Employing Adaptive Technology for Advanced Special Education (PA)

August 30, 2010

Technology allows students to connect with each other across borders, research information in ways never before possible and tackle real-world problems from inside a classroom.

But technology is also allowing some students to speak, read and write when those tasks were previously considered an impossibility.

"In the last 15 years, the idea of the Internet and digital content has grown so vast, and for people with physical and learning disabilities, it has been transformative," said David Cattell, the head of assistive technology for the Chester County Intermediate Unit.

Assistive technology is an ever-growing field that looks at how students with disabilities can complete various educational tasks with the help of technology.

Cattell said that one student at the Chester County Technical College High School uses a camera attached to a computer that can detect the movement of the student’s eyes. So if the student looks at something, the computer knows he is commanding it to complete a task. This technology, called eye gaze technology, is one of the more advanced tools Cattell deals with and costs nearly $15,000.

But Cattell said many tools are much less expensive and can help both special-education students as wel l as students without disabilities. He said many of the most useful tools are applications that can used on iPads, iPods or iPhones.

One of the emerging areas where a lot of software is being created is in the realm of voice recognition technology, Cattell said. This technology allows students to dictate words into a microphone and the computer will output text that students can then e-mail or print out as a formal paper. Students who struggle to write or type can still be included in class and complete the same tasks as other students.

Also, students without disabilities can use voice recognition technology to dictate a paper from a mobile device when they are not at a typical computer and can complete school work despite a busy schedule.

"These technologies are a bonus to (non-disabled) kids as well," said Mary Ann Lucas, the elementary individualized education program facilitator for the Owen J. Roberts School District. "Special-education students are no longer seen as different."

Cattell said students can also use a computer as a voice output system. Therefore, students who cannot speak now have a voice.

Another emerging area of technology that has greatly aided students is the growth of e-books, according to Cattell. E-books often help students who struggle to read because of disabilities such as dyslexia to comprehend books of all kinds.

Cattell said he worked with one student who could not read because of severe dyslexia, and with the help of e-books, the student is now working toward a bachelor’s degree at Drexel University.

For Lucas, assistive technology fosters individualism for students, provides an asset for building cur riculum and allows special-education students to be included in the general population.

"Allowing students to sit among their typical peers really motivates them," Lucas said.

Lucas said one of the best values of the technology is that school districts need not rely on teacher aides as much to help students.

While the technology continues to grow at an rapid pace, the number of professionals trained to help students with the assistive technology is not keeping up, Cattell said. In the county, he and one other colleague are helping all public schools deal with this growing field.

"Each school needs to have people trained in assistive technology," Cattell said. "There’s too much at stake here."

To help alleviate this problem, West Chester University is planning on rolling out a 12-credit certificate program for graduate students in the field of assistive technology next summer.

Vickie McGinley, a professor of special education at West Chester University, is one of the leaders of the new program. She said some people consider assistive technology as trial-and-error experimentation while hoping something works. But the new program will be designed to teach educational professionals how to assess a student’s needs and provide the most helpful assistance.

"We need experts who are more accessible for students who need to rely on assistive technology," McGinley said.

The education department is also working with the speech pathology department to help to design the program that will be offered online. But McGinley said that while the university has the abilit y to put together a program that can assess the educational side of assistive technology, it does not have an engineering program to help round out the courses.

"What we’re missing is a connection to that engineering piece that deals with technology for the physically disabled," McGinley said.

While there are still holes in the program, McGinley said she is confident it will provide professional development that is seriously lacking. She said 10 similar programs exist in the entire country.