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June 4, 2014

Assistive Technology for Adapted Physical Education

              Assistive technology can be defined as any kind of technology and/or tool that can be used to enhance the functional independence of a person with a disability. Assistive Technology (AT) devices are tools to help overcome the challenges posed by these disabilities and enable the user to  have access to a quality of life, that may otherwise not be known, and lead more independent lives. AT devices can be any item, equipment, or system  that is used to maintain, develop, or increase improved functionality capabilities of students with disabilities. 

Adapted Physical Education - 

Adapted Physical Education is a comprehensive program that strives to provide students with disabilities an opportunity to develop skills through exercise, sport and games that will benefit them in all aspects of their lives. 

Benefits of AT in Physical Education

Increased access to curriculum and peers

Increased socialization, interaction and acceptance for students

Increased communication of needs and wants.

Increased engagement in physical education

Categories of Assistive Technology used in Physical Education 

AT comes in 3 categories:

Low Tech - Assisted devices or equipment that needs no batteries to operate. Examples include;

1. Bowling ramp 

Suitable for students with limited mobility

2. Velcro handles

Suitable for students with issues in fine motor skills

3. Bright colored equipment

Suitable for students with visual impairment.

4. Bell balls

This ball has a bell inside that jingles with movement. Suitable for students with visual impairment.

5. Lower basketball hoop

This type of a hoop would be suitable for students who use wheel chairs.

6. PEC’s (Picture Exchange Communication)

Suitable for any student who has challenges with written text. This may come into play in explaining rules or positions in a game.

Mid Tech - Assisted devices or equipment that needs batteries to operate and may or may not need some training to utilize. Examples include;

1.Laser pointer - 

This could be of use to just about any student but may be of particular suitability for students with auditory processing issues.

1.Beep ball

For use with visually impaired students.

4.Talking pedometer/watch

Visual impairment

5.Manual wheelchair

Students with limited to severe mobility issues.

6.Multi-step/level switch

Visually impaired.

High Tech - Assisted devices or equipment that are electronic in nature, have multi-step processes to utilize them and may or may not need specialized training to utilize them. Examples include;

1.Beep baseball kit

Suitable for the blind and visually impaired.

2.Hand crank bikes

Students with limited lower mobility, paralysis, parapelegia.

3.High tech prosthesis

Amputee

4.Wii gaming system

Suitable for every student. Sports and fitness games are excellent.

5. Power wheelchair

Severe mobility issues. Quadripelegia. 

6.Voice output communication devices

Severe mobility issues. Quadripelegia, autism.

Two videos from youtube demonstrating the power of the human spirit and the liberating benefits of Assistive Technology

Reflections on Six Articles.

Reflections on Six Articles


1. Universal Design for Learning Principles in a Hybrid Course: Perceptions and Practice
            Rebecca Elder Hinshaw and Saud Sakalli Gumas, 2013.

Case Study

                           This article is focused on the experiences of five educators who took part in the authors hybrid course that incorporated UDL principles.

                            Very well written and concise,  this article begins with a short description of UDL principles. Obviously in draws reference to No Child Left Behind and states that UDL is aligned with it. I felt that was important to mention because NCLB is an accepted mandate in the US that Canadians often see as obtrusive but I not so sure that American educators and educational writers would see it that way.

                             The hybrid course designed by the researchers is a graduate level special education course - probably for teachers - that used UDL and addressed earlier research findings that suggested special educators benefited from training in adapting curriculum, co-teaching, and working collaboratively with general educators. The course had two face to face group meetings but the majority of the classes were in an online platform. This is what is meant by the authors as "hybrid". Given that this article was published just last year this is not a unusual circumstance or structure for graduate level course. The objective for the course was to provide insight for the participants on how they perceived and practiced UDL.

                           The data for the case study was collected by audio recording of semi-structured interviews and observations of the participants at various points throughout the course. Essentially qualitative data collection and analysis. This study claims reliability though triangulation, peer debriefing, and member checks.
                            The results of the study revealed that reflection was the most effective way for teachers  generate meaning and application of UDL principles. It also revealed that collaboration with others was an effective way to incorporate UDL into one's teaching.
                           
                            Although well written the article says very little. Judging from the technology the authors are describing I believe the case study is from the previous decade and was not published until recently. It is fact dated and does not have a lot to offer in our current environment of converging technologies and mobile devices.



