The World of Assistive Technology :: A Look Into Special Education Devices

Just a few years ago, the phrase "assistive technology" would not have meant a thing to me. Even now, seeing that the very word "assistive" has yet to be added into spell check, I wonder if I  have transcribed it correctly or if I am simply using the wrong word. The reasoning? The whole idea of assistive technology (AT) for those with special needs whether in special education classrooms or not, is a newly developing field. In light of that, I hope to quickly expand upon a few different resources teachers can now use to close this gap the realm of education (especially SPED) has seemingly overlooked until recent decades.

One of the most simple yet most helpful pieces of assistive technology many classrooms are now providing students with special needs are alternative input devices. Including everything from large-text keyboards and electronic pointing devices to wands and touch-screens, students can have access to technology that greatly enables the visually impaired, physically impaired, and those with attention difficulties.

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What was formerly inaccessible on computers for those with poor eye-sight or physical disability, has now become available. Thus, as teachers, we must relentlessly seek to first find the needs in struggling students. Secondly, we must meet the need. Being aware of things such as these alternative input devices could be a great place to begin.



A second set of useful assistive devices to be aware of as a teacher would be text-to-speech (TTS) devices and word processing devices. Through these resources, students presently with an inability to express themselves in word or with difficulty in understanding others, higher need students are now capable of overcoming each.

     A link for TTS devices: Kurzweil Ed Systems.
     A link for Word Processors: Writer Learning Devices

In full, I must say that this brief introduction to assistive technology is indeed brief. Though I exposed the importance of the need for the devices themselves and a few types of them, there are many more to be aware of as teachers. As we each long for every student's success, researching things such as this remain to be very important to meet any and every need put before us. Follow this ensuing link to understand better the various devices available out there today:

     National Center for Learning Disabilities, Assistive Devices

Watch the following video to hear one cool story about AT being a success, as seen in the life of Elle: