Case Study Presentations

In the last couple of classes we have been presenting case studies that we have been working on during the course. We concentrated on a a student of our choice whose access to technology has allowed them to make some strides in their education. The presentations were awesome and it was great to see first hand the accomplishments that these students were making when they could use the right app or program that suited their needs.

Darcy's case study looked at a young student named Mary who has ocular albinism  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocular_albinism   This disease affects the eyes and makes it hard for Mary to see things clearly. She often needs to look at things and people at odd angles which can be awkward for her. She has been using Pic Collage to assist with many of her assignments which is a great program for students with visual impairments. You can pull pictures and text into this program and make it any size you want. Apparently Mary's art teacher has taken an interest in this program and is now using it in his classes as well.



Emily presented on student "E" who has some delays in the areas of language and math. Student "E" will also only work in small groups of students and those groups have to consist of certain students that "E" is compatible with. One of "E's" favourite apps is educreations which allows "E" to draw and record stories and notes from class. Teachers can also send pictures and notes to "E" using this program. Another program that "E" has been using is Montesorri to assist them with their letter sounds.

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/montessori-letter-sounds/id494564125?mt=8



Stephanie did her case study on Paul who is an adult at a school for adults with disabilities. Paul has seizures which are causing him to regress in his abilities to speak. Paul loves to talk, especially about Star Trek, and finds this frustrating. He has been using i-word-Q to assist in his ability to write and respond to people.  Another app Paul has been using is "my video schedule"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7G97jRwqoDc
which allows him create detailed schedules of his work day and upcoming events. This has really helped Paul reduce his frustration levels because he is not apprehensive about being late for things. This app has given Paul a greater sense of independence because he does not have to rely on others tell him what to do next.

Communication

Communication is one of the most important abilities we have. People communicate in many ways, we use body language, language, hand signs, written expression, art or drawing, email, text, phones and face time. We often don't think about the necessity of this because it comes so easily to us, most people here understand me when I speak, write, draw etc.. It is when we are forced to communicate with someone who does not understand us that we realize its importance. My sign language is very limited so when faced with  having to work with a deaf man who could not read lips I had to rethink how we would communicate. I was doing a landscaping project and he was an excavator operator, we quickly developed a simple means of communication. I would touch the next stone I wanted to be moved and  then use both hands to signal how I wanted the stone rotated and which side I wanted down. We worked along quite well with simple signs that once we established what they were and reused them were sufficient. All you really need for communication to take place is first the need to express something, second willing parties to both give and accept the communication and when necessary a creative means of doing so. The creative component always comes out when we realize the limits of our own abilities, maybe we can't physically do it or we just don't speak the same language as someone else. I work with non-verbal students who don't read and used limited sign language and the barriers to communication are very real. I have to become very attuned to their body language to understand them, I still don't always understand, but I try.

Low Tech Assistive Technology

We all love technology and the ease of downloading a new app on our i-pads but how do you replace the tactile sensory needs of some of our students. The answer is that it simply can't be done, many of our students enjoy a balance of hands on technology as much as they enjoy the next great app we download. These are a few of the low tech ideas I have used in my own learning centre.

This is a simple assembly activity made from 1 1/2 PVC pipe. I painted the corner pieces red to make them more distinct and took a picture as an example for the student.

A simple piece of clear tubing with a hole in the top for students to insert marbles is a great way for students to practice fine motor skills.











Some plastic utensils, napkins and baggies is a great way for students to develop skills they can apply to work placements at places like Bonny Lea Farm.

 You really can't go wrong at the dollar store for finding materials for students to organize. Items to be organized by colour, shape or size can be easily found here. I have used beads, flowers, shells, plastic toy animals and many others for this type of sorting activity.

These are some nuts and bolts from the local hardware store. Finding the right sized nut to fit a bolt and using the fine motor skills needed to put them together is a great activity for some students.

This is a simple reproduction of the Weather Network website page. This is simply some bristol board, photocopier a laminating machine and some time. The student changes the information daily by looking up and viewing the website. This could be modified to suit any students special interests.

File folders in which a student has to match shapes can be easily made by purchasing two sets of the same stickers. Laminate one set into a folder and the other separately, place some velcro on the back of the stickers and you have a new activity.

