This work is on assistive technology for students with special needs

1. Brice Horton
Assistive Technology
1. What is Assistive Technology?
Assistive technology is “any item, piece of equipment, or product, whether acquired
commercially off-the-shelf, modified, or customized which is used to increase, maintain,
or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities.
2. What are three laws concerning assistive technology and students with special needs?
1965 – The Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title 1 – Designed to ensure every
child has equal access to education and provides federal funding to schools with large
concentration of low income students.
1973 – The Rehabilitation Act – Section 504 – First civil rights law protecting disabled
persons. States that federally funded public schools cannot discriminate against or
exclude persons with disabilities. Schools must provide reasonable accommodations for
disabled students to allow them full access to all programs, services, and activities.
Section 508 – Requires that all federal agencies and electronic and information
technology services be accessible to persons with disabilities.
1975 – The Education for All Handicapped children Act (EHA) – Mandates that free and
appropriate public education be available to all children with disabilities. Children with
disabilities will be educated in the least restrictive education environment. This requires
and IEP.
LAW 1 - 1988 – Technology related assistance for individuals with disabilities act (Tech
Act of 1988) – First law to define “Assistive Technology.” – Provides federal funding for
the development of assistive technology training and deliver systems. Applicable to
disabled persons of all ages.
LAW 2 - 1990 – Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) – Sweeping civil rights law that
guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations,
employment, transportation, state and local government services and
telecommunications. Mandates that all schools, including private, provide services to
disabled students, regardless of whether or not they receive federal monies.
LAW 3 – 2001 - No Child Left Behind – Law designed to ensure that all children
receive the same quality of education. Requires states to develop standardized tests to
measure student and school achievement. Requires schools to follow testing
accommodations for students with disabilities if specified the students IEP. Testing
accommodations must be the same as those used in daily classroom testing situations.

2. Students with disabilities cannot be exempt from state tests and must be tested at their
assigned grade level.
LAW 4 – Assistive Technology Act of 2004 – This law redirects funding from states to
individuals by providing direct aid to persons with disabilities. Focuses on the delivery
of assistive technology to disabled persons rather than the development of delivery
systems.
Three Tech Laws Would Be – Tech act of 1988 – NCLB – Assistive Tech Act of 2004
3. Describe the different categories of assistive technology and give one example of each.
-Computer Hardware / Access – Hardware and software products that enable persons
with disabilities to access, interact with, and use computers
Includes modified or alternate keyboards, touch screens, special software adapted for
persons with disabilities and voice to test software.
-Vision and Reading Aids – Assist people with visual impairments
Include auditory output devices, scanning and reading machines, electronic book readers,
talking equipment, Braille material, screen magnifiers, verbal software and book holders.
-Mobility and positioning aids – adaptive seating and positioning devices that aid persons
with physical disabilities
Include mounting systems and technology adaptations such as an adjustable clamping
holder for the iPod Touch.
-Cognitive and Learning Aids – Assistive technology aids that provide access to
educational materials and instruction in school and other learning environments
Includes cognitive aids that focus on categorization, matching, association, reasoning,
decision making, problem solving, memory skills, perceptual skills, word processing,
word prediction/completion, cognitive retraining or rehabilitation tools.
-Communication – Products and equipment related to speech, writing and other methods
of communication
They include items such as speech and augmentative communication aids, writing and
typing aids.
-Daily living aids – Self-help devices that assist persons with disabilities in daily living
activities such as dressing, personal hygiene, bathing, home maintenance, cooking, and
eating.
Include reachers, timers, remote controls, and adapted scissors.
-Environmental aids – systems that allow access to and control of various environmental
devices such as appliances, electronic aids and security systems.
-Hearing and listening aids – devices that assist deaf and hearing impaired individuals
Include amplifiers, visual signaling and communication, sign language materials, smart
pens and other hearing aids.
-Recreation, leisure and sensory aids – products that assist persons with disabilities as
they participate in sports, leisure and games
Include toys, games, sports equipment, adaptive craft supplies, Wii, musical instruments,
motion toys and sensory devices.

3. -Switches – Provide access to switch adapted devices for persons with physical
impairment that affect their fine motor skills such as Large Switch and Switch – Adapted
Bubble Maker
4. Describe where you will find out if one of you students is required to use assistive
technology and how you will get assistance with the student's assistive technology needs.
Through the SETT process we can answer which students need assistive technology,
what kind of technology is needed, who is involved in making the decision, and what
data the multidisciplinary team should gather to aid in the decision making and
recommendation process. S = Student, E = Environment, T = Tasks the student must
accomplish, T = Tools to address the tasks. The SETT process assists with identifying
the assistive technologies which will be most useful to persons with disabilities. An AT
assessment can be requested at any time by any member of the IEP team. The SETT
framework is Step 1 : Collect Info, Step 2 : Generate Solutions, Step 3 : Implement Plan,
and Step 4 : Integrate AT in IEP.
After reading the case studies, which one interested you the most? Describe what you learned.
I found that Wanda was the most interesting of the scenarios because she is able to understand
and has a very high IQ. She has the ability to move about although she tires easily. She also has
the skills to get into college, her problem is basically being able to keep up with written honors
assignments. They do allow her to complete her work at home and turn it in the next day. I
think that is a very good alternative for her. However, I do feel that a voice writer would greatly
enhance her productivity and she would not have to spend hours per night at home writing. In
addition, she would be able to do this sitting down and not having to work her hands and arms
which would allow her to get the information she has stored in her mind onto the paper she needs
to turn in. All of the case studies were very interesting and, to be honest, quite stressful for me to
read. It was very difficult for me to fathom what these students must be going through and the
frustrations they must feel. Assistive technology has so many applications not only for students
with special needs but these technologies can also be used by students who do not have special
needs to increase their productivity as well. With all of the new gadgets that are coming out I
think the one I find the most interesting is the Google glasses which should be out in the market
soon. I think these glasses will be a great adaptation to classroom programs and can be modified
for assistive technology.