Lessons of Classroom 506
(Photo credit: Joseph Maida for The New York Times)

This feature story was amazing! I am compelled to find Lisa Belkin's contact info to let her know that this article single-handedly changed my thoughts and views of inclusivity. Before I really saw no difference between an inclusive and mainstream classroom, a rather niave way of thinking. Perhaps this was because I was mainstreamed and saw that as being the best way for someone with a disability to be educated. But with the struggles that Thomas Ellenson and his parents faced with the teachers, students and parents and school officials, I am certainly feeling that inclusion is the best option. I am also compelled to offer the suggestion that nonverbal students like Thomas learn sign language. It would make sense to me that even if you can hear, why not use a beautiful language like ASL to communicate. It's certainly less demanding than taping every saying imaginable into a Tech/Talk type of assistive technology and certainly would allow for more creative expression. I am aware that software voices are becoming more natural sounding, but why not express yourself using the language of your body?

Calling All Universal Designers!!!

The challenging space in my universe is the 5-story walk-up apartment building, where I live on the fifth floor. Obviously a more universally designed space would allow for an elevator, but given the space accomodations that is permitted for the stairs, there simply is no room for an elevator or other apparatus to help.

Perhaps I could move to the first floor of the building, or install a pulley system to raise me up to my bedroom window, but isn't there a better idea? Can I utilize the fire escape on the outside of the building to make it more universally designed. Would an elevator be the only equitable, flexible and easy-to-use option?

Making Technology Work for Students with Disabilities
Chapter 9 Thoughts 'Making Adaptations with Hardware and Software'
Helpful for those with any variation of disabilities, computers are essential tools that empower us. (101) Shortcuts are not only useful to any person with out disabilities, but it is also quite helpful for those with motor difficulties. I was pleasantly surprised to find so many options for so many situations.

I had no idea there were so many different kinds of keyboards for different disabilities. It certainly makes sense, however; to have all of the variations because someone with poor fine-motor skills would need a different keyboard than, someone with poor gross-motor skills, as would children's needs differ from the needs of an adult with bigger hands.

This chapter made me realize how definitions change, depending on the context. For example, a Deaf person would not be at a loss in the deaf community, as all their needs are met. It is the hearing people that are disadvantaged in terms of communication if they do not use or understand sign language.


Chapter 6 Thoughts
'Presentation Software'
While I feel like we should be reading the chapters in order, I am looking for the importance in doing it this way...

Power point is an excellent tool for students with Learning Disabilities to see and understand content in a more useful way. Words can be enlarged, like flash-cards. Pictures can appear and fade into words that are connected. All of the animations and transitions can also make it more exciting and relavant for the students.

What I have taken away from this chapter is that it is important to see the documents as the viewer would, so that we know what they benefit from and what works best for their success. The pen option is new to me, I didn't realize that could be done.

The chapter from Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age about the need for flexible instructional media speaks to standards we should be setting for ourselves as educators. If we overlook the specificities of traditional media and stick to the ways of conventional teaching, students who would benefit from digital media's power to compliment their learning may be missing the bigger picture.

Perhaps as we unfold the ways of the web and technology, becoming more comfortable with it ourselves, we will find ways to synthesize the available digital power with our respective core curriculums. Just as the author explains light and sound in its most basic form, teachers can easily revert to education in its most elementary level by soley learning from textbooks. To focus on reading, listening and talking without taking it to a digital level seems esoteric at the very least. With all that we have available today, why wouldn't a teacher want to delve into technology, serve as a model, a trendsetter, an agent of change.

Help Jenny Get to the Ski Resort

Fun websites, but how adaptive are they?

1. www.bestcrosswords.com/bestcrosswords/Home.page

2. www.m-w.com/game (Merriam-Webster online)

3. www.puzzlemaker.school.discovery.com

However, according to the online accessibility evaluator (bobby.watchfire.com), none of the three pages listed above comply with the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

Power changes people, simply because it challenges them. Look at low- and high-technology adaptive devices for example and how when these products do not work, people are at a loss of information. OASID Director Richard Keller speaks to this topic in his online interview, about how people need to be comfortable with technology and be able to use it effectively. While Adaptive Technology can simply be seen as changing the environment so that a person can interact with it in a different way, I feel that it also inherently changes the person.

It happened to me on the subway today... my hearing aid battery died. As the sounds of Spanish-speaking New Yorkers, deep-throated business people and high-pitched highschoolers faded away, I began realized how much I relied on battery power and how much people can change when their normal functioning level decreases without consent. I tend to become less extroverted, less calm and less comfortable without the normal hearing level that my digital hearing aid affords.

Last night's 'Breezy' meeting was a glimpse into what people with disabilities deal with on a daily basis. When we are put into the hands of technology, where we are not able to hear on command, or see who is speaking to us, we are compelled to act as our own self-advocate. Just as participants last night let others know when they could/could not see or hear the host it was an example of what someone with a disability has to do for themselves on a daily basis.What might that mean for a person with a disability, if he or she were able to have access in the same kind of way that we did last night.

I am interested in finding out how someone who is completely deaf would react to the Breeze meeting because there was plenty of speaking, and without the host knowing sign language to sign into the camera (which was quite delayed) how would a deaf person read lips or get a comprehensive message. Also how would they respond if they saw that no transcript was automatically available for the online interview.

Perhaps these are the kinds of options that we should make available to our peers, students and colleagues so that the feelings of uncomfort and embarrassment can be avoided from the beginning.