Friday, April 26, 2013

Journal #8: Adaptive Technology

Tzvi, . (2011). 7 Assistive Communication Apps in the App Store. In The friendship Circle. Retrieved April 27, 2013, from http://www.friendshipcircle.org/blog/2011/02/07/7-assistive-communication-apps-in-the-ipad-app-store/

Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). Retrieved from http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/AAC/ 

 COMMUNICATION
 AAC, also known as "Augmentative and Alternative Communication" which consist of all forms of communication, besides oral speech, in which we express thoughts, needs, wants, and ideas. For example, when we use AAC when we make facial expressions, gestures, use symbols, pictures, or write. However, people that have speech or language problems rely on AAC to enhance their speech and make it better. Special tools, such as pictures, symbols, communication boards and electronic devices, are available to help people express themselves. These devices not only help individuals with their communication, but it increase social interaction, school performance, and feelings of self-worth. An AAC device is any tool that facilitates nonverbal communication. An AAC device may be an aided device, which means that it is an actual, physical object like an electronic reader or the picture exchange communication system (PECS).

     Augmentative communication can be accomplished through assisted technology devices such as computers or hand held devices. One of the devices that can be used is a app in an IPad. One application that is typically used is Proloquo2Go. This app is only $189 and is a full-featured augmentative and alternative communication solution for autistic children who have difficulty speaking. Easy to set up and use it provides natural sounding text-to-speech voices, high resolution up-to-date symbols, powerful automatic conjugations, a default vocabulary of over 7,000 items and is fully expandable. One way this can be used in the classrooms is share IPads, for there is only a couple of IPads, divide the classroom in small groups and make sure that each group gets time on the IPad where kids can use this application and learn sign language, this will also make your class more diverse.


But what if you don't have the budget to buy an IPad or download this application? Then you can simply use iComm. iComm lets you load picture and audio and record your own voices. Ideal for children with autism, cerebral palsy, apraxia and down syndrome. This is a much simpler.









Accessibility:

An input device  is a device that can be used to insert data into a computer or other computational device. Thing like a barcode reader, graphic tablet, keyboard, mouse, scanner, etc.  For example, The Accessibility Wizard this is a Microsoft program that guides you through the process of customizing your computer with tools designed to help meet your vision, hearing, or mobility needs. Accessibility options (such as StickyKeys, ShowSounds, and Mousekeys) help users with disabilities to make full use of the computer. Some of the options, such as MouseKeys, may be of interest to all users. Once the Accessibility tools are set up, they can be accessed through Control Panel and the Accessibility menu.



Adaptive keyboard is another great tool that can be used. These types of keyboards allows bigger key pads which make it easier for students to use computers, iPADs, any electronics that require typing.

Here is a link to get more information on Software for Students with Learning Disabilities.   Intellitools

2 comments:

  1. Great job on the research you did! I especially like the icomm idea because in reality, products like these aren't so cheap so it is nice to have a product that can be affordable and provide the same features.

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  2. I really liked your tools. I think its amazing how one simple tool can make a huge difference!!

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