Blog C

Not all children learn the same. This is a statement that all teachers need to take into account when they are teaching and coming up with different assignments. There are going to be children with learning and physical disabilities, as well as other students that just do things differently. There needs to be many different options available for students of all kinds to use for their learning.
One way of helping give students different options for learning is through universal design. Universal design is using multiple approaches to conveying information, synthesizing that info, and maintaining interest so students are able to repeat what they have learned. Each student learns differently, so there needs to be more than one way for students to get a handle on the information that is presented. There may be some type of disability hindering their learning, or there could just be a lack of understanding. Either way, there needs to be variations of assignments and assessments available.
There are also laws put in place to aid people with all types of disabilities with their learning such as Section 508. It is a law passed in order for students of all different kinds of disabilities and handicaps to have access to different technologies that will aid their leaning processes. This is very important for children who may have physical disabilities and cannot use a computer or someone who cannot hear having text or subtitles available to them. Many of the technologies that come under Section 508 may be very expensive, so it is important to note that through this law, there are ways of getting grants and monetary help in order to have access to the different technologies.
In my own classroom, I would like to be able to integrate technologies that allow all of the students to understand that not everyone has the same way of learning and communicating what they find. One piece of technology I would like to have in my own classrooms is the Tango. This device makes it possible for a student who is not able to speak have his or her sentences said allowed by a digital voice. They come up with all of the words and sentences so everything is coming from their own minds. Another technology I would love to have in my classroom is the LOMAC. It is also used for students who cannot speak, but it can also be for students who have a physical disability that prevents them from typing or writing. I feel like there is no way I will end my teaching career without having a student that will need some of this type of technology. Another piece of technology I would like to use in my own classroom is the Tack-Tiles Braille System. Although it is not digital or computer based, it teaches students how to read Braille. This would be especially handy in a kindergarten classroom with a blind student because the rest of the class could be learning to read it along with him. A last technology I would like to have in my own classroom is the SwitchIt Facemaker. This is a program that allows students toupload pictures of people and add outrageous features such as pig noses and huge ears. This is somtheing that could be used my everyone in the class, but it is also good for students who cannot draw their own picture of a character in a story they created due to a physical disability.
There are so many options available that I did not know ever existed. I feel like there is at least one thing for every type of learning hurdle that could possibly show up in the classroom. These technologies would not be around if there was no one to use them. I think that it is important to enter the teaching field with an open mind to what kinds of different students I could possibly have and also recognize that there are many resources out there to help.