Assistive Technology

The US Department of Education and IDEA defines assistive technology as "any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with a disability."To me, that is a very broad definition that could mean endless types of assistive technology. Most commonly, when people think of assistive technology they think that it is a resource reserved for students with severe disabilities. However, that is not the case at all. Assistive technology can be used on a wide range of students with all sorts of different disabilities.

Students with mild disabilities can utilize assistive technology just as much as students with serve disabilities. There are many websites that are devoted and full of idea for using assistive technology for students with mild disabilities. Lately I've been finding all my creative ideas for teaching on the popular website of Pinterest. I think that its a great place for teachers to share their creative ideas of things that work in their classrooms. Most of the ideas I have found on Pinterest for using assistive technology have been very low budget or simple to create. One link I found on Pinterest brought me to a website that was chalk full of great assistive technology ideas for mild disabilities. The website had ideas for students with sensory issues, seating needs, fidget tools, auditory tools and also tools for gifted and talented students.

This past summer I worked at a school for students with severe autism. These students could not be served in a general education setting and had needs very different than what I was used to accommodating. It was a great experience for me because I got to learn a lot about autism but I also learned some great uses of assistive technology. My favorite was the PECS boards. PECS stands for picture exchange communication system. This form of assistive technology was a lifesaver for me when working with students with severe behavioral issues and also students who were nonverbal. When working with nonverbal autistic toddlers who had no yet learned how to sign everything they needed, the PECS board went a long way, especially for a young intern like myself. I also used a PECS board with one of my students who had serve behavioral issues. I would use it to help prompt him at times where he needed something but was often too upset to remember to use his words to ask for what he needed. The picture to the right is a great example of a PECS board used for autistic students. My favorite part about the PECS boards is that you can customize each individual PEC to meet the needs of your individual students; there are also a ton of resources online to print out PEC pictures for you students.


Assistive technology is a very broad term and can be used in many different ways to help assist the needs of all different kinds of students, learners and disabilities. I encourage all teachers to get creative when it comes to meetings the unique needs of their students. Assistive technology is a great thing for all students.

References

Hegemeir, R. (n.d.). Autism interactive teaching ideas. Pinterest. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://www.pinterest.com/pin/5018699521


US Department of Education. (n.d.). IDEA - Building the legacy of IDEA 2004. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/,root,st


Pinterest Icon. (n.d.). Google Images . Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://www.brandsoftheworld.com/sites/default/files/styles/logo-thumbnail/public/022012/pinterest_icon_0.


Schwenda, K. (n.d.). Assistive technology. EdTech 541: Integrating Technology into the Classroom Curriculum. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://edtech2.boisestate.edu/schwedak/54


Volume meter. (n.d.). Volume meter. Retrieved September 8, 2014, from http://visuals.autism.net/main.php?g2_itemId=37

Evernote and Skitch in the Classroom and Building Professional Learning Networks with Twitter

With technology making rapid advances in today's world, it's no wonder schools have started to catch on and make use of new technology in classrooms.

Teachers are using a popular app called Evernote in their classrooms. Launched in 2008, this app is used for taking and keeping notes in "notebooks". A note can be a formatted text, a webpage, a photograph, a voice memo, or a hand written "ink" note. You can also attach files and take notes on them. This very handy tool could be a teacher's best friend. It could store lesson plans, keep notes on students, keep student grades, and websites with lesson ideas. The possibilities are infinite. Evernote is also very accessible; you can have Evernote on your computer, phone or tablet, this makes accessing all your files from anywhere very easy. In this article, Kindergarten teacher Benjamin J Sheridan talks about how he uses Evernote in his classroom. He talks about how pleased he is with the program "After testing Evernote for about 3 months I was impressed by the flexibility and variety that is provided. As with most things I do in the classroom I try to figure out how to give the kids more ownership, not only in the process, but in the product as well". For more ideas on how to use Evernote in the classroom visit this website. 

As a college student I use Evernote once in a while. It works really well for me when I'm taking notes on video clips or long readings. It's really easy to use Evernote on my iPad while I watch videos or read on my laptop. 

Another popular app being picked up in the education world is Skitch. Acquired by Evernote in 2011, Skitch is a program that allows you to write on, highlight and add shapes to images. This is a huge help when reading long articles or texts from online because you can annotate or highlight them as you go and then save them in your Evernote notebook. Skitch is also a great tool to use in the classroom. In this video, third grade teacher Nicole Gleason uses skitch to find and label countries on a map. This is one of many ways Skitch could be used by teachers in the classroom. This website has a list of ways to use skitch in the classroom for all the different subjects.

I think skitch is a great tool. I haven't gotten the chance to use it much because I just learned about it at the beginning of the semester. I could see how it would be great for highlighting and annotating notes and readings. 

Twitter is one of the most popular social media sites around today. With over 240 million users, and many thousands joining everyday, it is rapidly becoming the most used social media site worldwide.  Maybe this is why some teachers have had such a hard time viewing the site as educational or useful in the educational community. However, the educators who do see twitter as a useful tool rave about it.

