Sunday, February 19, 2012

Assistive Technology in the Classroom

Reading through this week assigned articles, I realized how little I know about assistive technology. hopefully, I will learn as much as possible about AT during this semester and will set to look for a training program to help me gain more knowledge and skills in using assistive technology in my classroom, I want to be prepared for any students that I might get that will benefit from AT and want to be knowledgeable enough to help that child learn. In the matter of few days I already read about and learned about many available gadgets that help children with special needs; however I don't just want to know about these gadgets, I want to be able to implement them and to know where to get them when they are needed.
Have you taken a course that trained you on AT? If yes, was it informational and would you suggest it for others?

5 comments:

  1. I have not taken any classes on AT through MCPS. I think the knowledge you would gain through such a course would be advantageous for all students and not just special education students. It could be something to approach your staff development teacher about so the entire staff could benefit from this information.

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  2. I haven't taken any AT class either, but I agree with you that it is not enough to just read about the programs - though it is a start. Often I read about great programs for classroom use, but unless I see them in use and understand them, I run into too many problems and do not use them. Trainings would definitely help!

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  3. It looks like maybe your post showed up twice. I posted to the last one, but I just want to make sure it shows up. This is what I said:

    Lilit,

    Based on this week's discussion, it seems like many of us general educators do not have much training on assistive technology. I believe that if it weren't for these graduate classes, we wouldn't have this exposure. My question is-- what about all the other teachers who aren't taking these courses? I believe our school systems need to take more of a proactive role in educating us about options.

    Kate

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    1. Unfortunately I had no clue MCPS had an opportunity to take professional development courses in AT, and like Kate, had I never had to explore it through this course, I wouldn't have known otherwise, which is definitely problematic.

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  4. I am going to piggyback on what most of these replies are and say I have not had any professional training on AT devices. The only one I can say would be the Promethean board training. I am pleased to see that MCPS offers training for these devices... My school does not but I am sure the PS district does. I think with this class we all will get a better understanding of AT and what exactly do they entail besides microphones and headsets.

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