Inclusion by Way of Technology

Inclusion by Way of Technology
One thing Teachers need to be aware of every year is the making sure all of you students are participating in the classroom and learning experience. A Childs unique learning style and interests makes it hard for a teacher to keep everyone involved with what’s going on. Another aspect to getting and keeping children involved is children who are in your class with learning disabilities. This broad title includes children with physical and mental disabilities. No two children will have the same disabilities. With all of these differences in the same classroom, one teacher has a very difficult task in front of them at the beginning of every year. One thing that helps with many disabilities in the classroom is the use of technology. This learning technology is not just for the students how can not function in the classroom with out it but also a tool for students to learn and see information in new ways.
Technology can help children who could not participate in a normal classroom years ago be able to interact better with their school and also their classmates. This means a child with sever autism can say hello to his classmates every morning before starting the day. The use of a tango can help a student become part of the class and help them interact with their classmates. This interaction could be a brand new thing for the child if they did not have access to this technology before school. This technology can also benefit students who do not need the technology to be part of the classroom. By allowing other children to look and use the same technology as a disabled student in the classroom, the student may learn how to communicate better with the student who has to use the technology.
By sharing assistive technology in the classroom with students who don’t need it, will help them understand their classmates who do. For example, if a child is paralyzed from the neck down and has to use a Lomak device, it would benefit other students in the class to use it as well. By allowing them to use the technology they get to see how the other student has to do his or her work. By allowing the children in the class to better understand what the child with the disabilities is doing the students may connect better and open up more lines of communication between your students. Also by allowing children to use assistive technology in the classroom they get the opportunity to view information in different ways.
By changing the Childs view of information they may become more interested in the lesson and may also soak up more information. For example, if a child is suppose to read a chapter in a book they could read it online using a Read Please. This way you could have the student read every other paragraph and let Read Please assist them. This is a different way to get children who don’t like to read more interested and willing to do it. Another example would be, instead of having your children write there next paper they could practice typing on a Dana or Alphasmart. This is a new way to get children’s ideas written out and some children may enjoy this for better than handwriting. These are more ways to bring assistive technology into the classroom fro everyone’s benefit.
I think all the assistive technology options are great for teachers and fro their students. It helps keep children interested in school but also gives teachers another way to show their students information. I think the more ways we, as teachers present information, the better it is for our students. By bringing new things into the classroom all the time children will not be so inclined to ‘get bored’ with school.

New Educators

Same Old, Same Old
Every teacher has the same goal and that goal is to get the children in the class to learn and grow as much as possible in the year they have with them. As a student I can easily identify the styles my teachers have used over the years. Teachers can get into a rut when it comes to the style of teaching methods they use with their students. Styles such as lectures, taking notes, reading the book and writing essays can get repetitive for a student day after day. I believe technology can help teachers break away from traditional learning styles and bring in new opportunities for their students. As a new teacher I think changing the way my students are learning will help them stay focused and interested in learning.
The internet opens a world of possibilities for teachers and their students. I think the internet should be incorporated into the learning experience of younger children. I liked the unit Salina organized for her students (Media Assassins). By having her students work online they were able to look up and use many resources with varying topics. By giving the students freedom to read the article they find, they stay interested in what they are learning and also learn how to find and site useful web articles. Without the internet, students will be confined to the library resources they have, and in many schools, that may not be very much. Also, by helping your students use the internet in class they will learn to use it wisely. You, as a teacher will be able to teach students how to site sources properly which will benefit them later on in their school careers. You will also be able to help them figure out what is good information and what is junk. Learning all of these skills will make them into better students and prepare them for the challenges they will face in high school and college.
The use of computers also allows children who are not artistic to be creative in different ways. If the project is to make a book, the student can make their pictures online using a program or they could find images that fit the story. Without the computer, children that can draw would get frustrated and may not even be able to complete the book out of their own frustration. I think that if something is available and can help students in a way that interest them it should be used. The computer could also cut down financial struggles in the classroom. Instead of a child needing something new for every project they can use the resources they need on the computer. Instead of buying twenty copies of the same book for each student, teachers can mark web pages online for their students to use. This method of getting reading material also allows the students more choices without having to wait for a book to arrive or have multiple children sharing one book.
Technology can also help classroom time management. By having students type their papers, instead of writing them out, students will be able to edit and make revisions quicker (Everyone Learns). This will save the student’s time and they will be able to work on a different subject or assignment. Having students use these programs at a younger age they will be able to learn the proper way to type and be much more efficient when they are in high school. With technology being introduced with student work, teachers also have technology advancements that allow them to teach more efficiently. Smart board will allow teachers to lecture without having to take time to write it all out on the board and rewrite it for the next class. This will ensure every class will receive the same information.
Even though I feel technology can help students and teachers in the classroom it should not be over used. Technology should be only part of the day; teachers should not rely solely on technology. Many different ways of teaching should be used because two children do not learn the same way as using technology could hinder their school experience as much as not using technology could hinder another student. I think the best approach is to keep things fresh but not to change everything overnight.

Cummins,J., Brown, K., & Sayera, D. (2007) Literacy, Technology, and Diversity: Teaching For Success in Changing Times. Boston: Pearson.

My Introduction

My name is Erika and I am not very good with computers. I know the essentials but nothing fancy like making a website. This is my first blog and I am very excited to learn how to become a blogger!