Skip to main content

Home/ HGSET561/ Group items tagged special needs

Rss Feed Group items tagged

Filter: All | Bookmarks | Topics Simple Middle
Kasthuri Gopalaratnam

Education Week Teacher Professional Development Sourcebook: Applicable Teaching Tools - 1 views

www.edweek.org/...01tablets.h05.html

education apps iPad technology disability

shared by Kasthuri Gopalaratnam on 18 Oct 11 - No Cached
  • Kasthuri Gopalaratnam on 18 Oct 11
     
    Educators are discovering that iPads and other tablet computers offer new routes to learning for students with disabilities
  • ...1 more comment...
  • Bridget Binstock on 18 Oct 11
     
    Kasthuri - I attended a session at ISTE last summer on using the iPad with Special Needs students (my oldest son has special needs) and discovered many apps that are created for "typical" learners can be adapted for students with special needs. The particular app and use in this article has (in my opinion) one huge advantage and one huge disadvantage. The advantage is price and therefore more widespread accessibility. Augmented Communicative Devices (http://www.abilityhub.com/aac/aac-devices.htm) can cost thousands of dollars. The iPad ($500-800) and app ($100) keeps the cost well below that and can give SES students with this particular need a greater chance in getting the device. The Disadvantage (in my opinion) is the FINE MOTOR skills necessary to operate the touch screen feature of the iPad. The children that I have seen who need this device to communicate have multiple issues at work that prevent them from isolating their fingers in such a way to make this a feasible way for them to communicate effectively. Some of the devices you can see in the link have distinct boundaries that account for mobility and fine motor deficiencies that make the use of the device successful to those who need that adaptation. I am not knocking the iPad for Special Needs students, simply pointing out that it is not the best tool for everyone.
  • Kasthuri Gopalaratnam on 18 Oct 11
     
    Hi Bridget, I agree that it may not be for everyone. Would the use of a stylus rather than fingers make it easier to use the app?
  • Bridget Binstock on 18 Oct 11
     
    Strictly speaking from my experience, the children that I have observed using these devices have Cerebral Palsy (or other muscular issues at work) to the extent where holding any device is not feasible for them. But I can see how a stylus might help specific students overcome this deficiency. Allison has had even more exposure to SN students than I have, so perhaps she can share some insight here.
Ayelet R

Special needs students get help from iPads in Aberdeen - aberdeennews.com - 1 views

www.aberdeennews.com/...rdeen-20110918,0,2643782.story

iPads students technology

shared by Ayelet R on 20 Sep 11 - No Cached
  • Ayelet R on 20 Sep 11
     
    iPad app enhances verbal communication for students with special needs.
Hannah Lesk

Three U.S. Schools Recognized for Instructional Innovations -- THE Journal - 1 views

thejournal.com/...instructional-innovations.aspx

instructional innovations schools Microsoft

shared by Hannah Lesk on 06 Dec 12 - No Cached
  • Hannah Lesk on 06 Dec 12
     
    Microsoft recognized three U.S. schools at its Global Forum Educator awards last week. I didn't find two of them terribly intriguing, but the third, LYNCing Distance Learning Math Classes to Blind and Visually Impaired Students, was a great example of how technology can be used to link educators with special skills and students with special needs how may not otherwise have access to a qualified instructor.
Katherine Tarulli

Online Educators Make Inroads in Public Schools - NYTimes.com - 0 views

www.nytimes.com/...inroads-in-public-schools.html

online education educational_technology education technology learning

shared by Katherine Tarulli on 14 Oct 11 - No Cached
  • Katherine Tarulli on 14 Oct 11
     
    This article highlights how virtual education can transform the learning experience for students with special needs, as well and low and high performing students by allowing them to slow down or speed up according to their needs. As more and more students enroll in online courses, public schools are trying to figure out how incorporate virtual learning into their districts.
Cole Shaw

Does ed tech need its own Consumer Reports? - 2 views

gigaom.com/...-need-its-own-consumer-reports

ratings consumer reports

shared by Cole Shaw on 02 Oct 12 - No Cached
  • Jeffrey Siegel on 02 Oct 12
     
    A new proposal calls for a Consumer Reports-like rating body to evaluate new digital learning tools. Ed tech innovators like the idea in theory but they worry that it won't work in practice.
  • ...1 more comment...
  • Cole Shaw on 02 Oct 12
     
