Assistive Technologies in the Context of the Classroom -COE

Conceptual Framework Model

The Conceptual Framework Model “SHARED VISION” purpose is to provide coherence for initial and advanced programs for teachers and other professional school personnel.  The focus on “Reflective Practitioner” means to prepare students to be reflective practitioners.  This means that they select and implement plans as they learn and become a decision maker.  They become a reflective practitioner as they continually evaluate their choices and others in their learning community.  These students become knowledgably by having an understanding of the different ways people learn and the way they apply that knowledge.  This reflection leads to change and the revising of plans or start all over again.  The decision-making cycle is represented by rotating arrows that is continuous and promotes professional growth.  Being a reflective practitioner is very important in an education setting because they are learning from their own professional experiences.  These educators are lifelong learners who are always learning and building knowledge to help them grow professionally.  This framework offers them a program that helps them to become a reflective practitioner and achieve their goal by gaining knowledge that they can use throughout their life. 

Assistive Technologies in the Context of the Classroom means that people can live independent lives alone at any age because technology has provided these people with the aid and manipulation control they need to live in their environment. People who need his type of assistive living can live and work in their environment by using the different types of aids available to help support them in their daily living.  Technologies that aid manipulation and control of environment can enhance mobility, give assistance with home chores, provide devices for particular functions, and make it safe and easy for these people to live normal lives.

Devices that Enhance Mobility and Manipulation:

1. Describe the context in which assistive technologies are applied in education

• People with physical disabilities that affect movement can use mobility aids, such as wheelchairs, scooters, walkers, canes, crutches, prosthetic devices, and orthotic devices, to enhance their mobility. 
• Hearing aids can improve hearing ability in persons with hearing problems.
• Cognitive assistance, including computer or electrical assistive devices, can help people function following brain injury.
• Computer software and hardware, such as voice recognition programs, screen readers, and screen enlargement applications, help people with mobility and sensory impairments use computer technology.
• In the classroom and elsewhere, assistive devices, such as automatic page-turners, book holders, and adapted pencil grips, allow learners with disabilities to participate in educational activities.
• Closed captioning allows people with hearing impairments to enjoy movies and television programs. 
• Barriers in community buildings, businesses, and workplaces can be removed or modified to improve accessibility. Such modifications include ramps, automatic door openers, grab bars, and wider doorways.
• Lightweight, high-performance wheelchairs have been designed for organized sports, such as basketball, tennis, and racing. 
• Adaptive switches make it possible for a child with limited motor skills to play with toys and games.
• Many types of devices help people with disabilities perform such tasks as cooking, dressing, and grooming. Kitchen implements are available with large, cushioned grips to help people with weakness or arthritis in their hands. Medication dispensers with alarms can help people remember to take their medicine on time. People who use wheelchairs for mobility can use extendable reaching devices to reach items on shelves. 

2. List the major assistive technologies that are used in educational settings

There is motivation for people to learn to feed themselves.  There are commercially available feeders that are useful for people who have controlled movements of the head and neck and can take food off of a feeding utensil that is brought close I mouth. 

• The Winsford Feeder (Winsford Products, Pennington, NJ) and the Beeson Feeder (Maddox Inc.,Pequannock, N.J.) 
• Handy I (Rehab Robotics Ltd., Staffordshire, U.K.), a robotic arm that is programmed for feeding. Most feeders consist of an articulated, electrically powered arm with a spoon at its end, a plate on a rotating turntable and an auxiliary arm that may be used to push food on to the spoon. The user controls, through the use of switches, the movement of the different

3. Describe how assistive technologies are used in the classroom to facilitate learning

Some individuals have been diagnosed with arthritis, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, stroke, and acquired brain injury may often experience difficulties with fine motor tasks due to poor hand functioning and this may be a result of spasticity, contractures, joint subluxation, or structural deformities in the hand. Reading is also an example of an activity that might be difficult for these people to do that require fine motor skill to turn a page. Reading books, magazines, or newspapers is very important in daily living, such as work, school, and leisure.  Other limited commercially available options available to address this problem, such as electronic book readers, and using a rubber-tipped rod in a universal cuff.  Though, electronic reader is portable, feedback from users indicate that eye strain is a problematic issue.  Using a rubber-tipped rod in a universal cuff attached to the palm of one’s hand is an inexpensive and portable option with feedback from users and occupational therapists note its inefficiency because it often takes multiple tries to turn one page.

4. List the major technological approaches used to assist individuals who have learning disabilities

Environmental Control allows people with disabilities to control functions in their own living space. This might include opening doors and windows, functions such as controlling a door intercom system, lights, a telephone, bed functions, TV, DVD player, cable TV boxes, and the stereo. In addition to consumer products such as TVs, DVD players, cable TV boxes, and stereos, users also need to be able to control other functions in their homes. Some manufactures provide users with an all-in-one solution that uses one transmitter to control everything.

• Doors. IR-controlled door-openers allow users to come and go from their own homes independently.
• Windows. Electric window-openers let you open and close the windows in your home.
• Lights/Devices. Lights and other devices can be easily switched on or off using a wireless relay unit. It is easy to set up the relay unit, to move it, and change it for new functions.
• Beds. A bed receiver allows the user to independently adjust the sleeping position of an electronically controlled bed.
• External doors. A door intercom allows the user to speak to people calling at the external door and let them in from anywhere in the home – even from bed.
• Telephone. A remote-controlled GewaTel 200 speaker telephone provides safety, security and greater independence by providing access to emergency services, answering the phone, and making phone calls to stored numbers.

5. Describe how soft technologies are used in education to enhance the use of hard technologies

Environmental Control Units are the equipment that people with disabilities use to interact with and control their environments. They can control a wide range of electronic devices including garage doors, thermostats, windows, doors, beds, “call nurse” buttons, telephones or audio recording devices, lights, televisions, and radios.  

There are three main parts to environmental control systems: 

• input devices (the user interface that accepts inputs from the user) Part of the ECU that users interacts with to effect a change,
• the processor (the unit that sends signals to control the electronic devices), and
• outputs  (the devices to be controlled).

For people who have limited or no use of their arms, it is equally as challenging to complete such tasks as making a sandwich, putting away clothes, and shopping.   People with some severe disabilities require a person to help them perform tasks, such as adjusting their jacket, which many of us take for granted. Rapid-prototyping and robotics provide some promising solutions to at least some of the challenges faced by people with severe mobility and manipulation, and offer hope for greater independence.  Rapid-prototyping helps engineers to make models and even one-off devices in a cost effective and timely manner. This allows computer models to become physical models within days, and real systems within months rather than years. This accelerates the research and design process, and affords people with disabilities more opportunities to participate in the scientific process.  Robotics has traditionally focused on replacing humans in the performance of tasks to achieve greater efficiencies or to reduce human exposure to risk.