Two Words: Luis C.K.

I have seen the original stand-up version of Luis C.K.'s shtick about technology and how it is lost on the most ungrateful generation. It is positively hilarious because it is so true. So many people now take it for granted that we have all of this amazing access to absolutely anything we want at our fingertips, and the second it takes a little too long or something goes a little bit wrong everyone is up in arms. I somewhat agree with Luis C.K. that our generation is completely spoiled and "non-contributing" and that there are many of us who take for granted the technology that we have. But can we think about it another way?

Are we completely dependent on technology? Are we TECHNO ADDICTS? Apparently, according to Luis C.K., we can't even live without Wi-Fi on an airplane that we only knew existed 30 seconds ago. We're hooked on the ability to have absolutely everything with the touch of a button. Isn't that amazing?

Before I started teaching, I had a generous respect for technology and the scientists who make it happen for us. I am one of those people who never reads the instruction manual--I just "play" with electronic devices until I figure them out. They are intuitive. They are in tune with the way our brains think. They are a reflection of who we are.

After I started teaching, my respect for technology grew even more. It is amazing to me that because of the development of technology students with autism who have never had a voice are able to communicate fluently and with ease. Not only that, but technology serves as an external motivator for my students whose intrinsic motivation is lacking. Moreover, technology enhances the learning experience for students in a class--wasn't that what our Educational Challenge was all about?

I mean sure, technology can get a little ridiculous, what with people's obsession with updating their Facebook status every five minutes and people texting me "Happy Birthday" rather than calling me to hear my NEW 24 YEAR OLD voice! (I literally got TWO phone calls on my birthday, from my Dad and my best friend in Portland. My MOM even texted me).

So what does this say about technology? Is it positive or negative? It has its negatives--my 3 year old nephew is learning to write by using a touch screen Android phone as opposed to holding a paper and pen. But at the same time, this wave is HUGE and I think we should all just ride it! It's SO much more positive than negative--communication, media, news, culture--everything is shared through technology. Not to mention medical advancements and its contributions to the development of special education. Yes, we are living in Digital Mind world. But isn't that better than living in a world where so much can be unknown and unavailable?

RefleXion

In all honestly, taking this class during my first semester of full time teaching was incredibly stressful. I found all of the pieces of technology that we learned about so interesting and useful, and I wanted to really think about how to implement them in my classroom. However, I spent so much time this semester just trying to keep my head above the water as a first year teacher that the amount of reflection, planning, implementation and re-reflection that I wanted to happen just couldn't. And then I felt guilty.

But this has been one of the most enjoyable classes so far. The best classes, in my opinion, are those in which we learn the theory and immediately practice the implementation of the theory. While the small assignments and many many projects were stressful as we had so many other demands placed on us, they also were inspiring and eye-opening.

I believe I had a breakthrough during the Educational Challenge assignment. I took the plunge and chose to make the Prezi presentation for our group--having forgotten that upon first look I HATED Prezi. When I got to it, after already volunteering to do it, I had an "Oh, crap" moment. And then I felt the stress. But then I played around with it. And I got all of my information in order. And I decided which paths I wanted it to follow based on who our students were. It was amazing to press Play and watch it all go. It made perfect sense, and it highlighted everything I wanted it to highlight. I could TOTALLY make something like this for my students, and even assign a project using Prezi TO one of my really technological students. I love when "Oh, crap" moments turn into "A-ha" moments when you are looking back at your experiences.

Like I've said before, being a first year teacher has taken up a lot of my brain space this semester. But using technology in the classroom is something that is so important for this generation. And it's something that teachers really need to get on board with. But so many of us are scared to try and that is where the problem lies. Technology is what's happening NOW, and if we fall behind, we can lose the chance to really connect with our students in a way that can only be possible because of the technological advances we have made. How amazing is it that so many people are walking around with iPads because they think they're cool, but my student is walking around with an iPad because it's his VOICE? What if he was stuck with just picture symbols? His head would explode because he has SO MUCH MORE in there and he just needs to be able to express it.

I think being a special education teacher in a severe setting has truly shaped my perceptions of everything around me. I try more and more each day to see the world as my students see it. For this reason, this class is so important, because it really has shown ways to access information as teachers, but also to transmit information that is more accessible to our learners. And THAT is why we are here, isn't it?

