What a. journey this course has been. We presented our case studies today. There were several things that moved me today:
How exciting to see all the amazing ways technology can assist and support our learners with special needs.
How hopeful to see all these amazing educators who will change the trajectory for our students; they care so much for their students, it makes me proud to be an administrator.
How profound this course has been for me in opening my world as an educator. I loved learning about how accessible teachnology can be, how inexpensive, how quickly they can be integrated with our students to better support their learning.
What's next?
Now that I have completed this course (and degree), I am able to focus on school-wide intiatives to promote the use of assistive technology to better support all our learners. I have convinced our parent fund-raising group to shift their focus from raising money to purchase a portable laptop cart to a class set of mini-iPads. There have been changes and shifts in thinking from my staff to view using iPads not as an add-on but as an effective tool to better meet the needs of their students, save teacher time and effort in daily tasks, and best of all, instant motivators used to increase student engagement.
I strive everyday to shift thinking from technology being used as an obligatory tool to the Redefinition stage as Dr. Ruben Puendetura suggests in his blog. Everyday I ask:
'Why should we look at schools as the only places/spaces for learning? With the technological tools we have, let's blow these four walls and extend learning way beyond the classroom! Let's turn technology into teachnology. Let's use technology to teach us to teach students in revolutionary ways. Why not develop true partnerships with our students and learn side by side; let's learn from them as much as they learn from us.'
Thank you Barb for creating new visions on what is possible with assistive technology. Thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge to make me think of assistive technology in new ways. I will be forever grateful!
Social Stories and Video Modeling
BlogMarch 20,
2013
Social Stories is a method created by Carol Gray that
teaches a skill, concept or behaviour in a very specific format. It supports
students who may have social, behavioural or communication challenges. The goal
of this method is to increase the student’s understanding of a specific social
situation and develop skills, attitudes and tools for more appropriate
behaviour. The story is created with a specific behaviour in mind in a specific
social situation, using developmentally appropriate, clear language that is
easily understood by the student. As a result of an effective social story, the
student will increase and improve their understanding of events and
expectations by using more effective and acceptable responses.
Video modeling is a method of teaching that uses video
recording to teach expected or desired behaviours to students with
communication/social/behavioural challenges. Types of video modeling include
basic video modeling, video self-modeling, point-of-view video modeling, and video
prompting. Basic video modeling involves recording someone other than the
learner engaging in the target behavior or skill. The video is then viewed by
the learner at their own pace, repeating clips if desired. Video self-modeling is used to record the learner displaying the
target skill or behavior and is reviewed later. Point-of-view video modeling is when the target behavior or skill
is recorded from the perspective of the learner. Video prompting involves breaking the behavior skill into steps and
recording each step with deliberate pauses during which the learner can
practice the step before viewing the remaining steps. Video prompting may be
done with either the learner or someone else acting as a model.
Target behaviours can include:
·positive social interaction
·academic and functional skills
·communication skills
·daily living skills
·play skills
·social initiations
·perception of emotion
·spontaneous requests
·perspective taking
Video modeling’s many advantages include the high appeal
factor for all students and in particular ASD students who often cannot make
direct eye contact needed in a typical learning environment, These videos can
be produced relatively inexpensively, tailor-made and can be viewed repeatedly
as needed. They are highly motivating and are powerful tools for autistic students
who respond so well to visual cues.I have an ongoing list of video modeling apps
on my Pinterest board. Check it out! http://pinterest.com/makiko1966/
In doing some
further readings on PECS or Picture Exchange Communication System, I learned that
it aims at requiring the communicator to initiate communication. It becomes
their voice. I was under the assumption from my observations over the years
with LC students that they were responding to prompts or requests rather
than initiating communication themselves. Using PECS (or any other
communication system) should result in change or cause a change in the person
receiving the communication.The change should
be a new understanding or a response to a request. In the video A Clear Picture: The Use and Benefits of
PECS: http://www.pecs.com/webcasts/overview.php
it states that critical in early teaching is NOT to pre-empt, but wait for
students to hand over the picture first, so they INITIATE the communication,
not only respond to prompts from communicator.
This system
works well as a low tech AAC for students with apraxia, ASD and other
communicative, physical and cognitive challenges. PECS is becoming a rather outdated form of
communication system as the process of creating strips and pictures are time
and labour intensive. As pointed out in our last class, Proloque2 can achieve the
same results in mere minutes. The use of a mobile device such as an iPod, iPad
or iPhone replaces the cumbersome binder and picture strips and allows the
students to blend with their peers.
However for some
students mobile devices are not as easily accessible at certain times in their
development. For example, we have a Primary student with CP and reflex
movements she cannot control. The regular icons on these mobile devices are too
small for her to tap and she constantly licks her fingers which prevents her
from effectively tapping the screen. For this student, we may need to look into
devices with a switch program and use huge icons.
When looking at
whether a student is ready to move to a digital portable system one of the factors
is physical ability to use the device. However with so many adaptations and
apps, I can’t see any student not able to use an AAC as long as they can move
their eyes, breathe, blow, or have control of some part of their body. As for
cognitive readiness, I am amazed that my case study student who functions at
18-24 months can manipulate an iPad proficiently. It seems to me that we are
the only boundaries standing in the way of students flying with AAC’s. We are
limited by our thinking as there are so many possibilities out there if we can
just use our imagination and effectively match the needs of our students with
the most suitable device.
