Appropriate uses of Educational Technologies for Children with Special Needs

This article is about the use of educational multimedia products such as, but not limited to, computer based education, tablet based and smart phone applications, web-based learning programs, auditory and visual learning mediums including but not limited to video productions, live, and prerecorded applications for use in educational settings specifically for Children with Special Needs to aid in the development of cognitive development and pedagogical practices.  

Defining the Special Needs: 

In order to properly understand the topic for discussion, we must first define the term “special needs” and the specific age range for this specific topic. Children with special needs are children with a variety of different disabilities, health, and mental health conditions that require special intervention, services, or support. (First 5 Los Angeles, 2008). I would also be remised if I did not include the gifted and talented children as special needs. This program is referred to G.A.T.E (Gifted And Talented Education). These children are defined by the US Department of Education as children and youth with outstanding talent who perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment. (Giftedness Defined - What is Gifted & Talented?, 2012). For the purpose of this article, the age range and grade level are six to thirteen years old school grade level from first through sixth grade (primary education).

Defining the Medium:

Technology has been a defining characteristic of our educational system since the 1920’s. The use of technology in education has more than just the meaning of computers but use of film, pictorial references, auditory, and various visual elements as a means of instruction or learning. Educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using and managing appropriate technological processes and resources ( Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 2012). In an effort to improve education in schools, business, and in the field of professional, instructors used film to display and project meaning towards spoken lectures and reading text. The use of auditory sounds to add content and depth towards lectures provided a complexity that gave a three dimensional representation to a two dimensional product. Using educational technology provides a medium for the cognitivist, constructivist, and behaviorist learner to achieve greater results.

Understanding Where We Came From:

Educational Technology is often defined as education with computers, however Educational Technology encompasses much more than just computers. With the growth of the electronic industry, computer based learning, graphical user interfaces (GUI), auditory stimulation, hands on learning using simulated and practical environments, in addition to a growing industry that develops and designs new methods for instruction, the role of educational technology has taken various roads towards improvements and introduced new pedagogical ideas for our students and teachers alike.

Gone are the days that students enter the library, walk up to the card-catalog, flip through the index of cards, locate a section number and book listing, then scavenger hunt through the isles for a text or reference book, which may or may not be available. Today, students pull out their laptops, tablets, even their cell phones navigate to Google, Yahoo, or MSN to perform a search on a given topic to return the result of over 5,000 relevant and non-relevant materials. Some material found on sites such as Wikipedia comes from independent and non-verified contributors leaving a less than authoritative source to cite or utilize for research or fact based information. With an endless supply of sources, material, facts, and statistics students are given a plethora of directions to locate, identify, digest, and disseminate their data into a cohesive and cogitative rationale. 

What We Know:

There are three accepted types of learning models: Behaviorism, Cognitivism, and Constructivism. Each learning style or method provides independent benefits for the learner based on their understanding and preferred method of learning. The behaviorist learning style developed by BF Skinner is learning using positive and negative reinforcement to increase or decrease the intended behavior or results of an action. The best known example of behaviorist learning development is with the Pavlov’s dogs experiment, where through the use of conditioning and experimentation with positive and negative reinforcement a dog could be made to salivate at a learned behavior (meal time with use of sound). The cognitivist learning model was best known by Gagne who concluded there were eight levels of intellectual learning skills: Signal, Stimuli-Response, Chaining, Verbal Association, Multiple Discrimination, Concept Formation, Principle formation, and Problem Solving. Within this learning theory, the learner tends to be a more mentally based learner using thinking and processing as their tool for educational practices. The constructivist learning model was developed and widely accepted through Piaget’s learning models. To best understand this theory, the learner learns best by doing. Piaget believed in the holistic approach of learning which stressed learning and understanding through reading, exploring, and experiencing.    

How We Are Using It:

In mainstream education, the use of computer based learning, multimedia based education, and instructional multimedia are widely accepted. Educators spend a portion of their day using visual, auditory, and kinetic examples to aid in their learning. Discussions of historical significance, mathematical formulas, scientific research, literature, and visual and performing arts have significantly improved the retention and clarification of given topics. Students are able to identify and reference topics from discussions and recall problem based learning through multimedia learning styles. 

