ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

Assistive Technology: For Use with Students with Learning Disabilities

Assistive Technology: For Use with Students with Learning Disabilities

Introduction

An increasing number of scholars with discovering disabilities are attending postsecondary institutions. To rendezvous informative claims of these scholars, support service providers will expected rely on assistive technology. This item registers types of assistive expertise appropriate for use with individuals with discovering disabilities at postsecondary level and talks about ways in which assistive technology enhances learning. Additionally, an overview of legislation that has had an impact on assistive expertise at postsecondary grade is presented. Issues engaging assistive expertise programs at postsecondary grade are discussed. Postsecondary Assistive expertise Program Components, device selection, and training guidelines also are outlined.

Assistive expertise is defined by Technology-Related aid Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-407) as any expertise used to increase, sustain, or improve purposeful capabilities of persons with disabilities. Although assistive technology is identified in locality of rehabilitation as the means to advance value of life for individuals with personal disabilities, it has obtained little vigilance as the tool for assisting persons with discovering disabilities (LD) to compensate for exact cognitive deficits. In area of education, accounts speaking to benefits of utilizing assistive technology to reimburse for exact discovering disabilities have been developed mainly by professionals at postsecondary grade attempting to rendezvous desires of increasing figures of scholars with discovering disabilities assisting college (Raskind, 1994).

As documented, an expanding number of scholars with discovering disabilities are enrolling in and graduating from postsecondary organizations (Adelman & Vogel, 1992; Fairweather & Shaver, 1991; Henderson, 1992). In 1991, 8.8% of full- time school freshmen described having some pattern of disability, compared with 2.6% in 1978. Of kinds of disabilities described, learning disabilities were fastest growing assembly, expanding from 15% to 25% of all scholars with disabilities over 13- year time span (Henderson, 1992). A number of investigators (Rothstein, 1993; Shaw, McGuire, & Brinckerhoff, 1994; Vogel, 1993) have pointed to components that result in increased figures of persons with disabilities assisting postsecondary institutions:

l. The route of part 504 "E" of Rehabilitation Act of 1973 mandated accessibility to postsecondary education for students with disabilities and required postsecondary institutions to supply "auxiliary aids," such as taped texts, to students with disabilities.

2. P.L. 94-142 and P.L. 101-406 mandated exceptional learning programs and services for elementary and lesser scholars with disabilities; as an outcome, more of these scholars are completing high school and outlook assisting college, with assistance of support services, as next logical and viable step.

3. As the result of being put in least restrictive environments, numerous students with disabilities have taken adequate learned course work prerequisite to assisting college.

4. Students with disabilities have become increasingly appealing to school admissions officers as the viable scholar market.

5. Advocacy assemblies and postsecondary guidebooks (e.g., Peterson's, Lovejoy's) have made these scholars cognizant of both their desires and their rights in regard to college options.

6. The advanced accessibility of computers and other compensatory expertise has produced in larger student self-reliance and get access to ...