Enabling Dreams for Everyone

"You can instill independence and confidence in students with special needs by finding free tools and working with your IT department to streamline the process for creating an assistive technology program" (22). Assistive technology is a great device for students with disabilities which allows for dreams to come true, for students to learn and so much more. There are many different devices that assist student learning that fits directly with them. For example, computer and voice controlled devices for students who have cereal palsy or even a device that goes off of eye blinks and eye brow movements. The assistive technology device that stood out as most interesting and useful was the device that went off of eye brow movements. The child could not move any parts of his body except for his eye brows and they created a device around his needs. 

The most interesting device I found useful and interesting is the device where the student used eyebrow motions to pick words on a screen as well as communicate with others. The type of learning activities this assistive technology provides access for a student with exceptional learning needs. This device allows the student to communicate with others, allows him to learn by reading on the screen as well as using his eye brows to select different options. If I have a child with learning disabilities in my classroom and needs this high of assistive technology having access to these types of devices will be a great help. It will allow my students to communicate with me and the other students about what we are learning in class. This device address exceptional learning conditions, it allows the student to communicate without talking, learn new things and express himself. If I have a child with learning disabilities in my classroom and needs this high of assistive technology having access to these types of devices will be a great help. It will allow my students to communicate with me and the other students about what we are learning in class. If I already have a background of knowledge in assistive technology it will help me as a teacher in my future classroom.


Reference:
Conley, Kate. (2012, June/July). Learning and Leading: Build an Assistive Technology Toolkit. Pg 22

"To flip or not to flip"

Traditional classrooms are where teachers lecture in front of the students depending on the grade level some students are writing notes, following along in a book or not even paying attention. Now lets flip this classroom and change the whole outlook. When we flip a classroom it gives teachers and students to have more one on one time. Teachers are helping students with homework and problems they are having with the subject they are learning. Students get to watch videos of their teacher in a creative and engaging way. Many teachers are in and want to flip classrooms and others want to stay in the traditional ways. 

My personal thought about flipped classroom is back and fourth, I want to like it but I go back to not agreeing with it. It is a great idea to have more personal one on one time with the students but it takes more time for the teachers to create these videos. Teachers are spending more time on the videos and when they play it students are just watching but are they really paying attention? "As the student is watching the video, there is no inquiry, no collaboration-it's passive" (Conley, 2012, 7). If classes do not have any collaboration in classrooms can we agree they are learning? But on the other hand students can work in groups with their problems or learn from one another. One positive that I love about Flipped classroom is that it will engage all different kinds of learners. I feel that if the teacher wants to make a flipped classroom in can be up to the parents and students and how they feel towards the topic.

Reference:
Conley, Kate. (2012, June/July). Learning and Leading: To Flip or Not to Flip. pg. 7