Applying Technology In Special Education: Breaking The Barriers

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 Applying Technology In Special Education: Breaking The Barriers

There are many ways of how technology can help students with special needs. For example, some kinds of disabilities don’t allow students to use handwritten text that is an integral part of "traditional" education. Using technical tools intended for human speech recognition and synthesizing, you can avoid the necessity to use paper and pen during the lessons. Such technology would be also helpful for students with disorders that don’t allow to process visual information correctly.

The adaptive computing technology allows using digital devices to bypass challenging tasks. Screen reader applications such as JAWS along with specially designed Braille keyboards allow visually challenged students to use the computer.

Augmentative communication systems help students with speech problems to overcome the communication barrier. Such systems use picture charts, books, and specialized computers providing functions of word-prediction for more effective communication.

Before applying for services of a company that develops technologies for special education, consider the following advice:

  • Pay attention to the cost of a given solution and its potential effect on the learning process.
  • Prefer a technology that is not difficult to master.
  • Make sure that the application you’re going to choose is reliable and will naturally integrate into the educational process.
  • Focus on user-friendly and intuitive solutions.
  • Possibility to implement custom functionality that meets your requirements or customize the existing solution.'

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