students with disaabilities

It’s been a few weeks ago now that I was watching the news and saw a report of how one of the local schools was using IPads with students in Special Education. This got me thinking about how far technology has come since I was in school. Advances like the IPad have far-reaching effects, not only on society, since we’re very much on-the-go and rely on devices that travel with us, but on the students in today’s classrooms too.

While I had certain accommodations in school, the thought of what the IPad may be able to do to help students reach their educational goals was very interesting to me. When I started doing some research, it was clear that the IPad was definitely an asset to the classroom. Students were more involved in their work as well as with their peers. Then a light bulb went off in my head when I read about the speech-to-text function. That’s perfect for anyone who has limited use of their hands and needs to type something.

Unfortunately, there’s limited research available on the usefulness of this device in the classroom. One can only hope that maybe as more schools get on board with the idea, someone will conduct further research to determine the positive and negative effects that exist. Although, like everything else, the IPad isn’t a substitute for certain things, and isn’t a feasible tool for all disabilities, it’s encouraging to know it can reach students in alternative ways. It allows students the opportunity to be excited about learning. Once you can engage students in the learning process, the outcome can’t be anything but positive.

What other advances currently available might be able to assist a special needs student in their quest to learn?

Thanks for reading..

For more information go to these links:

http://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2013/09/09/Breaking-Down-Barriers-iPad-helpful-tool-for-special-needs-students/stories/201309090197

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/06/13/321058641/ipads-in-special-ed-what-does-the-research-say

As parents, we expect when we send our kids to school, they’re in good hands. After seeing a story on the news earlier this week, I was completely shocked about the subject of the report. A teacher had been caught on video assaulting a student with Autism.

When I started looking into the subject a bit more, I found out that unfortunately, this wasn’t an isolated incident. I’ve posted before on how students with disabilities experience more bullying by their peers than their non-disabled counterparts. What didn’t occur to me, until now, was the possibility that maybe the person bullying the student could actually be the teacher, and not other students.

Obviously, there’s no excuse for this behavior. It’s a shame that those we entrust with our kids feel they can use their position of trust and power in such a negative way. I feel the Superintendent of the school did the right thing by firing the teacher. Although the School Board reinstated her, I’m hoping the new investigation being conducted will result in the appropriate action to protect all children at the school, especially those with a disability.

I’ve had the pleasure to volunteer my time years ago at a local Middle School and realize the majority of teachers who take on the job genuinely care about their students. Although I’m not sure how, an extra safeguard should be implemented in the education field to ensure the people entrusted with the safety and well-being of our kids on a daily basis are doing exactly that. As a result, the kids can focus on learning instead of the physical abuse their teacher might inflict on them if they misbehave.

For more information check out the following link:

http://www.wftv.com/news/news/local/9-investigates-teacher-accused-assaulting-special-/ngPHN/

Thanks for reading..

Tag: students with disaabilities

Teacher Assaults Autistic Boy