2. The Fast Paced iPAD Revolution: Can Educators Stay Up to Date and Relevant About These Ubiquitous Devices?, 2012
Deanna C.C.Peluso

Discussion paper

                           This short article offers a very direct argument as to the "how" of technology integration in education. What is meant by this is that there is no denying the obvious educational benefits of the iPad revolution and that it is necessary to be bringing our education system into the 21st century (as many writers and pedagogs - my own word here - to describe a professional education writer/speaker who claims to know what is wrong with education and how to fix it - support), but how we are to get there is up for debate. We are also having a slight bit of confusion around what technologies are useful or even appropriate. This article draws attention to iPads and other mobile devices and the unease of some teachers as to just what are they supposed to do with them. Are they going to use them because the pedagogs are saying it is synonomous with good teaching or are they going to search for an opportunity to enhance what they are already, or will it be from an AT perspective?These are valid issues for all and I really like the way that this article sort of says - "OK....it's all good and I agree with you, but can we just slow down a little bit and look at this critically?"

                       This other issue raised for me by this article is that mobile devices and social media are being discussed like they are the same thing and they are definitely not. I have been nothing short of terrifically impressed by the accessibility features of the iPad and the great number of fantastic and inexpensive apps to enhance the delivery of curriculum. However, I am less impressed by the argument for the use of social media in education. I have studied this at length in another course and have been exposed to a lot of apparently good uses of social media in the classroom and I still have to say it is contrived. Just because the world uses social media does not mean it has relevance for education. Spirituality is also very widespread throughout the world and our education system does nothing to nurture this. I fail to see the need for such connectiveness with the world just inside the classroom. Like other technologies they are there to enhance to delivery of curriculum but when they become the curriculum it is no longer good teaching. As much as some pedagogs and those who have drank the technology koolaid may disagree with me, good teaching is still  and always will remain being mastery and expertise of content and the ability to deliver content in as many ways possible to meet the needs of the students sitting in front of you. Teaching is an art form and will always remain the art form of sharing knowledge and cultivating personal growth.


3. Using iPads With Students With Disabilities: Lessons Learned from Students, Teachers, and Parents., 2013

Cathi Draper Rodriguez, Irva Strnadova, and Therese Cumming.

This is an excellent article. Extremely well written and informative, the article addresses the selection and use of mobile devices for the classroom as well as provides suggestions for overcoming common challenges.

The writers got me in right away with the statement that the primary way mobile devices become functional for educational use is through apps. This is directly linked to our course and in keeping with the use of mobile devices being utilized as Assistive Technology.

According to the authors mobile devices meet students with diverse needs in four ways;

A)     The technology is open ended and can be individualized for each user.

B)      Due to their preponderance the devices will garner a minimum of  negative attention.

C)      Many parents, students , and parents already own mobile devices thus minimizing the learning curve.

D)     The devices are easy to maintain across different environments.

This article does spend a good amount of time examining how the mobile devices are being used for students with learning challenges. Here are some of the findings;

·         Students use the device to help learn English – using iPads as portable dictionaries, using vioice memo apps to record themselves reading aloud in English. This is greatr for students who were too shy to speak in class.

·         - interenet use at home and school

·         - audio textbooks, movies,and video.

·         Video modelling via the ipad is an effective tool for students with autism

·         Generating written ouyput using voice to text apps generates more output than traditional pen and paper writing.

\the authors point out that integrating AT into the inclusive classroom promotes access, participation, and progress for students withg disabilities, as long as potential barriers are considered nd the integration of the technology is carefully planned. They recommend anticipating potential barriers ahead of time and removing them as part of the planning process. They suggest addressing

A)     parent and teacher technology training

B)      provide professional development for teachers around the use of the device.

C)      Purchase and maintainence of the devices.

D)     School-home collaboration

E)      Transition across environments.

What I really liked about this article is taken verbatim below;

Planning for mobile technology in the classroom.

                This is perhaps the best section of the piece.

                       When an educator decides to implement mobile technologies the classroom, logistical preplanning must occur to ensure that the instructional time is used effectively. Educators must consider what period of the day the students will use the devices, as well as how many students will be able to use the devices at one time. Teachers must also incorporate technology use into their classroom management plans by determining what the rules for use will be and how they will be taught to the students and enforced. When considering how to integrate mobile technology into teaching and learning, teachers must be thoughtful about how, when, and where to do this. The technology should fit the instruction, not the other way around. A question to ask might be, “What can this technology allow teachers and students to do that they would not otherwise be able to do.?”

I could not say this better myself – and I tried.

4. Logistical Issues in Developing Inclusive Classrooms: In Inclusive Schools in Action: Making Differences Ordinary.
 Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2000. 

