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His sight was gone by the time he was 4r. But Munawar Bijani learned how to play videogames using his hearing alone. Now he’s in the forefront of blind entertainment.

Munawar Bijani made his foray into the world of videogames at age 8, as Ryu tossing fireballs at enemies in Street Fighter, and as Sub-Zero laying down sheets of ice in Mortal Kombat. He was pretty good, able to beat both computer and human opponents regularly enough to be a formidable foe.

For many children with special needs social stories are very helpful for staying on task and ensuring that the child is prepared for future events and activities. Social Stories can: Improve a child’s  behavior when there are changes in routines. Encourage a child to complete less-preferred tasks. Reinforce or teach abstract concepts, such as time (e.g., next, later), actions, and prepositions (e.g., open, put in,) Break down multi-step tasks into smaller, more manageable parts. Increase your child’s independence by improving his ability to complete parts of his routine with less help or prompting. Making Social Stories for your child with special needs can be a time consuming task. Here are 12 sites that will help you make effective social stories.

"I was lucky to have been born in the computer age. Without them, my life would have been miserable and my scientific career impossible," – the dramatic words of Professor Stephen Hawking expressed at last year's Technology4Good awards. But Hawking is not alone in his sentiment. My career path also bears testimony to the enormous changes that technology has wrought over the past 20 years. It is not an exaggeration to say that the future is here at last, bringing with it enormous potential to improve the lives of disabled people in infinite ways.

A community-powered website for blind and low-vision users of Apple's range of Mac computers, the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. AppleVis is a rich resource that strives to empower the community by offering multiple pathways to access and share relevant and useful information. As a community, we seek to encourage and support people in exploring the many ways in which these mainstream products and related applications can offer opportunities to the vision-impaired for personal enrichment, independence and empowerment.

For a 45 minute overview on Smartphone Accessibility, visit the related Discovery Series link below. In addition, you will find links to a variety of internet resources. Look for additional individual device demonstrations to be posted in the coming months. Please note that TARGET Discovery Series requires that Adobe Flash be installed on your computer. Discovery Series Episode: Discover Smartphone Accessibility (TARGET Discovery Series)

Raising the achievement of students with learning disabilities is hard, expensive, controversial and complex. School systems must pay private school tuition for students they can’t adequately serve. Educators and parents sometimes disagree on what methods to use. Education writers like me rarely deal with the subject because it is difficult to explain and lacks many success stories. That explains in part why learning disabilities are so poorly understood, as revealed by a remarkable survey just released by the nonprofit National Center for Learning Disabilities. The representative sampling of 2,000 Americans provides a rare look at the depths of our ignorance. Forty-three percent believe that learning disabilities correlate with IQ. Fifty-five percent think that corrective eyewear can treat certain learning disabilities. Twenty-two percent believe that learning disabilities can be caused by spending too much time watching computer or television screens. All of those impressions are wrong.

Click here to register!What:January's topics will be Edmodo and Backchannel. Edmodo is a safe and easy way for your class to connect and collaberate, share content, and access homework, grades, and school notices.Backchannel is a site that can be used to show a video, while students comment, write notes, and discuss the film in live time on the side of the screen. Click here for more information on Edmodo and Backchannel!Participants must bring a laptop.When:January 10th, 20125:00 - 7:00 PM MountainWhere:MSU Billings College of Education BuildingRoom 160Contact: John Keener - Phone: 657-1743                        Email: john.keener@msubillings.edu Debra Miller -  Phone: 657-2072                        Email: dmiller@msubillings.edu

Click here to access the webinar!What:Many people do not realize that assistive technology is a continuum of devices and tools, from low-tech to high-tech. However, everyone agrees that the right assistive technology tools can provide a person with a disability the opportunity for increased independence and access to their community. This presentation will focus on low-tech and free tools that are available for older students and adults with developmental disabilities. This presentation will provide the attendees with resources and ideas for 50 free or low-cost assistive technology tools they can implement quickly. The areas of focus are: scheduling, communication, cooking, accessibility to the computer and the internet, and tools for fun.When:Thursday, December 8, 2011 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM MounainContact:Rosemarie PunzalanPhone: 916-325-1690 ext. 343Email: rosemarie@cfilc.org

Imagine walking into a public library filled with PlayStations, Wii game consoles, and electric keyboards pumped up to maximum volume. Teenagers are munching on snacks, checking out laptops and slouching on sofas or beanbags. A carousel of computers sits in the middle, navigated to Facebook. That’s exactly how one enormous room on the ground floor of the Chicago Public Library’s main branch functions. And this noisy library model is expanding around the country.