Assuming with ASSessment

Many educators fall into the trap of using the same type of assessment for all students. Then, if some students don't perform as well as expected, some are deemed to be slackers or students with lower skills or abilities. But the truth is that teachers have to find the right type of authentic assessment to use for their students. We feel so much pressure from the government (IDEA, NCLB), the city (Race to the Top), our administration (Annual Yearly Progress) to have our students "perform." But what does that mean, when the performance standards aren't appropriate for all of our students?

I learned in my undergraduate education as a Social Studies general ed major at NYU to use "authentic assessment." This is portfolio assessment where students create real work products that make the content more meaningful. In this way, they can put themselves back in time and create artifacts of the time period we studied. I have seen this be successful in NYC schools, where they didn't spend weeks upon weeks upon weeks doing inappropriate "Test Prep" for the standardized tests. And, dare I say, even lacking test prep, the students performed high on the standardized tests! This is because the authentic assessment was easy to differentiate and was able to be individualized for students' needs and abilities. THIS was UDL in the classroom.

I have also seen schools go horribly wrong during my months as a Global History Regents Prep tutor one summer after I graduated from NYU. The school was drilling the Regents into these kids' heads, with little success and so much frustration and pushing back from the students. For months, the students spent every morning for three hours reviewing the Regents and every afternoon for four hours practicing old Regents exams. Is this assessment? When the kids are failing just because they're bored out of their minds? And then they take the "real" test and they fail just because they can't take it anymore? How is that any true indication of what our students are learning?

Assessment is truly a touchy subject because of just that--how do we know what the standard for achievement is without standardization? But on the other hand, how do we place the emphasis on LEARNING, and not on TESTING?

Down wit AAC (Yeah You Know Me)

It was so exciting to be a part of the conversation about AAC devices. Two of my students are "nonverbal" (although one is emergent verbal and speaks in short phrases and the other can communicate his wants and needs extremely effectively without uttering one word) and use two different AAC devices. One uses a ProxTalker, which is just a static display voice output device much like a PECS book but you can pre-program the icons with your own pictures and record your voice. The other now thankfully uses TouchChat HD on the iPad. Both have been successful with Proloquo2Go on the iPad.

One of the students I have talked about before: "One of these students used to communicate through the use of a DynaVox. Needless to say, his level of cognitive functioning is extremely high and he was able to navigate impressively through the DynaVox features. Before he became my student, however, his DynaVox broke and the only other piece of assistive technology we had in the classroom was a PECS book that we customized for him. This student does not emit aggressive behaviors; on the contrary, he is quite social and very appropriate with his social interactions albeit his nontraditional form of communication. However, in my classroom he became increasingly agitated as he had to adjust to a new form of communication that wasn't truly suited to meet his needs...Eventually, after weeks, he was able to receive his own iPad with the communication device he had been using most frequently in my classroom. Ever since then, he has been notably less agitated and anxious, and more happy because he is able to communicate not only his wants and needs, but also participate in a more fluid way in daily activities by commenting and answering and asking questions."

It is so important for us to reflect on WHO we are teaching, and all of our abilities that we take for granted. I remember when I first started teaching in September, one of the paraprofessionals in my room tried to use a PECS book as an instructional tool for a student. She would grab his book and put a "Listen to Teacher" symbol on it, or a "Quiet" symbol on it. I had to find the right way to tell her that what she was doing was incredibly violating, that she was using HIS voice to give him commands and demands. It is one thing if she was showing him those symbols, but to put them on HIS communication device was wrong. She could use her voice by speaking or choosing a symbol to represent what she wanted to say. He could NOT speak.

The MOST IMPORTANT thing we special educators have to remember about AAC is that this device is the student's VOICE. You must NEVER take it away from him/her. Every time you think about taking it away, or you see someone take it away, put it on the shelf, strap it behind the chair, put it in the closet because he's "not using it," imagine someone putting a sock in your mouth and taping your mouth shut. You have the luxury of being able to access speech and use your mouth to speak in the traditional and conventional way that we are socially programmed to think is appropriate. But some of my students can't. So don't Duct tape their mouths closed by using THEIR voices to communicate YOUR want or need! UGH that is my biggest pet peeve about AAC devices. Well-meaning professionals don't even recognize the difference sometimes. Whose fault is that?

Techno Teacha Plans for Tech

As I began this journey of metacognition--thinking about thinking about technology when I'm planning my lessons--I realized how little I actually am able to use technology in my classroom. I have very limited instructional time with my students, what with all of the "mandated" daily activities we have to accomplish throughout the day (gym, yoga, cluster classes, instructional snack time), that I struggle to incorporate technology in my day.

