Accroding to wikipedia.com, assistive technology is a "generic term that includes assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and includes the process used in selecting, locating, and using them." Overall, this term is very broad. In some cases assistive technology can help people with disabilities do things they might not otherwise be able to do. In other cases, though, AT's help people perform tasks they had problems performing before. Just as the term is very broad, there are a wide range of devices that can help people. Some examples are walkers, wheelchairs and other hardware/software that can help individuals on the computer. The most important thing to remember is that there is a variety of assistive technology available.
http://assistivetechnologies.com/ is an interesting website I stumbled upon while I was looking for information on assistive technology. On the left hand side, there are products for many different kinds of disabilities that deal with communication, learning, mobility and vision. The technologies help people with mild to severe disabilities. One of the products I noticed is called the Say It! Sam Communicator, and it helps individuals with communication disabilities. During one of my observations last year, I noticed a woman was using one; it was great to see her smiling and being happy that there was not a communication block anymore. She enjoyed using it, and it helped her a lot!
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I think that this is an area that we can do so much with as educators. I really like this discussion and as I go through school I hope to learn more about the technology that is available to help students that having problems learning or participating in a "normal" learning environment. Great thoughts!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Matt! I think every teacher should know more about AT. You never know when you are going to have a child in your class who uses some form of AT. I think every student should have a chance to get to learn as "normal" as possible, and with AT, I believe we can help people with disabilities do just that. Technology is popping up around us every single day!
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