Using Technology to Engage Students With Learning Disabilities

Billy Krakower, Sharon LePage Plante

• Publisher: Corwin
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN: 9781506318264
• eBook ISBN: 9781506318288
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education Technology

Leverage technology to engage students with learning disabilities!

Harness the power of today's technology to improve learning and engagement for students with learning disabilities.  By engaging students with learning disabilities using the technology already at your fingertips, you'll see your students begin to thrive and grow in exciting new ways. In this volume in the Connected Educators Series, you'll discover:

• New ideas for using assistive technology to teach core subjects and study skills
• How to build positive opportunities for students to show what they know
• Tools to provide better content accessibility
• How to help students connect and share through technology tools

The Corwin Connected Educators series is your key to unlocking the greatest resource available to all educators: other educators. Being a Connected Educator is more than a set of actions: it's a belief in the potential of technology to fuel lifelong learning.

"Every educator can implement these methodologies to transform their learning environment into a place that honors and respects the differences of EVERY learner. Follow these simple steps: Read the book. Employ the content. Observe the successes. Then share those achievements with others!"
Christopher R. Bugaj, Author and Presenter
The Practical (and Fun) Guide to Assistive Technology in Public Schools

"The authors have produced a practical approach to engaging students with learning disabilities. Educators will find great tools, ideas, and strategies to support students with learning challenges. Sprinkled throughout the book are case studies from noted educators, which are useful when thinking through the process of integrating technology in the classroom. This is a must read!"
Brian S. Friedlander, Ph.D.
AssistiveTek, LLC

CHAPTER 1 What, How, and Why

Lights, Camera, Action . . . How We Got Started

Back in 2014, Sharon and Billy were discussing various ways in which we differentiate with technology and other tools in our classrooms. We both were teaching special education students in a small group setting in Grades 3 and 4. Through this discussion, we decided to develop a technology-based collaborative writing project for our students, since we both had a large number of boys in the class who were the same age. Sharon suggested that we use LEGO’s StoryStarter Kit to have the students create a story, as she found it to be highly motivating with her elementary-aged writing students. Being able to motivate students with learning disabilities is important to keep them focused and on track during the day. Not only did the students enjoy it, but we found the LEGO StoryStarter Kit helpful for improving many skills, such as:

• “Literacy skills, including writing, language, and reading comprehension abilities.
• Communication skills, including speaking, listening, and presentation capabilities.
• Collaboration and teamwork skills.
• Digital literacy skills via the unique StoryVisualizer software.”¹

Sharon shared how her students loved creating stories using LEGOs, and Billy agreed that this would be a great way to get his students engaged in writing as well. We decided that the students would create stories based on Mo Willems’s Pigeon books.

We first introduced the classes, one in Connecticut and one in New Jersey, via a Google Hangout. Students enjoyed seeing and finding out more about each other. We then connected the students via Edmodo, providing clear guidelines for interactions on that platform. The creation ensued, and as the students created their LEGO scenes and stories, we connected them periodically via Google Hangout to check in. The project culminated with stories being shared on Edmodo for students to comment as was appropriate and through a series of Google Hangouts for students to present their creations and explain or tell their stories.

Students came away with not just a broader audience for storytelling but an understanding of how audience plays a role in their writing. Additionally, they realized the connectivity and collaboration that can occur with today’s technology. Most importantly of all, they found a multimodal engagement in writing that was beyond words on a page.

It’s Not About the Tech, but for Some Students It Is

Technology has infiltrated education in so many different ways, yet one key point consistently reiterated by educators is that, “It’s not about the technology but about the pedagogy.” In the inclusion of technology, it is key to focus on the purpose it plays to the end goal of student learning.

In any classroom, technology can be very powerful in class lessons, yet it should only be considered as a tool, similar to other educational tools, that provides a means to an end.

Technology can make it easier for educators to differentiate for diverse learning strengths and weaknesses, particularly under the ideals of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Even so, this can also be done without technology. So again, it’s not about the technology, but about the purpose of and plan for the lesson or skill instruction.

When considering students identified as having a learning disability (LD), technology takes on a whole new focus and importance. It goes from being simply a tool, to becoming the pathway to access content and demonstrate knowledge in ways that provide a scaffolding around the students’ learning needs. It is just as important as glasses to see and hearing aids to hear. Today’s technology for these LD students becomes the reader, the scribe, and the organizer. What is now everyday technology has the power to be the path to successful learning, not for the end of goal of the lesson, but for its starting point as a way to engage in and understand learning as a whole.

Technology for the LD learner becomes about fostering independence and a successful path to be part of the lesson. LD students need permission to show the power they have within. The tech is just the glasses and hearing aid that their brain needs. When these students grow to be independent learners with the aid of technology, they can then become part of the active lesson alongside their peers. Technology doesn’t require them to be pulled out; it doesn’t require them to be the one with a dedicated professional as support; it doesn’t make the difference stand out. Training them to use the power in these devices puts these learners in the driver’s seat of their education.

So yes, the inclusion of technology is just a tool, but consider your learners and for whom this tool can be the starting point to success in our classrooms, not just the means to meeting the lesson purpose.

The key to addressing learning differences in the classroom is the incorporation of two concepts: differentiation and assistive technology. While closely related, there are some differences. Assistive technology is defined as “any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child with a disability. The term does not include a medical device that is surgically implanted, or the replacement of such device.”² These are the tools that are a must for a student to complete a task (i.e., speech-to-text because of dysgraphia or motor issues, text-to-speech due to reading difficulties).

In contrast, “differentiated instruction is a process to approach teaching and learning for students of differing abilities in the same class”³ (i.e, completing a multi-media presentation rather than a five-page report, provide an article in a variety of lexile levels). Differentiation embraces the framework of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in that it considers all the learners in the classroom, whereas assistive technology may be the tool needed for some learners to access content and demonstrate their knowledge due to their disability. Both aspects are incorporated to address the variability of learners in the classroom. The key is to consider the learners’ needs and the level of support that may need to be engaged to provide opportunities for engagement, remediation, and compensation, but mostly for success.

Today’s tools and technologies are primed to meet the needs of those with learning differences who are struggling in traditional classrooms; however, the lack of awareness and understanding of these tools means they are not being implemented. Special education has reached a wonderful point in that the tools that exist today to differentiate are in everyday technology that students are eager to use. While the tools are readily available, the widespread knowledge of and and how to utilize them is lacking. The range of tools, apps, and websites entering the educational landscape are ever changing, and there are no one-size-fits-all solutions for those with learning disabilities. As with the construct of UDL, differentiation of the implementation of technology to provide assistance in learning is just as key. Throughout the rest of the book, a variety of tools will be introduced and discussed for possible ways to incorporate for LD students; however, the information provided can be applied to any learner. The technologies discussed are by no means the only ones that exist but are examples of ones that represent ways to provide assistance and differentiation in a variety of subject areas. They represent the possibility to provide for LD students the opportunity to find their own academic successes. Additionally, the examples provided are just suggested ways to incorporate technology that we have found beneficial with our learners and within our environments.

Thought to Ponder

Do you know the difference between differentiation and the use of assistive technolo...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Publisher Note
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Preface
• About the Authors
• Introduction
• CHAPTER 1 What, How, and Why
• CHAPTER 2 Rocking Reading and Writing
• CHAPTER 3 Mastering Mathematics
• CHAPTER 4 Becoming a Study Skills Star
• CHAPTER 5 Show What They KnowCreation
• CHAPTER 6 Technology and UDL
• Conclusion
• Appendix The Language of Special Education
• Publisher Note