Kali Alford Assistive Technology

Module
For this module I chose to focus on a student who has recently been added to my
class. He is temporarily receiving special education services for dysgraphia which
they developed following a recent trauma. For the students privacy I will refer to
the student simply as The Student. The Student has been receiving therapy for the
condition and was enrolled in my class as a replacement elective for the
engineering course they were previously enrolled in. In addition to the therapy the
student is assigned a laptop to assist them while they are treating the dysgraphia.
The students parents had some concerns regarding the student being left out of
sync due to this condition and eventually missing out on a lot of information. The
student is to receive these services for one calendar year, before another 504
review can determine whether to cancel, extend, or alter them. The student was
enrolled in my Latin American Studies course which has a considerate writing
component to it.

Assistive Technology Module Initial

Thoughts
What should teachers know about assistive technology
and how it is used by students with disabilities?
o Teachers should know that the technology is only meant to support the
student in grasping the content. It does not make the student independent
enough that the teacher should assume that because they have this
resource they will no longer need additional assistance. They should also
know that assistive technology comes in a variety of forms, but regardless
they should takes to familiarize themselves with as many forms as
possible.

What are the school's responsibilities regarding assistive

technology?
o Schools should be responsible for establishing effective committees to
oversee IEPs and identifying appropriate forms of assistive technology.
Additionally, schools should be able to evaluate the implementation of
assistive technology with students in need of it.

What can classroom teachers do to help their students

fully succeed in their use of assistive technology?
o First and foremost classroom teachers are the primary troubleshooters for
issues that arise with assistive technology. They should be familiar enough
to assist students with whatever technical issues arise. Additionally, they
should be familiar enough to cater lessons to the particular resource to
insure that the device is not skewing the playfield in favor of the student by
stripping them of the same challenge the other students are getting

Assistive Technology Implementation Plan

STUDENT INFORMATION
THE STUDENT
11th
School
Riverwood High School

EQUIPMENT
EQUIPMENT AND SOFTWARE TO BE USED

STATUS (e.g., owned by school, will purchase, will borrow, etc)

Owned by schools exceptional education department.

POINT OF CONTACT

(Individual assigned to keep the Implementation Plan updated)

ANGUS GUBERMAN

IMPLEMENTATION TEAM
NAME (List all individuals who will implement the AT with the student.)
Max Gertz

ROLE (e.g., administrator, teacher, family member, service provider, etc)

EQUIPMENT TASKS
TASK (e.g., order/procure AT, load software, adapt/customize devices/software, set up

PERSON RESPONSIBLE

DATE DUE

CLASSROOM IMPLEMENTATION
IEP GOAL

CURRICULUM/DOMAIN (e.g.,
math, science, PE, art, etc)
SS, English, Math

PERSON(S) RESPONSIBLE
THE STUDENT

AT NEEDED TO ACCOMPLISH GOAL (List specific

AT and customized settings if appropriate)
Dell Inspirion Printing Intranet

Submit legible and well organized written

assignments without time accommodations

TRAINING
TRAINING NEED

TRAINEES

TRAINER
TBD as needed

DATES & TIMES

FOLLOW UP / ALONG PLAN

HOME IMPLEMENTATION
IEP GOAL

CURRICULUM/DOMAIN (e.g.,
math, science, PE, art, etc)
SS, English, Math

PERSON(S) RESPONSIBLE
THE STUDENT

AT NEEDED TO ACCOMPLISH GOAL (List specific

AT and customized settings if appropriate)
Dell Inspirion Printing Intranet

Submit legible and well organized written

assignments without time accommodations

MONITORING/EVALUATION
GOAL

Submit legible and well organized written

assignments without time accommodations

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY

RECORDING SYSTEM & FREQUENCY

(How will you teach student to use equipment

and/or how to achieve goals.)

(e.g., task analysis recording system; score + or - on

data recording sheet)

Using word processing software

student will use laptop to complete
major written assessments and
assignments while receiving
therapy for dysgraphia. Student
will continue to hand write minor
assignments as a mean of
monitoring progress through
therapy

Work samples submitted in class

PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR

IMPLEMENTATION / DATA COLLECTION
Classroom teachers
Case Worker
Educational Therapist
504 Chair

Assistive Technology Module PostThoughts

What should teachers know about assistive technology
and how it is used by students with disabilities?
o The resources that are labeled as assistive technology are not to be used to
make coursework easier, but instead used to make coursework fair. I
worked with a student who suffered from dysgraphia. Because of this he
was allowed to use a laptop to type assignments and in class essays.
Because many of these assignments were timed he was not allowed to use
the extra-time accommodation on assessments that he completed using
the laptop. After discussing this with his teacher Mr. Gertz, I learned that
was Mr. Gertz he actually advocated for this stipulation citing that it
would hurt his writing abilities in the long run much more than dysgraphia
would. This made it very clear to me that teachers need to have a moral
barometer that tells them what is fair for the student in the short term as
well as long-term. In the age of short-term testing this is not always the
case.

What are the school's responsibilities regarding assistive

technology?
o I currently teach at a school were many students and parents walk in the
door with senses of entitlement. To a point, I cannot fault a parent for
advocating for their student. However, there is a line that should be drawn
by the school to insure that parents are not taking advantage of the policies
that are meant to level the playing field for students with learning
disabilities. Mr. Gertz was telling me of a student he once had whose
mother fought tooth and nail to include a list of so many accommodations
for her student that there was no way they could possibly fail any class.
The student could turn work in late up to 90 days, 50% extra-time for
assessments and major assignments, and could re-take assessments it they
felt anxiety while taking it. While Mr. Gertz is no physician, he surmised
that the accommodations afforded to this student were both unnecessary
and abuses of the system meant to aid students like the one I worked with.
Despite his reservations and the fact the parent had accomplished this
same task with two older children only to terminate their IEPs prior to
graduation, the school allowed her to do this. I think the school should be
able to make decisions that do not allow parents to abuse the system and

the school district should back them up, in the case of lawsuits.

What can classroom teachers do to help their students

fully succeed in their use of assistive technology?
o It hadnt occurred to me the amount of personalization that goes into
working with a student who relies on assistive technology. It fact, when
working with my student I realized that it might be better to afford the
other students in class the same support. In order to do this I established
BYOD rules for certain assignments. I think this alleviated any stigmas the
student may have been feeling. I think teachers have role in incorporating
the assistive technologies being used in their classroom into the class
culture. This helps with the cool factor for the student. Particularly in
middle school and elementary school classrooms, it helps to be able to pull
out a device with feeling shame, or alienation.