This article is well written and has some good information to offer. Written in the year 2000 I think there is much information that can still be used by schools of 15 years later. Much work around inclusiveness and differentiation has been done and much has been achieved since the writing of this article. When I think back to 2000 we were just beginning to talk outcomes – we were still using terms like curricular objectives. Just like any re-culturalling process, the move to more inclusive classrooms has been fairly steady,  and I would have to say that teachers in general are much more sensitive to the individual needs of their students than teachers of a decade and a half ago. In 2000 the decision on class composition was usually decided around issues of classroom dynamic - not individual needs. I believe technology and better resources has allowed this to evolve. And, this has been done with most of the work being done by classroom teachers who have collaborated in PLCs – not from administration at the school, board, or department level.

The writers describe four crucial issues to creating inclusive classrooms;

1.       Student differences are accommodated as an ordinary part of the school day.

2.       Provide supports for students that are a natural and unobtrusive part of the classroom routine.

3.       Provide as much opportunity for the school day of students with disabilities to be as typical as possible.

4.       Ensure that students with disabilities are active participants in the academic and social communities of the classroom.

As mentioned earlier I would dare say that we have made great strides towards these conditions (or at least regularly addressing them) and are continuing to do so. Much of this article is spent trying to exemplify how this is NOT being done, and, given the year that this article was written I can certainly forgive the authors for doing so. I think that once this is understood by the reader, you can basically “read through” those parts and get to the” relevant to today” sections of the piece. The writers toss around the idea of teacher intolerance so much that you would think they had an issue of their own that was being resolved or worked through with this piece of writing. If a new teacher was reading they would think that teachers of the year 2000 were intolerant of differences and this could not be further from the truth. Being a teacher from that time I will admit that there was a systemic attitude that students with disabilities were best served in their “own” environment. I am not condoning it – merely explaining it. Just like today there was a lot of good work going on – I know because I was there. 

One of the most relevant points expressed by McLeskey and Waldon in the article is that to increase the range of tolerance in the classroom resources should be added. Some of these are quite common today;

1.       Adding a special education teacher to the classroom as a co-teacher.

2.       Reducing class size

3.       Adapting expectations based on “where the students are”.

                I would add that the introduction of Assistive Technology has gone a long way to make this happen as well and it looks like it will only get better with the use of mobile devices – all kids will be using them – no apparent differences. I love the line the authors took from Ferguson (1995) – “In trying to change everything, inclusion all too often seems to be leaving everything the same. But in a new place”. I also really the point taken from Pugach (1995) “....the answer to the challenge of inclusion lies only in what special education already knows how to do relative to the status quo in general education”. As stated before, I believe that general education is making great strides towards inclusiveness. All in all the article is still a good read to remind us of the pitfalls we face in maintaining inclusive classrooms.

5.Assistive Technology and Universal Design for Learning: Two Sides of the Same Coin

David Rose, Ted Hasselbring, Skip Stahl, and Joy Zabala, 2005.

                This article was not on the list of articles for review, but it certainly fits the criteria and it interested me.  As well it is relatively recent (2005) enough to still have relevance in our current educational climate. The premise of this piece is that many in education see AT and UDL as identical or mutually incompatible (not sure how – this seems to be an unsupported premise by the authors – I think identical makes more sense). The authors feel that neither is accurate and that AT and UDL are completely complementary with advances in one prompts advances in the other.  They point out that AT which has been well established in education (from low tech – to now high tech with mobile devices)while UDL  as a concept is relatively new (as of 2005). They point out that the two terms and concepts are often used interchangeably because both approached depend significantly on modern technology.

According to Rose et al. UDL has goals similar to those of AT but the approaches differ in important ways. UDL seeks from the outset to create products and/or environments that are designed to accommodate individuals with a wide range of abilities and disabilities. UDL is not necessarily about retrofitting existing buildings – the design is inherently about accessibility from the conception. UDL seeks to educate teachers, curriculum designers, and administrators on how to design an educational program that makes learning accessible to the greatest number of students possible from the beginning. In short , the focus of UDL is the learning environment rather than the individual student. UDlL seeks to identify potential obstacles in learning in curriculum design or classroom setup and environment through frontloading of initial design with built in flexibility to enable the curriculum itself to adjust to individual learners. In AT, modern technology is utilized to improve education for students with disabilities and to help overcome barriers in the curriculum and learning environment. As such UDL and AT are really to be thought of as two approaches on an existing continuum. They often work in concert to achieve optimal results.

To exemplify, the authors use a classroom and curriculum design that is very well known to educators. An overreliance on printed text in a classroom raises barriers to student engagement and mastery of content for those with certain disabilities. Taking an AT perspective, the issue is considered a student problem. The individual’s disability with printed text interferes with their ability to master the content. The AT perspective then views solutions that address the individual’s weaknesses. Solutions arrived at under this paradigm may include remedial reading classes , special tutoring, common assistive technology such as spellcheckers or audio books. From a UDL perspective the problem is viewed as environmental. This view will focus on limitations in the curriculum rather than the individual. They suggest a multimedia curriculum design that provides digital, universally designed media that can offer diverse options for viewing and manipulating the content and demonstrating acquisition of knowledge.

