Today’s class was very eventful and interesting to watch
others present their case studies. It was great to learn about all of the
different Assistive Technologies available and to see how and whom they are
useful for. As well, it was neat to see how people in our course implemented
the programs we learned about into their case studies. It seems as though most
case studies were successful, which is a great advantage of this course. Not
only did we learn about programs through theory, we were able to practice hands
on and bring it back to the students who need it most in the classroom.
I really hope that more teachers take courses such as this
one so we can all be on board with using technology in the classroom. Assistive
Technology is not only useful for our “at risk” students, but all students in
the classroom. There seems to be such a disconnect between how much students
are using technology at home vs. how much they are using it at school. However,
I realize that this is dependent on the school and the student. There needs to
be more funding for technology in schools as well as funding for professional
development for teachers on the technology.
Overall, the biggest success of this course for me was
learning about all of the many features available for students out there that can
be implemented into the classroom and what many of my students are missing out
on. Not to mention, I am now saving for an iPad and plan to have one by the end
of this month!!! J
The first thing I thought of after watching Barb's video on low-tech solutions in the kitchen was my dad's X-large TV remote I bought him last year, mainly as a joke since he is always complaining the buttons are too small...he loves it! :)
For my example, I found a video on YouTube of kids creating/inventing low-tech solutions for kids with disabilities. Simple ideas, but very smart! I don't think I would have thought of these things at that age. Check it out!
Today’s class
was informative because we were able to compare many different assistive
technology products and examine their pros and cons.
Kurzwell
In looking at the product Kurzwell
versus the iPad (and it’s assistive technology settings), I think the ipad wins
this round. Although Kurzwell may be useful in it’s specific function, it is a
stand alone product that costs between $1200 to $1500 for a license and it
sounds to be quite time consuming to use. The iPad can only be purchased for
one user at a time, but it can be used for multiple functions/purposes and is
very user friendly!
PECS vs. Pic Collage
In comparing programs
such as PECS versus Pic Collage (apple), PECS seems to be the more time
consuming product as you have to find your own picture, access a color printer,
and then print off the pictures and cut them out. I learned it takes roughly 15mins
for a teacher to make one image from PECS. It is also costly for schools to
purchase the program and give allotted for time to teachers to get a substitute
booked to plan for one student individual plan. On top of all that, it is less
efficient (hard to organize and access, takes up lots of physical space) and time
consuming for a student to find/pick out pictures the need to communicate their
messages. Although PECS uses technology to create images that students need to
communicate, it is not realistic for a child to carry around books upon books
of images in order for them to communicate a basic message. Non-verbal children
need to be able to access technologies (such as Pic Collage) at their finger
tips so they are able to communicate their wants and needs as any other child
in the classroom. Although products such as PECS and Boardmaker were a good start
in helping nonverbal students communicate more efficiently, technology is
growing and I feel it is important that our school systems keep up to date with
it in the classrooms as well. I understand there is always a cost associated
with the latest technology, but if the accessibility exists for these students then
I feel they deserve to have it.
In class we were able to experience how easy and
multi-functional Pic Collage is hands on. As Barb best said, “this app is only
limited to your imagination”. Just like PECS, it can be use for nonverbal
students as a form of assistive technology, but it can also be used or so much
more. In class we had to develop ideas on how it could be applicable in the class
and some ideas that were mentioned where it can be used included as a graphic
organizer, visual scheduling, seating charts (using student’s pictures), math
manipulatives and much more! Another neat feature is that all of your pictures
stay in your library until deleted. Here are some of the examples that Stephanie
and I can up with:
In developing the activities, we first thought of what we
could use it for in specific subject areas. Stephanie, being an English teacher,
developed the graphic organizers for a character sketch (i.e. Pony Boy). Where
as I being a Science teacher, developed the Thermometer that displays all the
different examples of temperature which I would use in the grade 7 Heat unit in
Science. In this unit students are asked to compare and provide examples of
various temperatures using instruments that are used to measure temperature.
Using Pic Collage, this outcome can be achieved by differentiating how the
students display the outcome. Some students could simply put the different examples
of hot and cold items in order on a thermometer, as I did in my example. Others
could do the same thing, but also provide the examples temperature in degrees Celsius.
Or students could also do the same thing but provide the temperatures in
degrees Celsius and Fahrenheit, where they have to show their calculations of
how they converted from one to the other. The more I think about the program,
the more I think about what other ways it could be used in the classroom.
