Flattening the curve

FLATTENING CURVE

THE

Photos by Rintaro Sato

Assistive technology helps bridge between students with different learning gaps educational needs

Stella Pavao

High school is a constant for teenagers in America; rotating through math, science, history, and English classes. But not every student is equipped with the same natural tools. Disabilities that hinder learning include conditions such as dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

According to a Pew Research Center study, nearly 14% of public school students have a disability. Carlmont is no different. Numerous students have 504 plans or an individualized education program (IEP).

Both 504 plans and IEPs assist students with disabilities or medical conditions that hinder their learning. For example, a student with a broken arm would be able to use speechto-text technology, or a student with dyslexia would be able to use electronic worksheets that they are more easily able to read and understand.

But at Carlmont, teachers have found a one-stop solution to keep students in general education classrooms but also understand the material the same as their peers.

“We only use Chromebooks. We don’t have any other technology in our class,” said Carlmont special education teacher Justine Hedlund.

Instead of keeping track of multiple machines and technologies, Carlmont has streamlined and opted for installing apps to help with typing and text-to-speech.

“They are just extensions that you can add on Google Chrome. It’s so easy and awesome. Compared to back in the day, you had to have a whole separate device, and you would really stand out and look weird, and then kids wouldn’t want to use it because they’d stand out,” Hedlund said.

Historically, while helpful, many students were hesitant to use assistive devices out of fear of being different than their peers. But now, with the inception of assistive technology that is fully integrated into existing devices, anyone can use the tools to help.

“Everyone has access to it. All you have to do is download an extra extension that's usually free,” Hedlund said. “Things that are super-duper helpful for my students where, some of us are able to function without the speech to text and without the read aloud and can still comprehend the material or get as much written, but for my students without it, they'd really really struggle. So it's cool because some of us who don't need it still use it.”

But assistance comes from more than just specialized applications. Help can come from something as simple as just digitizing assignments.

“Usually, I get to type everything up since I have that in my IEP,” said Carlmont sophomore Isaac Strehlow. “I use Google Docs; I’m getting really good at drawing with Google Slides.”

While useful in aiding learning gaps for students with disabilities, assistive technology is also used to help students with trouble socializing. Carlmont’s integrated learning support program allows students to focus on social skills and how to interact with their peers.

For example, some students on the autism spectrum are non-verbal and require additional tools to be able to communicate.

“We are working on conversations and stuff in our classroom and like how to do small talk and appropriate social behaviors,” Hedlund said.

For students who are learning social skills and ordinarily struggle to communicate, aids are put in place to help ease the burden.

“Students have a communication device for expressive language, just like an iPad,” said special education teacher Sevgi Carefoot. “There's an app on it called TouchChat. You can click on it and you can find you can make sentences. Or you can push and touch pictures that can say a word.”

With TouchChat, nonverbal communication is effective, and students can be properly understood by their teachers and paraeducators.

Whether social or educational, assistive technology has and will continue to help create an equitable school environment for all students.