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Assistive Technology (AT) - Coggle Diagram
Assistive Technology (AT)
What is it?
An item or piece of equipment that helps a person with a disability increase, maintain or improve a student’s functional capabilities.
High-tech
Electronically operated (e.g. computers, electronic software or devices, tape recorders)
Low-tech
Manually operated (e.g. pencil grips, mouth sticks)
Why use it?
Legal and Moral Requirements
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Requires public schools to provide all children with FAPE
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
Requires schools to provide special education and related services in the LRE
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
To the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities should spend as much time as possible with peers who do not receive special education with the use of supplementary aids and services.
For students who are visually or hearing impaired, this will vary depending on their specific needs (e.g. while the general education classroom is most ideal, other options may include: self-contained classroom, special education school, general education with services in a resource room, etc.)
The AT Requirement
Congress now requires the provision of AT as a special education service, related service, or supplemental service
How can it be obtained?
Concerns should be raised by IEP team at a meeting
At the meeting, the IEP team will determine whether the assistive technology would allow the student to benefit from educational instruction or meet IEP goals and objectives.
2 reasons for AT to be included in an IEP
As special education or a related service for the student to receive FAPE (e.g. use of voice-activated computer)
As a supplementary aid and service to ensure LRE is maintained (e.g. wheelchair and physical therapy)
What types can be used?
Vision Impairment Assistive Devices
Audio recordings/audio books
Braille materials and Braille displays
Video magnifiers
Screen readers
Hearing Impairment Assistive Devices
Personal amplification devices
Captioned media
Speech recognition programs
Assistant note-taker
Alerting devices (e.g. school bell)
Deaf-Blindness Assistive Devices
Braille displays
Telecommunications
Electronic Braille notetaker
Communication cards
