Assistive+Technologies+in+Post-Secondary+Education

= ** Assistive Technologies in Post-Secondary Education ** = = ** A Student's Guide ** =

Created By: Eliana Echeverry



**__Introduction:__**
Assistive technology refers to accommodations that provide remedial or compensatory effects to individuals with disabilities. It was defined by the Tech Act of 1988 as “any item, piece of equipment, or product system whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve function capabilities of individuals with disabilities” (p .4). Over the years assistive technology has been known under a few other names: a uxillary aids, ancillary equipment, and adapted computive technology to name a few. For the purposes of this Wiki the term assistive technology will be used to refer to low or high tech devices that aid individuals with disabilities to remediate, compensate, or circumvent their disabilities.

A study conducted by the  National Council on Education Standards and Testing ( NCEST) revealed that adaptive equipment of technology made up the most frequently provided accommodation (58%) (Wolfe & Lee, 2007). These accommodations typically address sensory and mobility/dexterity impairments. This high percentage of provision coincides with the idea that overt disabilities have received the most attention. Recently, individuals with covert disabilities and their use of assistive technologies have been receiving increased amounts of attention.

In 2004, approximately 11.3% of college undergraduate students reported having a disability. It is estimated that 41% of these students are diagnosed with learning disabilities, making them the largest group of students with disabilities. Students diagnosed as learning disabled are characterized as having difficulties in reading, writing, organizing, memory, listening, and mathematics (Day & Edwards, 1996). Advancements in legislation and technology have developed numerous devices that allow students with disabilities to perform at levels competitive with their peers. Yet, many students enter higher education without knowledge about the differences in legislation and the availability of resources once they are part of a college or university. This Wiki was created to provide college students with learning disabilities with an overview of pertinent laws, devices, issues, and additional resources in regards to assistive technology.

__**Historical Overview**__ Assistive technology was not included in the initial mandates of laws protecting individuals with disabilities. It wasn’t until Section 504 “E” of the Rehabilitation act of 1973 was passed in 1978, that accessibility to postsecondary education was required and the provision of assistive technologies mandated. At this time assistive technologies were known as auxillary aids, and consisted of items such as taped texts (Day & Edwards, 1996). About a decade later the Technology Related Assistance Act of 1988 (PL 100-407) made itself the first to directly influence the availability and use of assistive technology for individuals with disabilities. This act awarded states grant money to fund the development of devices and the provision of initial training and ongoing assistance. Additionally, it allowed for the organization of agencies that provided guidance for individuals to protect themselves. This act was later replaced by the Assistive Technology Act of 1998. This same year amendments to the the Rehabilitation Act 1973 were implemented to guarantee" access to all electronic and information technology provided by federal government" (accessboard.gov). The Americans with Disabilities Act has also had an impact, although indirect, on the growth of assistive technology. It does not require any evaluation or training services for postsecondary students with disabilities, but its passage as an extension of civil rights to individuals with disabilities and its heightened publicity have served as driving forces for higher education institutions to provide students with assistive technologies. Furthermore, it serves the potential to provide students with a platform to use legislation in the event that they may not be provided with an accommodation for a disability that limits a major life activity (Day & Edwards, 1996). Other laws and events indirectly affected the emergence of assistive technology use in postsecondary education. The passing of P.L. 94-142 and P.L. 101-106 provided special education for students with disabilities grades K-12 and placement in least restrictive environments. These two factors have increased graduation rates and college coursework preparation for students with disabilities. Advocacy groups, postsecondary guidebooks and technological advances have provided students with disabilities increased aware of their needs and rights while increasing their independence (Day & Edwards, 1996).

Additionally, the technology movement in general, with its specific impact on higher education also contributed to this shift in assistive technology. Furthermore, hardware and software manufacturers found a new audience to target in students with disabilities entering college.

Currently there are no universal guidelines for the approval and provision of assistive technologies. Still, there have been a few well construed efforts that outline precise protocol. The High-Tech Center for the Disabled of the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office was established in 1986, and created a network for High Tech Centers for the Disabled. These centers provided access and training to assistive technologies to students attending California community colleges. Also in California is the California State University Northridge Center on Disability Center on Disability, founded in 1985. This center provided a medium for presentations, support service program, and an access lab, laying the foundation for studies on assistive tech.

There have been specific legislations passed in regards to particular accommodations, but again most of these are state dependent and not seen throughout the country. In 2006 the Association of American Publishers announced the formation of the Alternative Formats Solution Initiative which created a service that allowed service providers to look up contact in formation when requesting digital files from a publisher. That year the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard was endorsed by the Department of Education. This was set in to place to support consistent file conversion by publishers to support elementary and secondary students with reading disabilities, allowing them to better prepare for college (Wolfe & Lee, 2007). Below are a few state specific laws.

//The California Assembly Bill 422-// required publishers of informational materials to provide electronic files to colleges. Not same carryover in other states.

//New York Legislation: Chapter 219// was implemented with the addition of Section 715. This law required publishers and manufacturers of instructional material used at the college level to provide alternate formats in a timely manner. However, this expired 3 years later.