    Talks about different groups that are trying to help classify and rate the various ed tech products out there--more and more are released every day!! So how do teachers know what is useful and what is not? Discusses initiatives and some possible con's--so many are released and so many are updated that it may be impossible to keep up the evaluation pace.
  • Jason Yamashiro on 03 Oct 12
     
    Funny, I was just talking with someone about this very idea the other day. We absolutely need something like this and my guess is that we will have a few competitors, at least early on, for the top ed tech review site. I think there is space for both an organization that specializes and for a yelp like site that essentially crowd sources the reviews. It will be tough to keep up, but think of how many products and areas Consumer Reports deals with- we can do this, and need to do this, for ed tech to get used wisely in our schools.
  • Jeffrey Siegel on 03 Oct 12
     
    With regards to e-learning, I think inevitably some company or organization will provide ratings of the quality of online degree programs and learning tools. Whether this is Consumer Reports or US World & News Report or some new player (investment opportunity?), the need for objective assessments of digital learning tools is definitely needed. The Benchmarking e-learning wiki is interesting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benchmarking_e-learning
Chris Dede

Education Week: E-Learning Expands for Special-Needs Students - 0 views

www.edweek.org/...01edtech-disabilities.h31.html

e-learning special needs

shared by Chris Dede on 23 Aug 11 - No Cached
  • Chris Dede on 23 Aug 11
     
    Important initiative for enabling equity and reducing digital divide
Bridget Binstock

iPad helps Toronto special needs kids learn - Technology & Science - CBC News - 0 views

www.cbc.ca/...ipad-autism.html

technology education learning autism ipad

shared by Bridget Binstock on 27 Oct 11 - No Cached
  • Bridget Binstock on 27 Oct 11
     
    This is a nice follow-up to Kasthuri's post from the 60 Minutes segment. A Toronto teacher who works with special needs students says Apple's iPad has become an important tool in helping her students communicate and learn. Stacie Carroll, a teacher at Toronto's Beverly Public School, told Metro Morning host Matt Galloway the iPad has helped teachers connect with students - including those with autism - who often struggle to communicate.
Katherine Tarulli

New iPad App Puts Viewers Inside Immersive Video - 1 views

www.wired.com/...viewers-inside-immersive-video

technology immersive Emerging Technology iPad

shared by Katherine Tarulli on 13 Nov 11 - No Cached
  • Katherine Tarulli on 13 Nov 11
     
    A new iPad app uses immersive technology to convey a richer video experience.
  • Kasthuri Gopalaratnam on 14 Nov 11
     
    Looks like a great app. I can imagine it being applied in a lot of ways. I see that "The app turns specially encoded video into a virtual reality experience", which means that you need specially recorded video. This may limit the absorption of the app.
Jennifer Hern

