Hi there, ConnSENSE Bulletin visitors. I recently returned from my first trip to the Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) annual conference held in Orlando, Florida. It was a great week of presentations and information sharing under beautiful and warm sunny skies. I was able to convince a few vendors to let me have their products to review and I'll be adding that information to the website as I finish trying them all.

The trends in technology for students with disabilities continue to grow.  Products and programs that have been around to help students' better access the curriculum are changing in order to meet the national standards for accountability. This is being done by revising and aligning pre-made core content activities with curriculum standards; Intellitools has done an excellent job of this with their Classroom Suite 4 revision by adding activities that align with the findings of the National Reading Panel.  The new version also adds an easy system of data collection, saving time and increasing the ability to accurately track outcomes. A full review of this product is in the works.

In addition to product, ATIA offered an array of excellent presentations by leaders in the field of literacy instruction, emphasizing the critical need to include students with significant disabilities in reading and writing instruction. While focusing on different aspects of literacy learning, each presentation sent the message that students with significant disabilities can engage in literacy activities and that outcomes for reading and writing need to be set for each and every student.

The wonders of the web continue to grow and the latest developments were showcased across the conference. Certainly the trend to use the web as a platform for hosting educational programs is a reality that is here to stay. I must admit that I am somewhat “"green"” to the terms Web 2.0, wiki's, weblogs, RSS feeds, API's and social software,  but with every conference that I attend the use of the web as a platform for learning, exploring, communicating, sharing and storing information continues to mushroom. It may very well be that in the environment of the internet we can create a universal design paradise.

So I must say that on my first trip to ATIA a good time was had by all, or at least most. I sure had a great time anyway! Check back soon for more updates on all of my new findings.

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