In reality, both kinds of solutions are required. Universally designed curriculum needs to be aware of the current assistive technology and accommodate their features in the design process. In summation the authors state that as education continues to evolve we will see that facilitating learning for all students will require solutions that address the optimal interaction between what is universal and what is individual.

This was a thoroughly informative and interesting article that I would recommend for reading and study by teachers of any discipline.

6.Harnessing the Potential of Technology to Support the Academic Success of Diverse Students.

Dave Edyburn, 2011

                Dave Edyburn’s article is for administrators to be introduced to the principles of UDL and how they can be implemented using technology to specifically address the special needs of learners with disabilities while at the same time offer benefit to all students. His article gives readers practical strategies and tools that will support teachers and students in achieving academic success.

                Edyburn states that we will begin from a different perspective if we start with the premise thst every classroom is composed of diverse learners. This view is essentially the desired one in my opinion since it is so obvious. Every students comes with different strengths and challenges – some which require interventions – and some which require differentiation in instruction and curriculum design. We need to think about how we can support diverse learners before they have a chance to fail – a more proactive stance. As with Rose et. Al.’ S article this approach that incorporates both UDL and AT establishes the need for technology that offers flexibility not normally found in the traditional classroom of chalkboards, text books, paper, and pencil. Again I would like to say that much of what I now see in 2014 is just that – we have classrooms that are utilizing technology in place of the traditional tools – or at least operating concurrently. The much written about “one size fits all” curriculum is in my opinion an artifact in education.  The author states throughout the article that use digital media is a key ingredient in implementing a universal design for learning philosophy because of its interactive nature. Digital media offers opportunities for choice, personalization, and what he refers to as “just-time-support”.

                Although predominately directed towards post-secondary education, Edyburn’s article is entirely applicable to public system. He stresses that top-down strategies are necessary in defining the mission and core values of an education system and that some attention should also be devoted to supporting technology that is available outside the classroom. This is in line with the generally held view that a school is a community of learners. The home as well as the city library can be include in UDL design – a novel concept that deserves considerable attention in my opinion.

                Edyburn’s article works very well as a companion to “Assistive Technology and Universal Design for Learning: Two Sides of the Same Coin” and I would recommend reading both together for a more complete view of UDL implementation. He recommends that administrators utilize top-down strategies, bottom-up strategies, and policy change as a means for making diverse the norm.

  

                           

Wednesday, May 28, 2014


                    This class I had to miss. I was on my annual band trip. This year it was in Moncton. We had 3 days and 2 nights in Moncton - 74 students and 8 chaperones - quite a few people to manage. I was on the clock the whole time. I am playing catch up with the recording of the class.For the sake of time and the deadlines I have to complete things I am going to "blog" as I listen to to the recording.

                     AAC

Augmentative and alternative communication for students who are non-verbal. Do an online search

1. What is communication? answer
2. brainstorm and list 20 different ways we communicate
3. research what is AAC
4. Who is a typical user of AAC
5. What are 3 criteria of effective communication
6. Locate 10 types of AAC devices - low medium and high tech. - sign language is one.
7. Search on youtube - from an inspiring user of AAC

What is communication?\

There are various definitions to be found on the internet. The one I like the best is summarized below:

Communication can be said to be the sharing or the activity of conveying information by exchanging thoughts, ideas, feelings, attitudes, perceptions, and commands. The sharing or conveying can be done by speech, writing, gestures, or behaviours and through a number of mediums including physical, mental, chemical, electromagnetic, and even cellular (genetic).
Typically communication involves a sender, a medium, and a recipient. Communication can occur across vast distances or miniscule spaces.

Twenty different ways we communicate. - Brainstorming activity.

I was able to come up with 13 before redundancy started creeping in.

1. Writing
2. Speaking
3. Gestures
4. Behaviours/emotions
5. Smell
6. Objects - sign/edifices/architecture
7.Chemicals - plant and animals
8. Art - music or visual art
9. Para verbal - shouting, repetition, tone
10. Electronically - texting or recordings
11. Genetics - messages passed on to successive generations through DNA
12. Social/Group Dynamics - mob mentality or "herd" behaviour
13. Rituals

What is AAC

                           Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)  is a term that is used to describe communication methods used to supplement speaking and writing for those with challenges in these areas. AAC can be a permanent part of an individuals communication means or temporary.  AAC systems includes signing and body language, pictures and communication boards to speech facilitating devices. The systems can be low -tech (as in the case of sign language) to high tech (kurzwell).

