Augmentative Communication

As a student in TC's Autism and Intellectual Disabilities Masters Program, augmentative and alternative communication is the technology I was most eager to learn about in this course, as many of my future students will be nonverbal. I have already had students who communicate with the high-tech devices Dynavox, Tango, ProLoQuo2Go, and with the low-tech Picture Exchange Communication. I am always fascinated by watching my students learn to use these devices, and love to sit on speech and language therapy sessions to see how the SLP's program the devices.

It has been my personal experience that once a child masters an AAC system, the quality of life and happiness of that child improves drastically, and the child's aggressive or noncompliant behaviors are dramatically reduced. It is such a joy to watch a child gain the ability to communicate, and the use of an AAC system can actually also lead to a child gaining more vocal verbal  skills as well. I hope to learn more about how we, as teachers, can support the work of our SLP's in helping our students use their AAC systems and devices in all settings throughout the day in order to help their communication skills generalize and to improve their quality of life.

Planning with Technology

After watching the in-class presentation, Planning with Technology, I was struck by one slide in particular, "Eyes." The bullet points in the slide included:

Driven by understanding of student

• Adjust vision of what is possible

• Revise understanding of student capability and engagement with learning

• Use new possibilities to refine or create new goals and objectives

I think the reason that this slide spoke to me was because it emphasized viewing your students and the available technology through fresh eyes. A mentoring teacher told me last year, "Students with disabilities are limited by the imaginations of their teachers, don't be their limiting factor." I think that the keys to being a good special education teacher are having having high expectations for all students, using all of your creative resources to ensure your students' learning, and keeping constantly updated on new technologies, new educational methods, and new ideas to help your student. 

The one concept that I have been exposed to at TC which has had the greatest impact on me as a teacher is Universal Design for Learning, and using technology to make UDL a reality in my classroom. I think it is important to see your students and  rather than thinking "this is what they can't do," but rather to view them through UDL eyes and think, "this is what they can do, and this is what I can do as their  teacher to enable them to reach their fullest potential through my creativity, knowledge, and utilization of technology and resources." 

On this same note, I was also struck by the slide titled "Flexibility." This slide states that a UDL lesson should focus on:

• Interactivity (gateways & feedback---access to choice)

• Recreate activities (modify them to meet student needs) 

• You are limited by your own imagination & innovation 

• Try a technology adaptation and explore it, not just to solve a problem, but to explore possibilities and opportunities that are off your radar screen...

I think the main message of this slide is to view teaching as a fluid, flexible process where you are constantly adjusting your lessons based upon the feedback you receive from  interactions with your students. I think it also emphasizes creativity and exploration of new technological possibilities, and I think this creativity is what makes a true UDL classroom possible.

Kids Who Use Assistive Technology in Our Classrooms.

I am really excited by the topic, especially because I will potentially be doing my student teaching at the John A Coleman School in this upcoming semester, where all  of the students use wheelchairs and  many of the students use AAC devices. I really enjoyed watching the video and reading the article about TACLE and DO-IT, and learning about all of the adaptations that have enabled these individuals with exceptionalities to achieve independence and pursue their interests. I enjoyed putting names and faces to the concepts that we study about and hearing the stories of Susannah and  Lukas. 

Relating this information to the sample learning profiles, assistive technology, like Cochlear Implants for Rebecca and the Smart-scan 32 and power wheelchair for Sarah, enables these students to participate in every day activities. I believe strongly that it is our responsibility as society as a whole, and personally  as their teachers to utilize technology to make our classrooms work for them, rather than forcing these students to adapt to our world or sit on the sidelines. I think that Dr. Richard Keller, here at TC, would support my argument that it is the responsibility of society to adapt to meet the needs of these individuals through technology. In his interview, he stated "the disability studies paradigm, or the disability rights movement paradigm and the shift there is of course to locating the source of the disability, not within the person... it's more an attribute that comes about by the decisions that the dominate culture makes and how they impact on my ability to do things in the environment that they create."

Watching the video Adapting Classrooms for AT users,  I found it disheartening to hear how students with physical disabilities in public schools, like Steven, were included in academic subjects, but excluded in those socially crucial activities like gym. These students felt so out of place that they sought out the Henry Viscardi school, a more restrictive option than a local public school, because their public schools were not making the simple accommodations that would have let them "fit in. " I think its important to realize that students who use AT, like Stephen from the video and  Lukas in the short video and article,  need their teachers to not only make adaptions that enable them to access the curriculum, but adaptations to enable them to participate in extracurricular and social activities like band and gym.