Classrooms are being upgraded from traditional blackboards and whiteboards with Smart boards that allow interactions from written and physical stimuli. Overhead projectors are being replaced with documentation cameras, computer projectors, and virtual classrooms. By incorporating multimedia tools and applications in the classroom, students are able to synthesize their learning into manageable and familiar nodes that will allow them to retain, recall, and reproduce learning objectives efficiently and effectively. Many of the common concerns with the digital divide, which is defined as the gap between those individuals and communities that have, and do not have, access to information technologies that are transforming our lives (Dickard & Schneider, 2002) often are in debate with classroom and communities throughout the United States and other counties. Limitations come as a result of economic, social, and ethnic divisions. Schools defined by government as being lower in social-economic status tend to receive less funding than those in a higher class; therefore boarding the digital divide.

Educational Technology for Special Needs:

Using what we know today of Educational Technology and combining this knowledge with Special Education or Special Needs students is a much needed stronghold. The applications for special needs are endless. Much like a fingerprint, special needs children are vastly different from each other. Each student identifies to different theories, practices, and modeling. Special needs students range from children with autism, children with downs, attention deficient disorders, mental retardation, speech and language disabilities, as well as extremely gifted and talented students that have a learning capacity larger than mainstream students. By introducing multimedia into the classrooms, allowing the students to participate in video logs, internet research, internet applications, video modeling, auditory stimuli and response, web-enabled and tablet/computer based learning programs the special needs student can begin having a tailored educational experience promoting assistive technology, educational multimedia, and instructional design. 

There are several programs available through Microsoft and Apple for educators on use of operating systems, tablet, SmartBoards, applications and internet features made available with use through iPads, Android tablets, Mac OSx, and various other technologies at a reduced cost. Former Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, set up a program called “Apple in Education.” This series defined several areas of Professional Development and hands-on workshops for educators. Apple focused intense research on accessibility and offers resources for students with special needs (Special Needs Students, 2011).

Currently there are technologies in use in our classrooms with special needs. Those classrooms lucky enough to have computers available for students have: on screen keyboards, voice recognition software, speech synthesizers, screen magnifiers, and text to screen readers. This came as a result of the Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1997 which insured students with disabilities have access to general education (Science Scope, 2003). Considering what educational technology provides for mainstream education, one of the clear benefits for special needs children is that assistive educational technology offers the student the ability to learn at their own pace, using applications and tools available through computers, internet, and multimedia based learning. 

Many of the special needs students learn by doing, as described in the cognitive learning theory that Piaget defined for us. Each level of learning that students achieve is acquired through proactive and reactive learning methods. Through computer simulation software, students can participate in lab activities that might otherwise be difficult, if not impossible (Science Scope, 2003). The idea of Educational Technology is to allow students with special needs the equal opportunity to learn and experience a greater success in the classroom. 

Works Cited

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. (2012, April 5). Educational Technology. Retrieved April 14, 2012, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educational_technology

Resources for Gifted Children with Special Needs. (2006, October 6). Retrieved April 15, 2012, from Uniquely Gifted: http://www.uniquelygifted.org/

Special Needs Students. (2011, October). Retrieved April 15, 2012, from Emerging Ed Tech: http://www.emergingedtech.com/category/special-needs-students/

Giftedness Defined - What is Gifted & Talented? (2012). Retrieved April 14, 2012, from National Society for the Giften and Talented: http://www.nsgt.org/articles/index.asp

Knowledge Base and Webliography. (2012, April). Retrieved April 15, 2012, from Learning Theories: http://www.learning-theories.com/

Department of Health. (2007). Title V Needs Assessment. Retrieved April 14, 2012, from Department of Health Care Services: http://www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/ccs/Pages/TitleVNeedsAssess.aspx

Dickard, N., & Schneider, S. (2002, July 1). The Digital Divide. Retrieved April 15, 2012, from Edutopia: http://www.edutopia.org/digital-divide-where-we-are-today

First 5 Los Angeles. (2008, February 14). Child Development Information & Tips Sheet. Retrieved April 15, 2012, from 211LA: http://www.211la.org/parenting/specialneeds.pdf

Science Scope. (2003, March). Technologies for Special Needs Students. TechTrek, pp. 1-4.

U.S. Department of Education. (2009). Teacher's Use of Educational Technology in U.S. Public Schools: 2009. National Center for Educational Statistics, 1-70.