Assistive Technology

Education ◽  
2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Assistive Technology ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Individual Performance ◽  
Assistive Technologies ◽  
Social Model ◽  
Assistive Device ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
Use Of Technology

Considering the vicious cycle of exclusion that students with special needs are often trapped in— lacking the means for equal participation in education, society, and mainstream development programs—assistive technology has proven to have great potential in providing to all learners the ability to access the general education curriculum. Approaches in the use of assistive technology basically focus on facilitating individuals in their interaction with their environment. Assistive technology is a generic term that includes assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices that might be used to compensate for lack of certain abilities, in order to participate in the activities of daily life. With assistive technology individuals have the option of approaching and completing their tasks with greater ease and independence, since it helps in removing functional barriers that inhibit their individual performance. With the emergence of the social model of disability, it is increasingly being argued that inaccessible environments have been the greatest barrier to the inclusion of students with special needs. Research on the successful implementation of inclusive education in developing countries identifies the ineffective and inefficient use of assistive technologies, citing this as the major obstacle hindering inclusion. Since it has been widely acknowledged, that the success and applicability of an assistive device is governed by its acceptance and actual usage by its users considering their perception, expectations, satisfaction, and their level of access and success with the technology when interacting with their environment; approaches in the use of technology therefore have to be needs-based; inexpensive to produce, purchase, and maintain; and be easy to use and effective in addressing an identified need. This can be ensured by the direct involvement of potential users at each stage of the planning and implementation process to help overcome barriers that inhibit the efficient use and applicability of assistive technology devices in different contexts. Moreover, although assistive technology is seen to have a major role in remediating and compensating the performance deficits experienced by students with special needs, it should not be viewed merely within a rehabilitative or remediative context, but as a tool for accessing curriculum and exploring and drawing out means to help learners achieve positive outcomes. Researches on the use of assistive technology point toward the distinct need to identify ways to encourage the development of tools and strategies for effective technology integration, and to work together on issues surrounding the use of technology, ensuring that the same high standards of instruction and need-based assistance is available to all despite the difference in their functional abilities.

scholarly journals Dialogic Learning Environments That Enhance Instrumental Learning and Inclusion of Students With Special Needs in Secondary Education

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Navarro-Mateu ◽  
Teresa Gómez-Domínguez ◽  
María Padrós Cuxart ◽  
Esther Roca-Campos
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Inclusive Education ◽  
Instrumental Learning ◽  
Educational Systems ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Special Educational Needs ◽  
Educational Strategies ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
Documentary Analysis

Across Europe, the enrolment of students with special educational needs in regular classrooms is increasing, although it does not always mean access to high quality educational experience. In this context, inclusive education has been enhanced in most educational systems, but its successful implementation is still limited and has become a challenge in most countries, and specially in secondary education, when segregation due to learning achievement is more frequent. Educational practices that take into account the potential of promoting learning interactions within heterogeneous groups of students have already demonstrated contributing to educational inclusion of students with special needs. In this study we analyse the case of a secondary education school located in Valencian Community (Spain), which educates students with special needs along with their typically developing peers and is characterized by its inclusive ethos. The analysis focuses on three educational strategies implemented in the school and their impact on educational improvement and inclusion of the students with special needs: (1) co-teaching, (2) interactive groups, (3) dialogic literary gatherings. Qualitative data were obtained from communicative focus groups with teachers, communicative life stories with students and relatives, communicative observations of the three educational strategies and documentary analysis. The findings show significant increase in the students' instrumental learning, as well as an improvement in these students' overall inclusion in the school.

scholarly journals The Potential To Learn: Pre-Service Teachers Proposed Use Of Instructional Strategies For Students With A Learning Disability

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (10) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Woodcock ◽  
Wilma Vialle
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Instructional Strategies ◽  
General Education Teachers ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
Mainstream Classrooms ◽  
Service Training

Over recent years, moves toward the inclusion of students with special needs in mainstream classrooms has brought about increasing attention to the way general education teachers perceive these students. Commensurate with this has been a growing interest in what may constitute educational success for children with special needs in mainstream classrooms, plus the ability of general education teachers to provide effective and appropriate instruction for them. It is known that teachers form beliefs about the process of teaching during their pre-service training and also that once a belief has been held for a long time, it becomes extremely difficult to change (Bandura, 1977, and Liljedahl, 2005). With learning disabilities being one of the most common disabilities in the classroom (Clark, 1997, and Clark & Artiles, 2000), it was considered that the need to further explore pre-service teachers’ perceived use of instructional strategies in relation to students who have what is termed learning disabilities, is indeed critical. This study looked at the instructional strategies Australian pre-service teachers reported they would use for students with a learning disability compared to students without a learning disability. The findings show that pre-service teachers favour more direct teacher-centred instructional strategies for students with a learning disability and more learner-centred instructional strategies for students without a learning disability. The greatest discrepancy in strategy use between the two groups of students was the higher cognitive level instructional strategies within a learner-centred environment. Pre-service teachers would use these strategies more frequently with students who do not have a learning disability. Implications for future practice and recommendations for future research are presented.