Twitter is also a great tool for building professional learning networks in schools. A professional learning network (PLN) can be defined as "The entire collection of people with whom you engage and exchange information, usually online". Teachers use PLNs as a way to locate resources for the classroom, get lesson plan ideas from master teachers, work on professional development, and learn about new technology and how to incorporate it in the classroom. In this blog, veteran teacher turned college professor, Tom Whitby talks about twitter as a PLN. "By constantly working and updating your PLN, you will continue to have relevant and beneficial sources flowing through your PLN". He discusses in detail how to find key educators to follow and how to use twitter to your PLN advantage. In another educational blog Kathleen Morris talks about how much she enjoys her twitter PLN "I find twitter to be a virtual staffroom where I can catch up with my PLN. It is a place where I can find advise, give advise, find great links, share my work and engage in general musings about education." For those teachers who do use twitter as their preferred PLN, they love the convenience of it. Twitter is easily accessible on your phone, computer, laptop or tablet and it is constantly being updated. This makes it easy to catch up, learn and discuss at anytime that is convenient for you. It's a way to branch out from the colleagues in your school's professional learning community. With users from all around the world, a Twitter PLN can be a great source for fresh ideas and new perspectives. 

I have had a personal twitter account for four years. I use it entirely for personal social media purposes and I really enjoy it. However, through the research I've done writing this blog post, I've been inspired to make a second twitter account for professional purposes. I think it would be interesting to start creating my own twitter PLN and have a second account that is strictly for professional purposes.  

Technology is making a lasting impression on education today. Students love that the lessons are up to date and engaging. With technology playing a big part in their everyday lives it makes learning more relatable to them. When lessons are relatable to students it makes it easier for them to learn. Teachers also love the use of technology and social media in their workplace. Although it may take time for some to learn the ways of technology, it opens up so many doors for fresh and new teaching ideas that work. 

Resources 

Gleason, N. (2013, March 19). Using Skitch - YouTube. YouTube. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CHjLBE5OlA

Klingensmith, K. (2009, May 5). PLN: Your Personal Learning Network Made Easy | Once a Teacher..... Once a Teacher.... | Adventures in education 3.0 and web 2.0, starting from 0.0. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from http://onceateacher.wordpress.com/2009/05/05/pln-your-personal-learning-network-made-easy/

Morris, K. (2011, June 22). PLN Challenge #3: Using Twitter to Build Your PLN. edublogs. Retrieved October 9, 2013, from teacherchallenge.edublogs.org/2011/06/21/pln-challenge-3-using-twitter-to-build-your-pln/

Sanfilippo, J. (2011, November 15). 10 Tips for Using Evernote in the Classroom - Teq Blog. Professional Development for Teachers - Teq. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from http://www.teq.com/blog/2012/11/10-tips-for-using-evernote-in-the-classroom/#.UlWfzRZrhUQ

Sheridan, B. (2012, September 10). Kindergarten Students Help Build Evernote E-portfolios Using Skitch | Exploring Digital Media in Education. COETAIL | Certificate of Educational Technology and Information Literacy. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from http://www.coetail.com/bsheridan/2012/09/10/kindergarten-students-help-to-build-evernote-e-portfolios-by-using-skitch/

Skitch - All about apps in YOUR classroom!. (n.d.). All about apps in YOUR classroom! - App Of The Week. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from http://www.appsinclass.com/skitch.html

Whitby, T. (2013, January 11). Building a professional learning network on Twitter SmartBlogs. SmartBlogs | Engage. Innovate. Discuss. SmartBlogs. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from http://smartblogs.com/education/2013/01/11/twitter-strategy-101/

Social Media in Education

In the past social media and education were two things that did not go hand in hand. Using social media especially as a teacher was frowned upon and not recommended when creating lesson plans. In the news you would hear nothing but bad things coming from teachers using sites like Facebook and Twitter and Youtube. Teachers were almost scared to use social media as a teaching tool. However, when used correctly social media can make all the difference teaching in todays classroom.

In this video it is reported that the high school graduating class of 2011 had the lowest SAT reading scores in history. It's time for teachers to stop being afraid of change and to use social media in their classrooms. This same video ask "Are we failing our students?". Children in school today have never lived in a world without computers and social media. It a huge part of their lives. Therefor schools should be incorporating social media in positive ways in the classroom to promote active learning and participation.

Using social media in the classroom has a list of benefits. First, it's free. Schools spend a lot of money purchasing software and programs used in the classroom. Second, using social media incorporates real-world experiences in the classroom. Teaching kids to use social media appropriately from a young age will help them learn how to use social media appropriately in the adult world. The third and big benefit social media has in the classroom is that it encourages participation. Not every student wants to raise their hand to ask a question or participate in a conversation or class debate. For example, in this classroom the teacher uses twitter to engage the whole class in discussions. As the great Confucius once said "I hear I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand." Engaging kids in the classroom in a way that excites them and is relevant to them will make all the difference in their understanding of the material being taught.

Technology is advancing everyday. The way we educate students in todays classrooms should be evolving with technology. Social media is a great tool for teachers to use in the classroom when used appropriately.

References

Bryne, R. (2012). Social media for teachers. Retrieved from        http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2012/11/social-media-for-teachers.html#.UQBnF6WnBUR             

Clark, H. (2011,October 8) Social media in education [Video file]. Retrieved from              http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zKdPOHhNfY

James, R. (2012). Using social media in the classroom for real-world learning. Retrieved from http://www.teachthought.com/social-media/using-social-media-in-the-classroom-for-real-world-learning/ 

University of Minnesota. (2009, March 25). Twitter in the classroom? [Video File]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OxIz_3o3O0