Assistance Needed in the Education Aisle, Please

Many children have special needs. Many adults have special needs. Do you have glasses or contacts? Then you have a special need. Do you work better in a quiet setting without other people? Then you might have a special need. The special needs of children are met in many different ways. Some are as simple as glasses, or being tested in a separate room, or even being seated near the teacher or a table away from a group.

Some special needs are met or aided by assistive technology. Assistive technology comes in many shapes and forms. In my classroom, I have no students with serious needs requiring major, obvious assistive technology like wheelchairs or having a teacher wear a microphone. I do, however, have some students who benefit from minor assistive situations. Some of my students get read-aloud for mathematics and science, and now many of the different texts are online with a read-aloud feature. I can allow these students to work at a computer and listen to the page read aloud while I work with students around the room. I also have students who benefit from listening to stories read aloud that are above their reading level. These students can listen to the books on cd, tape, or on an mp3 player. All of these read-aloud situations help these students show their true ability to think and comprehend even if they have difficulty actually reading.



Our county is also using ClassScape to assess students. This program, designed by NCState, has the ability to enlarge the font on the screen for students who cannot read tiny print on a computer screen. Some tests even have a read-aloud feature.

There are several sites that offer helpful information about assistive technology in an educational setting. Visit any and all of these for more information.

Education World

Web Resources List

K-12 Resources

LD Online