 |
|
Home | What's New | Articles Archive | Washington Archive | Resources Archive | Positions Archive | Reviews Archive | Links | Conferences | About Us |
|
|
Home | What's New | Articles Archive | Washington Archive | Resources Archive | Positions Archive | Reviews Archive | Links | Conferences | About Us |
Handbook of Special Education Technology Research and Practice. Dave Edyburn, Kyle Hig gins, & Randall Boone, Editors. Knowledge by Design, Inc. Whitefish Bay, WI.
As promised, here is the next installment of the Handbook of Special Education Technology Research and Practice. Section Two of this excellent resource titled "Access for Diverse Populations" broaches the topic of cultural diversity in assistive technology. Editors, Edyburn, Higgins & Boone have done an excellent job of recruiting a variety of authors to offer their expertise on this often neglected aspect of special education technology.
Chapter 5 begins the section with an overview of the importance of recognizing and including cultural diversity in the assistive technology decision making process. The authors emphasize the need to fully understand the depth and breadth of the term "culture". They call upon professionals to recognize that their responsibility in this area exceeds having a mere awareness of cultural influence and requires knowledge of beliefs and values that underlie the perspectives of all involved in the assistive technology determination process. The results of the largest cross-cultural study done to date in the area of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) conducted by the U.S. Department of Education are presented in two informative tables making this a "must read" for AT professionals across the board.
The next chapter explores the concept of equitable access to educational technology. Across the country technology is being used to support the general education curriculum. Not surprisingly, there are a number of students who cannot access and benefit from this type of learning. Research studies reveal inequities in accessing and benefiting from this type of instruction based on gender, the presence of disability, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Strategies to ensure equitable access to technology are delineated across districts, administrators, schools and staff. Many of the suggestions are simple to implement and can contribute to the development of strong family-school partnerships, shown to bring educational benefit to all students.
Moving along the continuum of cultural diversity, Chapter 7 outlines key issues associated with teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). This has become a topic in special education because English Language Learners (ELL's) are over-identified as having a learning-related disability. Outcomes of studies investigating the use of technology by ESOL teachers to support students in their language and literacy development are presented in a chronological progression from kindergarten through high school. The authors stress that future research is necessary to fill two critical areas in the field of educating ELL's. First, quality indicators of exemplary ESOL programs that effectively use technology to enhance language and literacy development need to be identified. Following that, translating those indicators into effective professional development practices needs to occur to ensure that teaching professionals are prepared to deliver best practice when it comes to meeting the educational needs of students from diverse backgrounds.
Chapter 8 resumes the pursuit of equitable accessibility, this time focusing on the World-Wide-Web as an educational resource. Because the Internet is a telecommunications service, it is subject to a number of laws guaranteeing access to information, including Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. Developers of web-based instructional programming are responsible to ensure that the content of their websites are fully accessible to all learners. The chapter presents and overview of practices for making web sites accessible both for content and navigational tools. The concept of universal design is once again brought to the forefront as the way to ensure equal access from inception to application. The chapter concludes with a broad list of excellent resources presenting information relative to web accessibility.
The section is rounded out in the final chapter with an examination of the use of web-based instruction as a vehicle for providing personnel development. A case study of the Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) Institute website is presented and an example of how to "connect people who create information with the people who need information." The chapter ends with yet another call to conduct research in the field with emphasis on determining the efficacy of internet-based training for students, teachers and other service providers.
Stay tuned for the next exciting installment of this book review examining the field of assistive technology in the educational setting, just in time for back to school!
To read previous section review click here.
To read next section review click here.
© 2005 ConnSENSE Bulletin