Empowering Students to Learn

What is assistive technology?  The Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA ’04) defines assistive technology (AT) devices 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. The term does not include a medical device that is surgically implanted, or the replacement of such device” (United States Department of Education, 2013).

In other words… Assistive technology includes any tool that assists a child with a disability that is not medically implanted into the child. An easel, book scanner, onscreen keyboard, card holder, joystick, audio books or even a hand-held magnifier would all constitute as assistive technology devices.

What does the law say? The Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA ’04) also defines the responsibilities that the law has to children and families with disabilities, teachers and community organizations. Title 1, part D, section 673 addresses the governments responsibility in regards to assistive technology. The federal government is required to (US Department of Education, 2004):  promote assistive technology to children with disabilities  provide training to children, along with teachers and parents of children with disabilities  to communicate research about assistive technology  provide funding for research, education and devices (United States Department of Education, 2013).

The law also says… Under Title 1, part B, section 616 the federal and state government must monitor education to ensure “provision of a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment” (United States Department of Education, 2013).

Assistive Technology Options There are many assistive technology options for students who have disabilities. Our goal as teachers is to help find the right assistive technology that can truly assist a student achieve their learning objectives by maximizing their strengths and minimizing their deficits.

Captioning for the Hearing Impaired Captioning for the hearing impaired refers to text that is added to a visual display that allows the viewer to see the words that are spoken as text.

Captioning for Hearing Impaired  Promotes classroom inclusion  Encourages reading skills  Increases vocabulary  Assists in reading comprehension  Fosters deeper levels of understanding (Hasselbring & Williams Glaser, 2000)

Braille for the Visually Impaired Braille is a tactile writing system for the blind and visually impaired. Braille characters are made up of small blocks that have tangible bumps called raised dots. They are normally printed on embossed paper (Wikipedia, 2015).

Duxbury for Visually Impaired Duxbury is a software that edits Braille. It serves the blind and visually impaired by allowing teachers to scan their class handouts into their computer and use the program to translate text to Braille. Teachers are then able to print out classroom worksheets on embossed paper (Ring, 2008).

Audio Books for the Learning Disabled Audio books assist the learning disabled by providing text in an audible format. The recordings are available online and at your local library in many formats. MP3 files are easy to access online for immediate download from the internet (Raskind & Stanberry, 2010).

Ramps for the Physically Disabled A ramp is a simple tool that allows physically disabled individuals access to businesses, restaurants and schools. Without them, students in a wheel chair or walker are unable to enter a location unless someone physically picks them up. Ramps are also helpful in adaptive physical education programs. The use of a ramp allows students to participate in bowling and other sports they would otherwise be a spectator to.

Ramps for the Physically Disabled

Assistive Technology Students with disabilities often teach us more than we can teach them. However, it is our responsibility and privilege to empower them to learn by maximizing their strengths and minimizing their deficits with the help of assistive technology.

References Braille. (2015). Wikipedia. Retrieved from Hasselbring, T. S., & Williams Glaser, C. H. (2000). Children and Computer Technology. The Future of Children, 10 (2). Retrieved from ournalid=45&articleid=204&sectionid= ournalid=45&articleid=204&sectionid=1331 Raskind, M., & Stanberry, K. (2010). Assistive technology for kids with LD: An overview. Great Schools! Retrieved from technology/954-audio-books-publications.gs Ring, Sarah. (2008). Out of Site: Technology Helps Visually Impaired Students Thrive. Edutopia. Retrieved from United States Department of Education. (2013). Special Education Programs: Statute Title 1, A, B & D. Retrieved from