Group items tagged

"Children and teens with learning disabilities sometimes have a hard time with social skills and behavior, including reading or communicating nonverbal signals. The following mobile apps may provide your child or teen with some high-tech support. Although we did extensive research on available apps, we also learned that just because "there's an app for that" it doesn't mean that it's right for everyone. My daughter likes these, but we suggest that you have your child or teen try them out for themselves."

"iPads Become Learning Tools for Students with Disabilities"

"Does a red flag mean your kid shouldn't use a particular app? Not at all. Most kids use social media apps safely -- and kids don't always use every feature of every app. Also, you can often disable certain features so they're no longer a problem. Finally, talking about using social media safely, responsibly, and respectfully is the best way to help your kid identify and avoid red flags. Here are the most common social media red flags, the apps they're found in, and tips for dealing with them. "

"Apple's popular tablet can be a great tool for students, parents, and teachers dealing with PDD and Autism Spectrum Disorders, or with other learning disabilities or special needs."

This blog site was developed to share information about apps used to support individuals with disabilities. The picture menu on the top shows you the six "big" categories into which apps have been organized. Click on any of these pictures to get a list of the posts that fall within each category. Sometimes, apps don't neatly fit within one of these six areas, so posts have also been tagged with other descriptors that might help you find what you are looking for. The list is on the left side of this screen. Just click on any category tag that is of interest. You can also use the search tool that is at the very bottom of this page.

"According to Apple, schools are using iPads to administer tests on a regular basis now. I can see this being helpful in 1:1 classrooms and those looking to make tests / pop quizzes a bit more interactive. But, a big problem with giving tests on iPads is cheating. Luckily, Apple has added in some controls to Guided Access that lets teachers turn off the ability to use Safari to look up answers while taking a test. In fact, you can disable and enable all sorts of custom controls. You can use 'Single App Mode' where a student can ONLY use the app that's delivering the test."

"Of the many ways that technology enhances our lives, one compelling example is assistive technology (AT) -- tools to help people with learning or motor disabilities complete everyday tasks. In schools, assistive tech can mean the difference between a student falling behind or being able to successfully work alongside other kids in an inclusion model. Check out Edutopia curator Ashley Cronin's new roundup on assistive technology for a comprehensive list of resources; to accompany that, I wanted to share some amazing videos I've found about how technology can empower kids with special needs."

"iCloud Activation Lock is a feature that allows users to lock down an iPhone (or iPad) and require the entry of an Apple ID before the device becomes usable again. It's part of the excellent Find My iPhone service and is extremely useful for many reasons, but it can also be a real pain if you or someone else obtained an iPhone that has another Apple ID attached to it and is then 'locked' to that account with an activate request, because until that activation lock is removed it will be prevented from general usage or login with another Apple ID."

"Tech Ninja Todd, Michelle Cordy, and a recent Do and Don't list inspired me to sit down and reflect upon the start of this year with secondary iPads and the new enrollment system. While the new enrollment system is fiscally responsible (as we can now push and pull apps), allows for improved management (e.g. disabling iMessages and Game Center), and even provides the functionality to lock down devices during a testing situation with Casper Focus, any new system and process will encounter a few bumps in the road."

"Differentiated instruction is not necessarily a new approach to meeting the unique learning needs of all students, but it has certainly been enhanced through assistive technologies. The advancements with assistive technologies have been astronomical in providing teachers even more ways to reach out to their students (Dove, 2012) and differentiate the way they learn, practice, and explore concepts (Ciampa & Gallagher, 2013). As a researcher studying assistive technologies and a program facilitator for the Learning Disabilities Association of Niagara Region, I have gained valuable insight to help support educators with high-tech assistive technologies. For the most part, my experience with assistive technology has generally revolved around using Apple iPads and Chromebooks. With this in mind, the following tips will be coming from the perspective of a teacher very passionate about mobile devices in 21st century learning spaces."

"Video conferencing and chat tools can be a wonderful instructional resource, as most educators know. You can bring the outside world and guests into your classroom, enable a sick or disabled student to present from home and interact with the class, get to know online students better and have more constructive conversations than voice alone permits. The possibilities are endless!"

"According to Google Trends (see photo), a new term came into existence and quickly became synonymous with progressive education and a resurgence of STEAM education in America. That term is maker education, or makered for short, and can be seen in the graph as "born" according to google searches, around September of 2004. Although the exact number of makered programs is not currently known, schools that employ a progressive pedagogy (insert the word innovative for those working in the 21st century) or schools that make claims regarding the importance of differentiation, constructivism or experiential learning have built or are building makered programs. At first these programs seemed to be dependent on having state of the art Maker Spaces or FabLabs and high-tech tools, as most were found in well-funded private schools. That picture has changed rapidly in the past ten years since the makered movement has gained popularity, however. More and more public/charter schools and nonprofit programs are building programs for the average American child, that rival many private school programs. In fact, programs with limited budgets and space have reminded us that scarcity or "disability," are invaluable teachers in any good maker culture, as they breed creativity and self-reliance. Many of the makered programs serving lower income communities have access to mentors who never stopped working with their hands, even when it fell out of status in a consumer driven America in the 1980's (Curtis 2002). While lower income mentors may not know Python or what an Arduino is, they are skilled carpenters, mechanics, seamstresses, cooks and know what it means to be resourceful. "

Tech&Learning Blog

Part 1 of a seven part series