It seems like a simple concept, sweeping up the floor but the act of crouching, holding the dust pan at the right angle and sweeping dust in can be more than some students can handle. A stand up dust pan can make all the difference in the world and allows some students to successfully clean up their own mess.

The act of putting soil in a pot planting a seed or plant, mulching it, watering it and watching it grow helps students understand many scientific processes and teaches them to be responsible for the care of something. Having some low tech programming for students can be a great learning experience.

Models for Assistive Tech Assessment

There are several assistive technology assessment models that are used to assess which assistive technology is best suited to each students needs. One of these is the SETT Framework (Student, Environments, Tasks and Tools) designed by Joy Zabala. http://www.joyzabala.com/

The main questions they look at are,

         

         (1) What are the functional areas of concern. (What does the student need to be able to do that is difficult or impossible to do independently at this time?)

         

         (2) Special needs (Related to area of concern)

         

         (3) Current Abilities (Related to area of concern)

        

         (4) Expectations and concerns

         

         (5) Interests and preferences

Another model is the Education Tech Points designed by Gayl Bowser and Penny Reed. The Education Tech point model incorporates steps that are similar to the referral process used in our education system making this model very compatible within schools. 

The steps are,

(1) Referral

(2) Evaluation

(3) Extended Assessment

(4) Plan Development

(5) Implementation

(6) Periodic Review

Bowser and Reed feel that these steps correspond with what the student needs at each stage of the process. http://www.educationtechpoints.org/

The Has Technology Been Considered Model by Antonette C. Chambers is a very different system. Chambers has created a flow chart to help guide people when trying to assess a students need for assistive technology. This flow chart is user friendly and takes into consideration the problems and successes that you will have when trying to introduce a student to new technology. The flow chart asks:

(1) What do we want the child to do?

(2) What has been tried?

(3) Is it working?

(4) Does the team have necessary knowledge?

(5) Seek assistance or specify what will be tried.

(6) Consideration is ongoing.

The fourth model is The AT CoPlanner Model by Leonard P. Haines, Gladene Robertson, Robert Sanche and colleagues. The AT CoPlanner model has some excellent concepts built into its framework. The model itself encourages a teamwork approach, this allows for input from a greater resource of experienced people. The AT CoPlanner model draws upon the previous models and tries to bring all of them together into one model. The AT CoPlanner model allows people to decide which assessment model will work best in their own situation. 

“It Really Has Become His Voice” A webinar on Max

Max is a 9 year old boy with cerebral policy who has a very limited ability to communicate verbally.  He is able to use the program “Proloquo2go” to communicate his wants and feelings.  With this program Max is now able to form full sentences and explain complicated events that have taken place or describe things like the costume he wore for Halloween.  Max can choose activities and take an active role in participating. Max has developed such a great understanding of proloquo2go that he has been programing the system himself.

The proloquo2go program is a very versatile app that is really only limited to our own ability to use it. To make the program as efficient as possible we have to have an in depth understanding of the student that will be using it. We have to design the app to compensate for their weaknesses and give them freedom to utilize their strengths. We had to design the proloquo2go system for a hypothetical class in which we had a student who was non verbal. We simply designed a button to request that people ask YES or NO questions. Then we just added buttons for YES and NO responses to questions. 

One limit of the app is that it is hard to design the buttons with all the responses that they might need. In the case of a student like Max and other students that are high functioning they can help design the program with you. For other students you need to really consider where the student will be using proloquo2go and try to predict as many plausible questions and responses that a student will need. While doing this we have to remember that the system has to remain accessible to the student. We have to keep the buttons large enough for students to utilize especially those who have difficulty with motor functions. The way we categorize the buttons so that a student can access a file with button options that pertain to particular places or situations will allow us to reduce the number of buttons. on a page and increase button size. I have student with whom I may only have two buttons on one page and others who can easily use 16 or more.

Finally we have to view any of these communication systems like a constant work in progress. No system we design is ever going to be perfect, we try our best and as our students use these systems we will have insights into how we can make them better.  I have continued to modify all the communication systems I have designed for students as I observe how they use the communication app.  Proloquo2go is one of the best communication systems I have worked with but depending on the level of our student s ability we need to keep in mind that there is a multitude of apps to help students communicate.