Who is a Typical User of AAC 

                           I was unable to find who a typical AAC user is so I have to say they probably don't exist - much like the average person or average pilot of the Ted Talk we saw earlier in the course. I think the needs for AAC are as diverse as the devices.

Three Criteria of Effective Communication

From Wikipedia. - great summary.

Communicating with others involves three primary steps:

Thought: First, information exists in the mind of the sender. This can be a concept, idea, information, or feeling.

Encoding: Next, a message is sent to a receiver in words or other symbols.

Decoding: Lastly, the receiver translates the words or symbols into a concept or information that a person can understand.

10 Types of AAC Devices

I was able to find many;

Communication boards

VOCA - Voice Output Communication Aid - iPads 

Digitized output devices - iPads

computers

Sign language

gestures

vocalizations

hand held stylus

pointers (head, foot)

splints

keyguards

mouth stick

light pointers

infrared pointers

eye-gaze systems

joysticks

optical head pointers

head controlled mice

pneumatic switch

tread switch

                           

Finally

An inspiring example of AAC use from youtube - actually a collection of short example - but I especially like the first. Enjoy

For some reason the video uploader will not take the address.So I have pasted the link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_htMRRuOS8&index=1&list=PL5Ty2F6P1qokjPDt7gGWlVyjc7spX83TG

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Nova Scotia iPads for all

I am in agreement that getting mobile devices into the classroom – especially iPads is the way to go. With the explosion in the number of affordable (literally “affordable” for most people’s budgets) apps that are specifically targeted for use in the classroom with UDL principles in mind, the iPad is perhaps the one true piece of technology that is suited to the direction that education is heading. This machine has accessibility functions that would have cost many more times the price of a single iPad just a couple of years ago. Now everyone has access to voice to text, voice to print, text to voice, enhanced visual delivery, and mobility that was only possible with expensive single purpose machinery and/or software.

I think that the mobile revolution will impact everyone in society as the devices become cheaper and as the market opens to competition. Tablets are in fact catching up and there are more and more apps for android. Currently android seems to be the cheaper version of mobile communications. They are limited but definitely developing.

Ipads for all. In short it is synonymous with “accessibility” for all.

The Writing Process

                What was remarkable in all of this activity was how much I took for granted.  As adults we really have learned a lot – and probably have forgotten how much we actually learned. We have rich language experience and a great deal of general experience to form ideas of how we want to express our views. Just picking up the pencil takes a certain level of skill. We need to locate the pencil – which requires visual skill. Some or all of the skills may be lacking in a student. The process of trying to write with my left hand made me want to give up because it was such a laborious task. I developed a whole new respect for these students who show up day after day and continue to keep at it – no matter how discouraging . It really shows courage and determination on their part.

Emergent Literacy Learners

                 From my limited research I found that from the emergent literacy perspective, reading and writing acquisition is seen as similar to oral language acquisition. That is in order to learn it you have to be exposed to it in order to make meaning of it and ultimately use it. While learning oral language is natural, learning to read and write is a lot less automatic. A great deal of instruction is required in learning reading and writing - hence we have the idea of using AT in order to get students with challenges to begin putting the thoughts in their heads on the paper or screen. I have explored some of the apps and AT that support this.

Ipevo Document Camera

This is a great device that can be used for reading text and can be projected wirelessly to the iPad which in turn can be manipulated digitally in any of the means that we have seen thus far in the course.

I have one in my school and I have not yet begun to explore it’s potential.

Symbol Support App

SymbolSupport App is a program that allows you to add symbols to your text.  SymbolReader is a free app that displays these symbolized documents. Both apps read the documents. The apps are compatible with the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

News to You App

This is a powerful app that draws students into news stories symbols and voice narration.  It can be used to bring social studies, current events, and other news items to special needs students and well as beginning readers. The symbol-based and voice supported articles allow for a fit to individual needs. Very teacher and parent friendly.

Clicker Books

This is a very useful app that allows students to create their own books. It is suitable for primary up to early secondary school. Each page has the possibility to insert or draw a picture and a button to record the students own sounds and narration for their book. The app reads the sentence each time one is written so that users can review the content.

 I found a very helpful youtube tutorial/review.

Signed Stories

Signed Stories is an app that allows children access to a number of animated books. The stories are told with narration, music, sound effects, and both British and American Sign Language. It also has interactive games that help students improve their language and reading skills. Brilliant!!

Checkout this youtube demo;