My parents enrolled her in Durant-Tuury Mott school in Flint which was a school devoted to students with disabilities at the time. A Google search shows it is now a montessori school. I would go with her and my parents for assessments and they had rooms full of adaptive equipment to handle almost any physical limitation. What they did not have at the time was the digital technology that would have helped a tremendous deal. This was in the early 80's. She did well at DTM, though it was a segregated system now frowned upon.
In the early 90's, my parents bought us a Nintendo NES. I took total advantage of this and played too much (don't tell my kids who complain about our stricter screen-time rules :) My parents witnessed my sister sitting back watching me play without any engagement, so they purchased the EMiO - The Edge Joystick so my sister could play along.
You can see in the above pic the size difference form the original. It was GINORMOUS in comparison. I spent more time helping her push a button she couldn't so her game would not end so soon, but it worked. We were playing together. All in all it was a success in getting my sister and me to engage each other more meaningfully. My parent's only regret was that the controller did not plug into the Commodore 64.
How does this apply to the class topics? We reviewed UDL and standards governing access to technologies so students have more equal chance of success. We discussed the practical use of such technologies, and how they can aid in assessments to facilitate education. From my history and experience, the value in assistive technology is deeper than engaging technology to access the same learning content as the other students, but also the supportive social context that fosters learning. When learners are left out and unable to engage, there is an indirect ostracizing that can impact the emotional development and investment in the learning community. Participation is key.
Digital technology has brought much learning content in the classroom to a more accessible platform. Though some students may still need some support to engage the technology fully, this is far ahead from where we have come.
Jeff thank you for sharing your personal knowledge from a brother's perspective. It is interesting to hear that there were so many adaptive tools for your sister. Now with all the technology available I hope that students with disabilities are making use of them. However, as educators we need to know what is out there. Until I took this class I had no idea what was available except what some of my students used. Again, I have the DSR department to let me know what my students need. This is not always the case in K - 12 classes.
ReplyDeleteJeff, I love how gaming technology brought you and your sister together in a meaningful way! Personally, I was never much into gaming technology, mainly because I wasn't good at it, LOL! But now as a parent, I love it because we can use it as a family. We are pretty low tech, just a WII, that's at least 5 years old. But, we play WII sports, dancing games, and Rock Band. It's so much fun and really unifying.
ReplyDeleteHowever, to your point about how adaptive technology ties to the classroom perhaps the greatest benefit is that is has made inclusion possible and in doing so removes the barriers and stigma that once prevailed.
Jeff- Thank you very much for sharing your personal story. It was very touching to hear about your experience helping your sister play the game with you. I can imagine with your deep understanding of the challenges learners face with disabilities, you will do an excellent job accommodating their needs as an educator, especially now with the help of more and more assistive technology.
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