But as I kept on thinking, I came to know that there are so many ways I could slip it in unnoticed--such as during workstations when my students are working 1:1 and doing independent work. Instead of practicing handling money in the same format, why not practice online banking through an iPad app? Instead of using just the emergent literacy books that our principal wants us to use, why not supplement the reading work with a Dolch flashcard game app on the iPad? Why not head over to the class next door and do a collaborate sensory lesson on the SmartBoard? As I slowly started to incorporate more technology into my everyday routines, I saw some of my students' affect and motivation change. Incorporating technology wasn't just mixing things up for them--it was making it more engaging and (DARE I SAY IT?!) more motivating!

It was interesting to note that the use of technology is definitely more effective at a 1:1 or small group level; when I have broken out all of the iPads for a group lesson on the geographical features of an island ("Let's all find a beach!") I noticed that some of my students were Google Mapping StuyTown instead of the Dominican Republic. But this type of reflection is so important for we teachers because we need to figure out what works for our students and what doesn't so we can weed out the bad and focus on the good. Our kids aren't always intrinsically motivated, they don't always want to do what we ask them to do, and they don't always understand what we ask them to do. But technology can be such a universal bridge for all of our kids to come together and become engaged and motivated and communicative--and it all starts with knowing our kids and how we can access that. Technology is one great way to do it, and I've seen it.

Individualizing AT

The readings and discussion about assistive technology in the classroom have resonated with me on a personal level. As I have said several times throughout the semester, I am a first year 6:1:1 teacher with two students who are nonverbal. One of these students used to communicate through the use of a DynaVox. Needless to say, his level of cognitive functioning is extremely high and he was able to navigate impressively through the DynaVox features. Before he became my student, however, his DynaVox broke and the only other piece of assistive technology we had in the classroom was a PECS book that we customized for him. This student does not emit aggressive behaviors; on the contrary, he is quite social and very appropriate with his social interactions albeit his nontraditional form of communication. However, in my classroom he became increasingly agitated as he had to adjust to a new form of communication that wasn't truly suited to meet his needs.

This is the most important part of assistive technology in the classroom: it has to be functional and it should enhance a student's learning experience rather than create frustration and agitation. For this reason, I downloaded a number of communication devices on my iPad and had this student use them in my classroom. Eventually, after weeks, he was able to receive his own iPad with the communication device he had been using most frequently in my classroom. Ever since then, he has been notably less agitated and anxious, and more happy because he is able to communicate not only his wants and needs, but also participate in a more fluid way in daily activities by commenting and answering and asking questions.

However, it is important to not confuse the term assistive technology with alternative and augmentative communication. I have used so much low-tech assistive technology in my classroom, which eases the stress and anxiety that so many students with autism face. Simply giving a student a marker rather than a pencil to write with is an accommodation that can relieve tension and enhance the student's learning experience.

The bottom line is that teachers should truly get to know their students, know what works for them and what their needs are, before shoving assistive technology just because the textbook says to do it. We should always be optimizing opportunities to individualize for our students!

Kurzweilin' Out

I never had any experience with assistive technology really before this course. I had encounters with students in my student teaching placements who used computers for word processing purposes because of their motor deficits, but not for communication or for understanding material. I think Kurzweil is an interesting and easy to use tool that can benefit not only students with special needs, but also those typically developing students in the general education classroom. I mentioned this in the discussion on the HBSE 4005 Wiki, but I'll mention it again here. Many of my special education professors here at TC have said on various occasions that strategies that work for special education classrooms certainly work in general education classrooms. This is not to say that the needs of students in general education are comparable to those of students with special needs in special education classrooms, but it is safe to say that having access to materials and technology that enhances the learning experience is important for all learners--with or without disabilities.


In that same vein, I have seen that many of my colleagues have posed questions about state testing for general education students. Assistive tools like Kurzweil software will not be available for students in the general education track who will participate in standardized tests. For this reason, for students without special needs, Kurzweil can be used as an enhancement strategy for teaching note-taking and comprehension skills. Students can use Kurzweil as they learn the strategies they need for the standardized tests. However, at least in my case with my 6 students with autism ALL participating in NYSAA this year (oh, the stress!), this will not be a problem.


With all that said, I am eager to continue working with the Kurzweil software because I do believe that it is an interesting piece of technology that can truly enhance the learning experience. I think all students should be able to have access to it as they are learning to become more independent with their reading, and as they learn to self-monitor their own needs and levels of understanding.