we need to use assistive and adaptive technology.  Assistive technology is any technology used to directly help an individual with a disability in selection, aquisition or use a technology service.  Adaptive technology is any hardware or software designed to help a user compensate for areas of disability or impairment.  Adaptive technology gives individuals with disabilities the same access to information available to users who are not disabled. 

Adaptive technology enhances the vocation, recreation, education and the independence of the user.  With adaptive technology, blind and visual impaired students can learn at the at the same pace as the other students.  There are essentially five methods of output that can render computers and printed materials accessible for individuals who are blind or visually impaired:

• Screen Reader
• Braille Printer
•  reading device
•  electronic Braille displays
•  text magnification

Students who have learning disabilities generally don't have a hard time accessing standard computer equipment.  The availiabity of specialized software and technology has provided a range of products suitable for educational accommodations that support reading, writing, and organizational skills.  Here are some examples of computer accommodations for individuals who have learning disabilities:

• Word processors with grammar and spell checkers
• Word processors with ouline and highlighting capabilities
• Phonetic Spelling software which render phonetic spelling into correctly spelled words.
• Speech recognition products can help student dictate assignments and navigate the internet using voice commands
• Enlarged screen displays
• Speech output
• Different types of keyboard, monitor and etc.
• Mouth sticks, head sticks, or other pointing devices

As we teach disable students, I believe for us to be successful we must use assistive and adaptive technology in the classrooms.  These student are capable of learning, just not as easy as the others. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXchQnJ6PoE&feature=related

 

Screens Say Cheese!!!

Is it frustrating when you have to repeat the same step-by-step directions over and over again, when introducing new technology to your students or to your colleagues?  Not only is it frustrating to you, it might also be frustrating to your other students who want to go ahead.  There are ways to avoid that, by using screen capture tools.  By using screen capture tools, you can create annotated screen captures of the tools you're  introducing or create screencast videos in which you explain each step of the process.  Here are some of the tools that you can use to create the annotations and screen videos.

• Jing
• Screencast-o-Matic
• Screenr
• Sketchcast
• Aviary
• Talon
• Awesome Screenshot
• Bounce

Screenr is great  to use to create "How To" guides for staff and students.  Some teachers also use Jing along with Google Docs to give students personalized feedback on their writing assignments.  And to make the student have interactive feedback and not just receive a graded paper with red mark and comments they may not understand.  With Jing you can record your comments and the students can listen to them.   Here is comments from a teacher who has experienced this.

http://alytapp.com/2011/09/26/days-like-this/

Here is the website for Jing:
http://www.techsmith.com/Jing/?gclid=CN-TyKLL_6sCFQ8q7AoddxhokQ

Here are some other ways to use Jing.  I think this is a great software.

• Collaborate on a design project
• Share a snapshot of a document
• Narrate your vacation photos
• Capture that pesky bug in action

• Show Dad how to use iTunes
• Comment on students' homework
• Post tidbits on Twitter or Facebook

Here is the free download for Jing:  Download a free copy of Jing for Mac or PC

Screen Capture Tools are great tools for teachers to use to help enhance the learning of their students.

Face to Face

Does video conferencing for education create more compelling and interactive learning environments?  Yes, I believe it does.  The use of technology is very valuable to the classroom learning.  Video conferencing creates a virtual meeting experience so realistic, students and teachers feel as if they are in the same room as people far away.  Video conferencing has unlimited potentials in the classroom.  Some of the potentials are:

• Virtual Field Trips
• Real-time world experiences
• Interviews with experts in different areas of study
• global student collaboration
• teacher professional development

Video conferencing lessons for schools can also ignite an interest and enthusiasm for learning that traditional teaching methods sometimes  can't.  What if a science class could interact with astronauts  at NASA?  This field trip would be virtually impossible because of cost, travel and other problems that may occur, but with virtual conferencing ALL students would be able to participate.  

The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum has a program for video conferencing lesson in which teacher can sign up for to use in their classrooms.  These programs are schedule and the teachers can get classroom material to use with the programs.

http://www.nasm.si.edu/education/classroom_videoconf.cfm

Ginger Lewman remarked, "it allows our students ages 10-14, to begin to develop not only essential communication skills, but also an acute awareness of global issue."

I believe video conferencing will help to engage and make our students better learners!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BphlhfdHhGY&feature=related