Online Learning as a Form of Accommodation

2011 ◽  
pp. 2906-2910
Author(s):  
Terence Cavanaugh
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Department Of Education ◽  
Special Needs Students ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
General Education Teacher ◽  
The Past ◽  
Education Act

An estimated three billion people, representing approximately half of the planet’s population, are in some way affected by disabilities, which includes an estimated 150 million from the United States of America (Half the Planet, 2001). According to the Twenty-Third Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (U.S. Department of Education, 2002a), concerning students with special needs between the ages of three and 21, the U.S. and its outlying areas are currently serving educationally more than 6,272,000 students classified as having a disability. The inclusion model, in which a special needs student participates in the “regular” classroom, has become the current classroom education standard. Today’s special needs students have increasing impacts on the general education teacher as, during the past 10 years, the percentage of students with disabilities served in schools and classes with their non-disabled peers has gradually grown to over 90% in 1998 (U.S. Department of Education, 2000b). Because of the large and increasing number of special needs students, assistive educational technology is growing in importance. The population of postsecondary students with disabilities has increased over the past two decades, and currently there are approximately one million persons in postsecondary institutions who are classified as having some form of disability (U.S. Department of Education, 2000b). In 1994, approximately 45% of the adult population who reported having a disability had either attended some college or had completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, as compared to only 29% in 1986 (National Center for Educational Statistics, 1999a).

Innovations and Use of Assistive Technologies in Libraries of Institutions of Higher Learning

2021 ◽  
pp. 346-365
Author(s):  
Josiline Phiri Chigwada ◽  
Josephine Dinar Phiri
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Assistive Technology ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Academic Libraries ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Assistive Technologies ◽  
Higher Learning ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
Institutions Of Higher Learning

Access to information for all is a major component of library and information science in this digital era. Libraries in institutions of higher learning are mandated to provide information to all the patrons regardless of their ability to deal with the issue of inclusivity and social justice. A study on the innovations was conducted specifically for patrons with special needs in academic libraries. Different assistive technological types of equipment were outlined as well as the challenges encountered when using the assistive technology tools and applications. The observation was done at one of the academic libraries, and it was discovered that the library has a disability center that is used by patrons with special needs and manned by a trained librarian. The authors recommend the introduction of such services in all the academic libraries to cater to patrons with special needs.

Effective Practices for Teaching Writing to Students with Disabilities in the United States

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
April Camping ◽  
Steve Graham
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
The United States ◽  
Individual Student ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
Writing Practices ◽  
General Education Classroom ◽  
Critical Skills

Writing is especially challenging for students with disabilities, as 19 out of every 20 of these students experience difficulty learning to write. In order to maximize writing growth, effective instructional practices need to be applied in the general education classroom where many students with special needs are educated. This should minimize special education referrals and maximize the progress of these students as writers. Evidence-based writing practices for the general education classroom include ensuring that students write frequently for varying purposes; creating a pleasant and motivating writing environment; supporting students as they compose; teaching critical skills, processes, and knowledge; and using 21st-century writing tools. It is also important to be sure that practices specifically effective for enhancing the writing growth of students with special needs are applied in both general and special education settings (where some students with disabilities may receive part or all of their writing instruction). This includes methods for preventing writing disabilities, tailoring instruction to meet individual student needs, addressing roadblocks that can impede writing growth, and using specialized writing technology that allows these students to circumvent one or more of their writing challenges.

