Delatorre 1

Rhyan Delatorre

Professor Flowers

EDU 214

26 June 2017

Technology in Special Education

Education is becoming increasingly consumed by technology and that is not a bad way

for the educational system to be moving. Our students are surrounded by technology and are

constantly engaging in it and the world itself has become engaged with technology. That being

said, it makes sense to teach our students to use the tools that are quickly enveloping and

redefining the world we live in. However, as we teach our students how to understand

technology, we must not forget students with special needs, as technology can have a profound

effect on their skill set, thus increasing their ability for the future, as well as increasing quality of

education.

The biggest struggle of in cooperating technology into special education is that special

education is more often an afterthought. It is not necessarily part of the group when making

decisions about technology. If the school gets X amount of money for technology, a plan will be

made for how to best distribute the money and get the most use out of it. For example, school A

is granted X amount of money and their plan is to spend it on new tablets for the fifth-grade

classrooms and on new software for general education. The money is spent and now special

education teachers are left trying to figure out how to get their students the technology that will

make simple tasks for other students possible to a student with special needs.

Assistive Technology is defined as any device or equipment used to increase, maintain,

or improve the functional capabilities of students with disabilities (Individuals with Disabilities
 Delatorre 2

Education Act 2004). Assistive technology can range from a tablet to a computer to a specialized

switch that enables a child to use a piece of equipment given their disability. Children with all

types of disabilities from dyslexia to autism to cerebral palsy to down syndrome utilize these

technologies to make education possible for them. Students with hearing impairments, vision

impairments, muscular diseases all rely on these types of technology to receive their best

education. And access to these technologies tends to be a problem, simply because special

education isnt always in the forefront of the mind when deciding where technology funding will

go.

In David Netherton and Walter Deals article, Assistive Technology in the Classroom, the

authors talk about a seventh-grade student named Henry. This is a student with a neuro-muscular

disease that has taken away his physical function. This is a child that is nonverbal but willing to

learn and interact with the world around him but his disease limits him. However, with the use of

assistive technology, and the help from a friend and teacher, a simple laptop with the right

programs have been able to transform his life. Henry can now use his elbow to hit buttons and

communicate. He can use a computer attached to his wheelchair to engage, learn, and grow. The

use of technology for Henry didnt make tasks easier, it truly made them possible.

Another student has a vision impairment and needs assignments read aloud to her. She

can understand the assignment but just cant read the words. This is a student that needs a device

to help her complete assignments. Assistive technology allows students like this one to be in the

general education classroom setting, learning side by side, her peers and not being alienated for

her disability.

As educators, it is our job to teach our students and to see them to their greatest potential.

Our students do not have any say in how they are born and what challenges they will face, but as
 Delatorre 3

part of our job, teachers need to be able to address the challenges that students are facing. But

without the technology or the money readily available for the technology teachers are unable to

provide the resources to students that they need.

At the time of Netherton and Deals 2006 article, there were several states that have and

continue to create programs to get assistive technology to disabled people. However, as the

authors say, this still is not enough. As great of a step as federal and state resources are, there is

still more to be done.

My proposed solution is to redirect some of our educational budget to research and

innovation on the federal level. The programs available now are effective and life changing for

our students, but more can be done. If on the federal level, there is a push to find and achieve the

best technology at a low cost for our students then all the states have to do is purchase the

technology and implement it. On the federal level, there is time and money on hand to put into

this necessary research and in some ways, they are already doing it. With all of the time the

government is putting into technological research, it would be smart to direct some of that

toward our students and citizens that need the resources.

Another quicker solution would be to widen the conversation. Make a mandate that at

schools with special needs programs, someone from SPED is on the panel deciding where

funding goes. That way an entire school is not getting new computers but the non-verbal student

in special education cannot find the funding to update software on a device that allows him to

communicate. This issue is not so much about big steps, something as simple as having a specific

teacher on the panel for distributing funding could make a huge difference, especially in schools

with small special education programs that could often get over looked.
 Delatorre 4

For people without disabilities, technology makes things easier. For people with

disabilities, technology makes things possible., Rudabaugh. This is the quote I have continued

to come back to throughout my research into the technological needs of special education. As a

person without special needs who grew up in general education, technology did make

assignments easier and less tedious. Making a PowerPoint to present my research project to the

class instead of using a trifold, typing a paper instead of writing it out, using applications like

Quizlet to study instead of hand writing study guides and flashcards: all of those things made my

educational career simpler. They took away some of the tediousness and made projects more

enjoyable because I was getting to use the computer. But now, as someone who works daily with

special education students Ive seen the flip side of that quote. Ive witnessed first-hand how

giving assistive technology to students with intellectual, physical, and learning disabilities has

made education possible. Students with cerebral palsy can use a laptop to type instead of writing

them, which is easier on them, having limbs that arent always able to pick up the pencil and

write. Tablets with voice programs to help nonverbal students communicate. It is ultimately our

job as educators to help our students learn to the best of their ability and a big part of that for

special needs students is providing them with the technology that gets them past their disability.

State and federal programs need to be pushed harder that way each of our students is

getting the best education possible. Students shouldnt have to wait for the funding to come in to

get access to devices that will improve the quality of their education. If districts can spend

money on new computer labs full of Apple Computer, surely, they can invest in tablets, laptops,

and switches to help students too.

 Delatorre 5

Works Cited

ALNAHDI, Ghaleb. "Assistive Technology in Special Education and the Universal

Design for Learning." TOJET : The Turkish Online Journal of Educational

Technology, vol. 13, no. 2, 2014, ProQuest Central,

http://ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1549220418

?accountid=27953.

Edyburn, Dave L. "Critical Issues in Advancing the Special Education Technology Evidence

Base." Exceptional Children, vol. 80, no. 1, 2013, pp. 7-24, ProQuest Central,

http://ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1430460435

?accountid=27953.

Netherton, David L., and Walter F. Deal. "Assistive Technology in the Classroom."

The Technology Teacher, vol. 66, no. 1, 2006, pp. 10-15, ProQuest Central,

http://ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/235321336?

accountid=27953.