Click here for full information! (PDF)What:This Trainer of Paraeducator Academies (TOPA) train the trainer session is designed for experienced educators that have worked with paraprofessionals. The session will provide an overview of the essential skills needed to be an effective presenter, how to use Powerpoint presentations, and will give each participant access to online information to teach the twenty two academies. These academies provide a solid working foundation for teachers and paraprofessionals that create a common understanding of special education goals, objectives, and language. These trainings are a great way to create a team approach to meet the needs of students.When:February 1, 20122:00 pm - 4:00 pmWhere:Columbus Middle SchoolMini Computer LabContact:Monica PughPhone: (406) 322-5298Email: ssgpugh11@yahoo.com

James Beck is getting ready to graduate in May from Montana State University, but recently found he couldn’t turn in the graduation forms himself, because he can’t physically get to the registrar’s office. Beck, 25, a computer science major from Belgrade, has muscular dystrophy, a genetic disorder that weakens muscles, so to get around he has to rely on his power wheelchair. The only way to reach the registrar’s office in historic Montana Hall is to climb lots of stairs. “I can’t get to the place everybody has to go,” Beck said. “I think it’s more ridiculous in this day and age to have small obstacles.”

What:Research provides strong evidence that organizations with a high degree of trust among employees are far more likely to make and sustain the kinds of changes that help them reach their goals and outcomes – than those organizations where there is little or no trust among staff. This session will describe both empirical and conceptual research related to trust types. We will explore the various types of trust as they relate to social and organizational life. In addition, we will make connections between trust, trust types, relationship, communication and increased effectiveness in mediation and ADR outcomes.  About Dr. Cathy Fromme: Dr. Fromme began her journey as an educator 32 years ago, as a first grade teacher in California. She is currently the Principal of TrustWorks. Prior to establishing TrustWorks she held district, regional ESD and state department positions in Washington. While at the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction she developed Washington’s statewide Special Education Mediation System, chaired the statewide Commission on Student Learning Accommodations and Alternate Assessment committees.Cathy was also the Diversity Manager for the Washington Department of Natural Resources where she facilitated, positive/inclusive working relationships and diversity in the workplace for 1,300 DNR employees. She has consulted, written and presented extensively in the areas of trust, change management and work force diversity in schools and organizations. She received her B.S. from UCLA, M.S. from San Jose State University, and doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Washington. Though, her proudest achievements in life are her two grown sons. The youngest is an EMT in the US Air Force and the oldest is the owner/operator of a courier business in San Francisco.Meeting Details: To participate in this webinar you must call in and log in from your computer. Conference Number(s):  1-888-447-7153 Participant Code: 473502 To join the meeting, please click on the link below and enter as guest: http://tadnet.adobeconnect.com/cadre/When:March 14, 201212:00 pm - 1:15 pm MTContact:Marshall Peter, Director CADRE (541) 686-5060 (v) (541) 686-5063 (f) mpeter@directionservice.org www.directionservice.org/cadre

Webinars from the Clerc Center Our webinars are a convenient way to meet professional development requirements as well as supply families with needed resources. Without incurring traveling expenses or workshop fees, individual educators, professionals, and parents can interact with professionals in the field of deaf education from the comfort and convenience of their own office, school location, or home computer. It's also possible for groups of colleagues, teachers, and/or families to view the webinars from one central location. The webinars are presented in American Sign Language (ASL) with a spoken English voiceover and captions.

Sharing Autism Research on Deaf or Hard of Hearing Students

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About ASL/English Bimodal Bilingual Education

MISSOULA - A new software at the University of Montana and affiliated campuses will make a big difference for students with learning disabilities this spring. The Read and Write Gold software will allow students and employees to have whatever is on the computer screen read to them out loud. The Disability Services for Students department originally wanted it for students with learning disabilities and barriers to print - but found it all UM students could benefit from the program.

Universal design (UD) is an idea that developed in the mid-1990s as advocates of making buildings and products accessible to people with disabilities realized that these features often had benefits for a broader population. Examples include curb ramps, automated doors, closed captioning in television sets and accessibility features for computer operating systems.

An experimental device is letting paralysed people drive wheelchairs simply by flicking their tongue in the right direction. Key to this wireless system: Users get their tongue pierced with a magnetic stud that resembles jewellery and acts like a joystick, in hopes of offering them more mobility and independence. Researchers reported Wednesday that 11 people paralysed from the neck down rapidly learned to use the tongue device to pilot their wheelchairs through an obstacle course full of twists and turns, and to operate a computer, too.

iCommunicator makes effective two-way communication possible for persons who are deaf, hard-of-hearing or experience unique communication challenges The iCommunicator translates in real-time: • Speech to Text • Speech/Text to Video Sign-Language • Speech/Text to Computer Generated Voice

It seems impossible to many people that a person who is blind can use an iPhone, that a person with a significant physical disability can drive himself to work, or that a person who can’t read can go to college. Impossible, until they see it done. Throughout the years, I’ve spoken with people who are unsure that their child/student/client could achieve a life goal, even with the support of assistive technology (AT). They might think that AT is just for people with physical disabilities or those who are good with computers or for anybody else but themselves.

Google Glass, the hands-free headset that functions similarly to a smartphone or a computer, is a boon to Columbia University law school student Alex Blaszczuk, paralyzed since 2011. See how the emerging technology of Glass may help the disabled.