Another example that just came to my mind would be using it for displaying
examples of safe and unsafe practice in the science lab. This example came to
mind, as I was thinking about doing the same thing last year with my students
where they had to draw the examples and I remember how many students complained
about how they cannot draw and how frustrated the get with having to color.
This program could be an easy way to avoid many of those complaints in the
classroom.
As you can see, we also developed some other ideas for
creating visual steps and schedules for non-verbal students (i.e. making a sandwich,
steps on how to calm down, procedures in the morning and healthy and unhealthy
food options). As you can see, I feel this iPad app is a much multifunctional
program than simply using programs such as Boardmaker and PECS. The only
downfall, is our school board is only slowly implementing iPads into the
schools and it will be a long time coming before every student will have access
to such amazing tools.
Ruben R. Puentedura’s Website
After visiting Ruben R. Puentedura’s website and watching his
video, one question he asked that stuck with me was:
“How can we go from traditional
learning places, to a continuum of learning spaces, so that the entire world
becomes a place of learning for the student?”- Ruben R. Puentedura (taken from video
on technology in education created for the Kalmarsunds Gymnasieförbund)
In today’s world, learning does not have to stop or be separated
from the classroom. 21st century learning should be a continuum of
learning with all of the technology available at our fingertips.
I found the SAMR (Substitution, Augmentation, Modification and
Redefinition) model to be very interesting. My principal actually asked me to
do a presentation on some of the assistive technologies I have been learning
about through this course and at the FETC conference and I think I am going to
share Ruben R. Puentedura’s video with my staff. In watching the video and
reading his materials, I have learned that I am guilty of only really
implementing the substitution and augmentation levels in my classroom, which I
would really like to change in the near future. However, I feel as though my
hands are tied sometimes with being a new teacher and constantly having to develop
new lessons each year, where never have the opportunity or time to take my
lessons to the next level. Not to mention the restrictions we have with the
lack of technology in the classroom. Only having one laptop cart and computer
lab between 9 classes of students is not optimal. Needless to say, in order for
teachers to reach the “redefinition” level mentioned in Puentedura’s SAMR
model, our educational system is going to need more funding to support the
technology resources needed in the classroom.
Social Stories
Prior to this
course I did not know what social stories were, nor did I ever have the
opportunity to use them with students. In the articles that were shared with us
in class on the topic of Social Stories, I took away some key important factors
I would like to share.
In the document
How to Write a Social Story Carol
Gray recommends the following formula to write a social story: “…two to fiveDescriptive sentences for each Directive sentence, which may include Perspective sentences."
What are these
sentences you ask? Here is a description for each:
“Descriptive
sentences provide information about specific social
settings or situations, i.e. give cues to what the person sees, who is
involved, and what happens.”
“Perspective
sentences describe the internal states of other people.
These type sentences provide information about thoughts, feelings, and/or mood
of other people. Describing the internal stuff, many children with autism do
not know about.”
“Directive sentences
provide information about what the student should do to be successful in the
target situation.”
More information on the research developed
by Carol Gray on Social Stories can be found on her website www.thegraycenter.org.
You can also find this introductory video she has made on what a Social Story
is and what it is used for:
Here is a video clip on how to create your own social story. They have used the topic of
Halloween for their story here:
Here is a short video clip that is an example
of a Social Story which is used for children with Aspergers and Autism to help them learn how to cross the street.
The above example also relates to the story Stephanie and I made in class on Saturday using the Book Creator app. Our story was also about crossing the street, which we were then able to save onto iBooks available on the iPads. Therefore, when considering making a Social Story, the
Book Creator, Pic Collage or iMovie app would all be appropriate tools
in creating Social Stories. This once again brings us back to the point of how
multi-functional iPads can be in the classroom, as all of these apps are
available on iPads for a small cost or free.
A
little intimidating with all the apps and the expansive grid, however, it does
give you a way to rule apps in or out in your selection process based on your
content and grade level.
Sign
up for notifications and updates from this site.This is a great place for all things related
to education technology, many of the articles and postings has to do with apps
and how to use them in the education setting.
Zite Magazine - Make a section
called iPads and one called Apps.
You
will receive the latest news in these areas, keeping you up to date on
It provides you with 10 different apps that are free or low in cost.
The website also provides many other resources for integrating technology in the classroom (ex. "21 Literacy Resources For The Digital Teacher"). If you get an extra minute (which I know is rare for teachers) you should check it out!
