Kurzweil 3000

This week I explored Kurzweil. I actually ordered a disc in the mail and it arrived within 3 days! I was so surprised. Anyway I think Kurzweil is a fantastic program for kids with disabilities. It would work really well for students with expressive language disabilities (due to its feature of changing text to speech).

Kurzweil could be considered both an adaptational form of technology as well as an instructional form of technology. It could be considered adapatational because it could be used for one student as an aid, if that particular student has problems reading aloud. It could also be used as an instructional tool for a class of students that have severe and multiple disabilities, many of which that include expressive language disabilities.

As for the student learning profiles, there are a few for which Kurzweil would benefit. First, it would benefit Sarah, with ataxic cerebral palsy. Because Sarah loves impressing her teachers and is excited to try new things, learning how to use Kurzweil could extremely benefit her. Additionally, because she might have difficulty with balance or fine motor skills, Kurzweil could assist her by actually reading aloud the text. She would not have to actually hold the material or book, and it would be displayed on the screen for her. Additionally, text could be highlighted for her so that she would not have to use a highlighter when thinking that certain things are important. Furthermore, because she is non-ambulatory, Kurzweil would allow her to read the material without her having to hold the material and trying to use her wheelchair to navigate. Last, she already uses SmartScan, so she is already familiar with adaptive communication devices, and uses them successfully.

It would also benefit Michael, with Aspergers and SPLD. It would benefit him because he is a visual learner and really enjoys visual presentations. This is exactly what Kurzweil would provide for him. Although reading material could sometimes be difficult or abstract for Michael to understand, the teacher would be able to highlight certain pieces of the text in order to signal to him that she is aware of those parts and will explain it to him. She could also include a text bubble that re-words the text in more literal terms for Michael. He also adapts well, so being introduced to a new form of technology, would be received well by Michael.

Last, it would greatly benefit Luke, who has Dyslexia and Executive Function Difficulty. The text would be read aloud to Luke so if he did not read them correctly (or backwards), the program would read aloud the text correctly. Additionally, his Executive Functioning Difficulty might make it hard for him to read texts and focus, but perhaps if the text was presented in a different format and read to him (which is different from which he used to), it might be more entertaining.

Overall, Kurzweil is a great program and I plan to use it in my future classroom!

SmartBoard

This week we learned about SmartBoard. Even though I have already had experience using this program, I learned so much more about it! I think it's a great tool for the classroom if it is provided in the school. This is the biggest challenge, I think, it presents to taking advantage of what it has to provide for our students

As for student profiles. I think it could definitely be utilized by a couple different students. I think it could be really helpful for the hypothetical student Jack. Jack has ADHD, a fine motor disability, and a limited working memory. First, because we learned that SmartBoard is a form of resistant technology, it would be easy for Jack to interact even though he has fine motor disability. He could barely touch the screen and it would be activated. Also, SmartBoard has a lot of neat features (like being able to disassemble a cube, and making certain texts or features "disappear" and "reappear" by implementing layering). This would cater to his difficulty to concentrate by captivating his attention. Additionally, because slides are able to link non-linearally, his limited working memory would be scaffolded because SmartBoard allows for one slide to link to another not in any certain order.

I also think it could be really helpful for hypothetical student Sarah who has ataxic cerebral palsy. In fact, I have seen this in action at a school called John Coleman for students with severe disabilities who are mostly non-ambulatory, work really well. Even though Sarah may have trouble with balance or motor abilities, as mentioned above, SmartBoard is a form of resistant technology and would not let this get in the way. Additionally because she is always motivated and excited to be involved in class, I feel like she would be eager to get involved and learn how to use and react to this new form of technology.

On a different note, I think SmartBoard is a form of both adaptational and instructional technology. It is a form of adaptational technology because it could be used to modify or adapt materials to enlarge or make this interactive for a specific student. It could also be used as a form of instructional technology because it could be used as a tool to teach the entire class instead of using a powerpoint or lecture or another form of teaching.

I guess what plagues me most is that I wish I had SmartBoard for my classroom. How can we make this more accessible to all? How can we keep up with the ever increasing trend of technology while not implementing it in our classroom? Is it solely up to fundraising or do we need to continue to increase the public's awareness about its importance?

Titan Pad

This week we learned how to use a few different kinds of Web 2.0 programs that would be helpful for teaching. I actually also learned what Web 2.0 programs were - programs that facilitate interaction! I did not know that programs like Facebook and G-talk both therefore qualified as Web 2.0 programs. Overall I agree that these programs that can facilitate interaction are so important for classrooms, so that teachers can communicate and share ideas among themselves, and more importantly so we can make our curriculum accessible to all of our learners.

One of the new Web 2.0 programs we were introduced to, that really stuck with me was the Titan Pad. I see this both as an instructional and adaptational technology. It is instructional because a teacher can use this to disperse ideas to her class, in an easy manner. It can be the medium of the lesson. It can also qualify as an adaptational technology because some students can use titan pad to facilitate their learning, while others do not.

I think overall, it was a fun and interactive program. It allows all participants to communicate simultaneously, and the document continues to change as the participants are sharing. At times, because every participant's comments appears in a different color, and the font is constantly flashing when someone adds, it can be a bit overwhelming and overstimulating for some learners. Some of my students who have been diagnosed with ASD, might find this program to be too much sensory input. However, other students who may have trouble focusing or attention deficits, may find this program entertaining and captivating.

With respect to the student learning profiles, I think Titan Pad would work best for students like Michael, or Finn. For a student like Michael who has Aspergers and SPLD, this program would work well because he is a strong visual learner and is very enthusiastic to learn and excel in class. Therefore when presented with Titan Pad, I feel like he would be motivated to try something new and try his best in order to excel. Additionally, he can ask as many questions as he wants, at once, while the rest of the class does the same. Titan Pad would then essentially let him express himself freely and perhaps he would encounter less teasing by the other students because the entire class would be writing as much as they want.

For a student like Finn, with an auditory processing disorder, this program could work excellently. Finn would not have to worry about mishearing the teacher or listening to directions, he could simply visually take in the information presented. Perhaps he would function faster and complete tasks with more efficiency. It seems like the reason guiding questions and group work are challenging for Finn is because he has to listen for instructions and understand it. But what if he just read the information presented, like in Titan Pad?

Titan Pad is a great technology for the classroom. I think it would be even better if it could be voice activated! If students like Sarah, with Ataxic CP, could speak into Titan Pad and have her thoughts transcribed, she too could benefit!

Is there a technology that anyone knows of, that is exactly like Titan Pad and is voice activated? How would this technology function without distracting other students in the class who do not need this piece of technology, but also need to direct their attention to the conversation?