What a fascinating way
to think about learning and technology! He poses the question: How can we go
from traditional learning spaces to a continuum of learning spaces so the
entire world becomes a place of learning for our students?
Sign me up! Let’s go
for it! Why should we look at schools as the only places/spaces for learning.
With the technological tools we have let’s blow the 4 walls and extend learning
way beyond the classroom! Let’s turn technology into teachnology. Let’s use
technology to teach us, teach students in revolutionary new ways.
In looking at the SAMR
model, I would as an administrator say that most of us in classrooms are using
technology in the first 2 stages of the SAMR model. In Substitution, the exact same tasks are done by substituting using
some tech tools. For example, the same essays are being written the same way
but now instead of long-hand we are using word processors. There is no
significant impact on learning by using the tech tool.
With Augmentation, tech tools are being used
to enhance the same tasks. Tasks may
now be done more efficiently, faster by using different features, but the same
results in learning are happening. Importing images to add to our essay writing
may make it look more appealing but there is no significance in the learning.
In Modification, although the heart of the
task remains the same, certain features are used to do the task in new ways. For
example the student may write an essay but now with online critiquing from
peers, the student gets instant feedback to help with the learning. There are
teachers in school who are able to extend their thinking and comfort level to
try new experiences with technology but these teachers are few and far between.
I have also noticed that popular assumptions would be that the younger the
teacher in age and experience, the more risks they will take to teach in the
modification stage. This is not the case in my school. In my experience, it
depends on how open a teacher is to new ideas, to new ways of thinking.
Sometimes it’s teachers who are open to learning from their students who are
better able to think in the Modification stage or even the Redefinition stage.
The Redefinition stage is where technology
allows for creation of new tasks never thought of or attainable before. It is
not merely the stage where old tasks are replaced with new tasks. This is where
there is a revolution of new thinking, reaching domains never thought of
before. Puentedura claims that there are dramatic outcomes from students whose
potential we had never considered before; seeing students improving like never
before. At this stage teachers cannot separate Pedagogy, Content and Technology
as singular entities; they must be organically combined with purposeful
thinking of how we can create new learning. I would venture to say we cannot do
this without our students as learning partners. We have to embark on this
journey side by side learning from each other.
I am grappling with a
student now who is functioning at a grade 2 level but he is living in a Grade 8
body. His teachers are frustrated because he is not responding to any of the
vast menu of interventions tried. The learning gap is growing daily and ideas
are now vanishing. I feel we are failing him. How can we take his singular
interest, skateboarding and use technology, content and pedagogy to reach him?
Can we move past teaching him to write about skateboarding and presenting a
Powerpoint to perhaps having him teach us how to design a skateboard park using
his iPad? Can we hook him up with an online skateboarding community to learn
more about his world? Can we take a virtual trip with him another part of the
world where he can demonstrate his skills with other peers who know nothing
about skateboarding?
What we need is the
same thing we always need to move new learning forward – time, money,
inspiration, safe places to try innovative ideas, and supportive structures.
But we can’t wait for all these to fall into our laps. Now that we know better
we need to do better. We need not only to do things better or easier, we need
to transform. We need leadership in our schools that navigate past the bereaucratic red tape (i.e. allow unlimited use of apple products), to think outside the box, blur the lines so teachers /administrators can experiment, take risks. We need to know the students we serve, truly know them so they may be partners in learning.
Something to think about when talking about changes in education that needs to happen:
Webinars 1-2-3 The
wealth of information and realm of possibilities of these apps was
mind-boggling hence the reason for this mind blogging!
In trying to digest
all the information from the 3 webinars and relate it to my final project with
a particular student in mind, I began to think deeper on how to truly assess
his needs before embarking on a AAC to support his learning. I have already
used several apps but I realized I needed to step back and do more research on
how to gather as much information as I could on his learning profile, beyond
his cum file, recent assessments from his classroom and Learning Center
teachers, our school board’s autism team, the early intervention team, IWK as
well as my own observations. I found an online assessment matrix which was
helpful in gathering information on where to begin: http://www.communicationmatrix.org/
My case study non-verbal
student functions developmentally at 36 months of age. Because of this I was interested
in the pre-school apps such as the Grasshopper apps. I did further research on
the Grasshopper site and found amazing apps for coordination, motor skills and
stimulation. http://www.grasshopperapps.com/Another app on the webinar that was
useful was the ABC’s Writer for elementary levels. This app allows students to
trace letters and hone in on fine motor skills and directionality needed for
effective iPad use. The Touch Trainer app is great as well for developing
target skills. This app allows you to individualize taps on the iPad in order
to develop those skills to use these devices. The Baby Fun apps will garner his
attention and develop task completion which for this particular student is a
challenge.
Focusing on
speech/communication, I found the SpeechButton app effective because of its
simplicity. It’s a great introductory app for non-verbal students with both
physical and cognitive challenges. I am looking forward to getting back to
school to try out the My Voice app to begin developing his ability to communicate
basic needs and wants. It boggles my mind with all these resources available to
us (not to mention free or at minimal costs!!) that we have not implemented any
assistive tech tools for this student before this year. I wonder if our schools
are under the impression that students who function at a pre-school level are
not able to use assistive technology tools to learn until they have reached a
school-level developmental age.
SCO: 8.3 make language choices to enhance meaning and achieve interesting effects in imaginative writing and other ways of representing
Creating a Haiku: Following the 3 line 5-7-5 syllable template, create a Haiku poem based on a nature theme. You may use some of the ideas listed and images to help you create your Haiku.
