IRIS Center Assessment
Initial thoughts responses
Ms. Adelaide needs to know that assistive technology is any tool or service, which helps the students with disabilities do things more easily, quickly, or independently. She also needs to know that students with disabilities use this technology to help them on several different levels including improving writing and organizational skills, note taking skills, and mastering the educational concepts, which would otherwise have been outside their reach.
What are the school’s responsibilities regarding assistive technology?
The school should fund assistive technology and provide the necessary assistance to the students with disabilities through offering enabling environment to these students and providing special training to the teachers.
What can classroom teachers do to help their students fully succeed in their use of assistive technology?
Classroom teachers should acquire the relevant training to help their students fully succeed in their use of assistive technology.
One category of the items that we can consider as AT is the assistive devices for hearing like hearing aids, close-captioned TV, or personal FM units. Since listening is a crucial part of classroom experience, these devices help the students with hearing difficulties. The other examples of devices include self-propelled walkers, wheelchairs, side lying frames, standing aids, among others. These devices are imperative for students with mobility impairments as they help to position them so that they can pay attention in classrooms, focus for longer periods, and access the learning materials.
Explain two reasons why it is necessary to consider AT for students with disabilities.
Why is it important to consider both AT devices and AT services?
It is important to consider both AT devices and AT services because a student’s success in using assistive technology does not only rest on his/her having access to these devices but also on having access to the essential services or supports. Therefore, we should consider both AT devices and AT services as they go hand in hand.
Describe three responsibilities of the Implementation Team.
The implementation team is responsible for developing a plan that helps in guiding AT implementation and ensure that the activities that are related to AT are completed. In addition, the team starts to implement the plan after completing it. Lastly, it is the responsibility of this team to ensure that the students are receiving the maximum benefits from the AT through troubleshooting and monitoring.
List three outcomes the Implementation Team can determine by evaluating a student’s assistive technology.
The three outcomes that the implementation team can determine through evaluating the assistive technology of a student include success or failure of the assistive technology to provide adequate support, if additional training is required, and if product adaptation is required.
Imagine you are a seventh-grade general education language arts teacher, and a student in your class has an upcoming IEP meeting. What types of information should you gather ahead of time to contribute to the discussion of the student’s AT needs? Name at least four.
As a language arts teacher, the types of information that I will collect ahead of time to contribute to the discussion of the student’s AT needs include his/her present performance level, student’s ability to organize his/her thoughts, the ability to write down his/her thoughts on paper, and information about his/her grammar and spelling.
During the meeting suggested in the example above, the IEP team recommends AT for the student. As a general education teacher, describe your role in the AT implementation and evaluation processes.
My first role in the process of AT implementation and evaluation as a general education teacher will be to develop a plan, which will guide me in the implementation process. The other role will be to ensure that my student is receiving the maximum benefits from the AT through closely monitoring him/her and determine whether it is successful. Wrap Up
I still agree with my initial thoughts of what Ms. Adelaide should know about AT and how students with the disability use it. In addition, I still agree with my first thoughts that a school should fund assistive technology and provide the necessary assistance to the students with disabilities through offering enabling environment to these students and providing special training to the teachers. Finally, I still agree that classroom teachers should acquire the relevant training to help their students fully succeed in their use of assistive technology. Nonetheless, the classrooms teachers should develop a plan, which will guide them in AT implementation process, as this will help their students fully succeed in their use of assistive technology.
References
The IRIS Center for Training Enhancements. (2010). Assistive Technology: An Overview. Retrieved on February, 09, 2014 from http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/at/
