Technology helping children with autism!

Studying EDC1300 has made me realise how much I don't know about technologies! As they aren't my strongest point I know what I have to work on, having a repertoire of resources, connecting with others to collaborate and share ideas and resources, learning how to effectively use the ICTs available to me. This probably sounds ridiculous but I never had any idea just how many resources are already out there!!! I don't need to spend hours trying to come up with all sorts of different activities for my class alone are there are so many ideas and inspirations available online. Something I am really love at the moment is Pinterest, http://pinterest.com/, it has unlimited information about just about everything! There are so many fantastic ideas for classrooms, all different contexts and subjects. Definitely check it out, in the unlikely event you don't find something you can use, there are lots of ideas to spark your creativity and help you come up with what you need, which you could then share for someone else!

When I began this course I was really hesitant even opposed to ICT in classrooms. After researching and watching videos such as this I'm starting to realise the benefits especially in education! "Just how often opportunities are lost to students when no accessible media is provide for them" Similarly so many opportunities are lost when the teacher doesn't know or understand how to use the ICTs properly!! I'm beginning to learn how much they can enhance the educational experience for individuals. I really liked the visual tool that enabled the boy with vision impairment to read. ICTs are breaking down so many barriers and making education so accessible for people with disabilities, which is great news for teachers! The teachers on the video all rave about how great DCMP is and how much it is enhancing the learning. "Provide equal access to communication and learning... accessible media to be an integral tool in the teaching and learning process for all stakeholders in the learning community." I now see ICT as a tool in learning, not a finished product.

Tecnology doing great things in autism!!

Isn't it incredible what technology is doing for people with autism! Imagine what it would have been like for them 50years ago? 20 years ago? Even ten years ago!!! This knowledge is so crucial as a special needs teacher, there could be nonverbal students in the class who have deeper communication desires and intellectual abilities than we realise! This opens so many doors and opportunities for them, allowing them to participate in class, make learning their own, to engage in conversations and learn in a whole new way!! What a really useful tool that could be so easily incporporated in a classroom. Ipads now have apps that make this kind of technology really really accessible! http://www.autismspeaks.org/autism-apps

I am very intruigued by the use of music in special education. I have done alot of reading and found how it can be used to engage students with autism and connect them to the world in a social way that would otherwise be unaccessible to them! This website has some great stories! http://www.austmta.org.au/wp/wp-content/uploads/special-ed-casestudy.pdf If you have kids with autism in your class naturally you want them to be engaging and interacting with them other kids in the class and music can be that facilitator as Dr Katrina Mc Ferran states "Music offers a balance between structure and freedom that can make sense for young people with autism." Other studies have shown that even just listening to music during class can dramatically improve the behaviour of the students. http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworks/3296/. There is even a fantastic technology available now called a sound beam device (www.musicplayforlife.org) that allows people with quadriplegia to create music! Thereby owning the music themselves and communicating their emotions and needs in a way otherwise impossible. Woah music!!