Do Teachers Spend Less Time Teaching in Classrooms With Students With Special Needs? Trends From International Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 273-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
North Cooc
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Behavioral Problems ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
School Factors ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
International Data ◽  
Teaching Time ◽  
General Education Classrooms

Debates about the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms often overlook its impact on teachers. In this study, I analyze the concern that teachers may spend less time teaching in classrooms with children with special needs using survey data on 121,173 teachers from 38 participating countries and partners of the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2013. I further examine teacher, classroom, and school factors that may explain disparities in time spent teaching in classrooms with and without students with special needs. The findings indicate teachers, on average, spend marginally less class time on teaching in classrooms that include more students with special needs. The disparity in teaching time is mostly removed when accounting for students with behavioral problems in classrooms.

scholarly journals Self-efficacy Sources among General Education Teachers in Inclusive Schools: A Cross-Cultural Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (30) ◽  
pp. 67-76
Author(s):  
Mohammad S. Soliman
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
General Education Teachers ◽  
The Self ◽  
Educational Systems ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Core Study ◽  
Mastery Experience

The inclusion of students with special needs in general education classes has become a goal that all educational systems worldwide strive to achieve it. The inclusion of special needs has many benefits, whether for special needs students or regular students. The current study aims to reveal the differences in the self-efficacy among general education teachers in both the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Republic of Egypt. It aims also to reveal the sources of this self-efficacy in both countries. The core study sample consisted of (96) Saudi teachers and (88) Egyptian teachers. The researcher used the teachers 'self-efficacy scale and the teachers' self-efficacy sources scale. The results of the study indicated that there is a significant difference between the average scores of the total self-efficacy and its sub-dimensions between the Saudi and Egyptian sample for the outperform of The Egyptian teachers. It indicated that the source of the mastery experience was a significant predictive of the self-efficacy of the Saudi teachers, and it explained 53% of the variation in self-efficacy. It also indicated that the mastery experience was a significant predictive of the self-efficacy of the Egyptian teachers, and it explained 13% of the variance in self-efficacy.

scholarly journals Teachers' capacity to create inclusive learning environments

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 221-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma Leifler
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Lesson Study ◽  
Student Diversity ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Inclusive Learning ◽  
Broad Concept ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Study Methodology

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore effects of an intervention designed for teachers' learning. This study investigates the effectiveness of a three-session professional development (PD) program based on the lesson study methodology. Lesson study was chosen as an intervention, attempting to strengthen teachers' awareness of and readiness to teach for student diversity.Design/methodology/approachThis study included 26 participants. The teachers took part in lesson study cycles during a period of four months. Effectiveness was measured using a pre-test/post-test within-subject design. The broad concept of inclusion and the characteristics of the research questions in this study demanded a mix of methods, a design in which qualitative and quantitative data are collected in parallel, analyzed separately and then merged.FindingsResults show an increase of teachers' readiness from baseline to post measurement to adjust the learning environment for increased inclusivity. The largest increase (88%) was seen in the themes in teachers' responses regarding accommodations for a student with special needs. Regarding self-perceived ability, the average increase was 50%. Results show significant changes in teachers' adjustment awareness ability.Originality/valueThis study contributes to educational research, as the focus is PD for general teachers. PD opportunities with teaching strategies related to special needs (e.g. neurodevelopmental conditions, NDCs) are seldom offered to general education teachers. Support from teachers is a key strategy for accommodating students with special needs in mainstream classrooms. Furthermore, there is a lack of literature of interventions aiming to improve teachers' readiness and preparedness for students with NDCs in mainstream settings.

Online Learning as a Form of Accomodation

2005 ◽  
pp. 2209-2213
Author(s):  
Terence Cavannaugh
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Department Of Education ◽  
Special Needs Students ◽  
Students With Special Needs ◽  
General Education Teacher ◽  
The Past ◽  
Education Act

An estimated three billion people, representing approximately half of the planet’s population, are in some way affected by disabilities, which includes an estimated 150 million from the United States of America (Half the Planet, 2001). According to the Twenty-Third Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (U.S. Department of Education, 2002a), concerning students with special needs between the ages of three and 21, the U.S. and its outlying areas are currently serving educationally more than 6,272,000 students classified as having a disability. The inclusion model, in which a special needs student participates in the “regular” classroom, has become the current classroom education standard. Today’s special needs students have increasing impacts on the general education teacher as, during the past 10 years, the percentage of students with disabilities served in schools and classes with their non-disabled peers has gradually grown to over 90% in 1998 (U.S. Department of Education, 2000b). Because of the large and increasing number of special needs students, assistive educational technology is growing in importance. The population of postsecondary students with disabilities has increased over the past two decades, and currently there are approximately one million persons in postsecondary institutions who are classified as having some form of disability (U.S. Department of Education, 2000b). In 1994, approximately 45% of the adult population who reported having a disability had either attended some college or had completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, as compared to only 29% in 1986 (National Center for Educational Statistics, 1999a).

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