If You're Not Seeing Data, You're Not Seeing | Gadget Lab | Wired.com - 0 views

www.wired.com/...augmented-reality

AR augmented_reality

shared by Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09 - Cached
  • “augmented reality,” where data from the network overlays your view of the real world
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      I knew that.
  • developers are creating augmented reality applications and games for a variety of smartphones
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Who are these developers? Lots of $$ backing them?
  • embraced a version of the technology to enhance their products and advertising campaigns.
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Of course AR has been used to enhance private $$ making industries.
  • ...23 more annotations...
  • Tom Caudell, a researcher at aircraft manufacturer Boeing, coined the term “augmented reality” in 1990.
  • head-mounted digital display
  • was an intersection between virtual and physical reality
  • he wants to be able to point a phone at a city it’s completely unfamiliar with, download the surroundings and output information on the fly.
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Called Anywhere Augmentation.
  • stifled by limitations in software and hardware
  • requires a much more sophisticated artificial intelligence and 3-D modeling applications
  • must become affordable to consumers
  • early attempts have focused on two areas
  • your computer is prominently appearing in attention-grabbing, big-budget advertisements
  • Mattel is using the same type of 3-D imaging augmented reality in “i-Tag” action figures f
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Mattel is experimenting with AR... can I get a job there?
  • isn’t truly useful in a static desktop environment, Höllerer said, because people’s day-to-day realities involve more than sitting around all day
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Okay... so desktop computers are not for AR tech. People are mobile, so AR should be mobile. But what about people stuck sitting at a desk all day?
  • And that’s why smartphones, which include GPS hardware and cameras, are crucial to driving the evolution of augmented reality.
  • Ogmento, a company that creates augmented reality products for games and marketing
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Ogmento... see if they want to hire me, too.
  • movie posters will trigger interactive experiences on an iPhone, such as a trailer or even a virtual treasure hunt to promote the film.
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      This is going to bring out the inner nerd in everyone....
  • The Layar browser (video above) looks at an environment through the phone’s camera, and the app displays houses for sale, popular restaurants and shops, and tourist attractions
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Where does this information come from? Who creates this information? Selected sources/companies who pay to have their information posted? A whole new competitive marketing strategy in the making.
  • it’s not truly real-time: The app can’t analyze data it hasn’t downloaded ahead of time.
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      I can only imagine crowds of people walking the streets staring at their apps, running into people and lamp posts, not to mention getting run over by cars... I think this technology might weirdly affect the health insurance industry.
  • You know more, you find more, or you see something you haven’t seen before.
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      this is supposed to be the advantage of using AR from a commercial perspective... it is still self-centralized.
  • Nokia is currently testing an AR app called Point & Find, which involves pointing your camera phone at real-world objects and planting virtual information tags on them
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      This can be a really cool feature for teachers if they have a closed-group option. If you are part of the large network, there is all sorts of things people might plant that you don't want to see or know about... Another thought, if there is a closed-group option, perhaps this will create a whole new way of drug trafficking and helping illegal organizations hide information from authorities.
  • the hardware is finally catching up to our needs
  • Nvidia Tegra, a powerful chip specializing in high-end graphics for mobile devices.
  • place (real) Skittles on the physical map and shoot them to set off (virtual) bombs
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Are you kidding me? Marketing Skittles within an AR game?
  • open API to access live video from the phone’s camera
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      Need this technology in order to produce AR. iPhone does not have it. Wonder why.
  • live tweets of mobile Twitter users around your location.
    • Jennifer Hern
      Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
       
      I can just imagine what a nightmare this app would be in a classroom full of students with handhelds....
  • Jennifer Hern on 22 Sep 09
     
    Background on Augmented Reality. Reading for 9/14.
Hessa Ahmad

New Survey Highlights Best Practices For Online Learning Programs - 0 views

thejournal.com/...-online-learning-programs.aspx

technology education learning online

shared by Hessa Ahmad on 18 Dec 12 - No Cached
  • Hessa Ahmad on 18 Dec 12
     
    Survey participants identified four key factors as "extremely important" in building a successful K-12 online education program: -Reporting and progress monitoring tools that enable teachers to assess student comprehension and identify those that need additional help; -Teacher who are readily available to assist struggling students; -Educators specially trained to teach in an online environment; -Rigorous curriculum, designed to accommodate different learning styles, that keeps students focused and engaged.
Heather French

Gates, MOOCs and Remediation - 1 views

www.insidehighered.com/...dation-solicits-remedial-moocs

educational_technology MOOC Gates_Foundation

shared by Heather French on 15 Sep 12 - No Cached
  • Cole Shaw on 15 Sep 12
     
    Looks like there is some funding available to scientifically evaluate MOOCs for remedial education! I think the results will be interesting to see, since I remember from discussion or a reading that some ed tech seems to work for autism and special needs students...so maybe MOOCs also have a niche.
  • Heather French on 17 Sep 12
     
    The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation is offering ten grants for MOOCs that reach lower achievers in schools.
Kinga Petrovai

iPads are in, cursive is out (and other education trends) - 1 views

diigo.com/0lk0x

technology education

shared by Kinga Petrovai on 30 Nov 11 - No Cached
  • Kinga Petrovai on 30 Nov 11
     
    The trend: They already help teach kids the alphabet, sentence construction and how to graph equations. Now, iPads are being studied as a tool for students with autism and physical disabilities. University of Toronto professor Rhonda McEwen is researching how students at Toronto's Beverley School - which teaches special needs kids from kindergarten to Grade 8 - learn with iPad apps and games that require touch. In addition, the link from the smartboard section of the article, leads to a very interesting TED Talk about how to make smartboards.
1 - 12 of 12
Showing 20▼ items per page