//The University System of Georgia// funded the “Alternative Media Access Center to provide alternative media for students with print-related disabilities.” (p260). This center provides an array of services including alternate media conversion, e-text formats, assistive technology evaluations and training.

//The Kentucky Postsecondary Textbook Accessibility Act// was signed in 2003 as a way to assure that all “eligible students with disability in postsecondary institutions who require reading accommodations” receive them. This is achieved by providing information on accessibility of file formats and require electronic versions of books in a timely manner.

Now that laws regulating assistive technologies have been discussed, what are some types of assistive technology?

Students with learning disabilities commonly present with deficits in the areas of reading, writing, organization/memory, notetaking, and auditory processing. Below are a few examples of assistive technologies that may be useful to students with learning disabilities. Additionally, a few examples of mainstream technologies such as applications for smartphones are listed. “Alternative media” is the common term used to encompass ways in which printed text is converted (Wolfe & Lee, 2007). There are several formats, the most popular being electronic text and audio files. Within these are word documents, rich text formats, and portable document formats. These files are used in conjunction with software like text to speech programs. These may include Dragon Naturally Speaking, Read & Write, and [|ReadPlease]. Speech synthesizers remove the labor of decoding by speaking written text. OCR systems scan text or printed material and then can be used by a speech synthesizer. Kurzweil is a common example of such a device, that also highlights text as it is read.
 * Reading **

Common areas of difficulty for students with disabilities are spelling and grammar. This has been aided by the standard features of word processors. However, organization of written information is another challenge that can be assisted through assistive technology. Fore example, outlining features in word processing programs allow a student to organize their information. Also, programs like [|Inspiration] or [|Webspiration Pro]allow individuals to create semantic webs and mind maps. Various online tools also provide such features free of charge. One particular site is Cacoo. Abbreviation expanders and word predicting programs increase efficiency by reducing the number or key strokes needed. Speech recognition software such as Dragon and Kurzweil allows an individual to dictate and have the information typed on their computer. Screen reading or speech synthesizers can be used in proof reading (Wolfe & Lee, 2007).
 * Writing **

Deficits in auditory processing are commonly manifested in poor notetaking skills. Techologies such as voice recorders, [|livescribe] pens that record while you write, and [|papershow] that transfers notes from paper to computer may allow a student to improve their notetaking abilities, or at least become more efficient. There are numerous ways to compensate for poor memory and organizational skills. Many email servers provide calendars, notes, and reminders that be accessed at any time. This freeware is very useful, but requires training as many students have not kept track of their own events prior to being in college. Smart phones are likely the most used and portable devices. They allow for alarms, calendars, reminders, and written and voice notes to be used.
 * [[image:http://www.ohgizmo.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/livescribe_smartpen.jpg width="185" height="115" align="left"]]Auditory **
 * Organization/Memory **

** Applications **
 * RFB & D- Allows students to play audiobooks on apple devices, increasing the portability. They could be listening to their books virtually anywhere
 * Digital notetaking- Allows you to keep recorded notes
 * Vlingo – Allows you to speak commands, eliminated time spell checking, and time it may take if one is a slow texter.
 * Vsearch for web- Allows you to surf the web via voice commands.
 * Reqall- Combines information from email, calendar, and texts to maintain an organized schedule

Now that assistive technologies have been introduced, how does one go about obtaining these accommodations?

 __**Requesting**__ A ssistive technology is recommended to students with disabilities in K-12 by the planning and placement team. The members of this team make specific recommendations based on the reported findings from evaluations. Subsequently the assistive technology becomes part of a student's Individualized Education Plan. As mentioned earlier the focus has typically been on the provision of accommodations for individuals with sensory and physical disabilities. As a result these students are more apt to identify which assistive technologies increase their accessibility. On the other hand, students with cognitive or psychological disabilities are many times not identified as needing assistive technology, and therefore are not informed of available devices in postsecondary education. To recall, once a student leaves the public education system and enters a higher education institution it is their responsibility to identify themselves as a student with a disability to the appropriate department within the institution. Once documentation is provided, it is generally the case that at this point they meet with a disability service provide and embark on an intake process whereby accommodations in general are discussed. It is noteworthy to mention that which assistive technologies are offered and brought to the table by the disability service provider are dependent on the institution, and even more so the providers knowledge about them. The student may also request a particular assistive technology accommodation, which in turn warrants review of accommodation to deem appropriateness. Please visit [|Getting Access to AT]

__**Approval of Assistive Technology **__ A student's approval and acquisition of the assistive technology is many times dependent on whether the device is already offered by the university; however this is negotiable as the rules around provision of these accommodations are unclear. Moreover, it is important to discuss that although some states and institutions have created guidelines for the approval of an assistive technology a nationwide protocol is not in place, therefore the approval process is highly subjective. Also it has been found that large public universities were more likely to provide these accommodations as well as others to their students, perhaps due to the availability of funds. On the other hand small colleges were noted to provide more personalized services (Day & Edwards, 2006). This makes the debate between small vs large universities for students with disabilities an area that should be carefully investigated by the prospective student. This information is not provided to be discouraging but rather to provide the benefits and challenges with assistive technology. To know the challenges may be a way to anticipate steps to be addressed, which students should be prepared to do. An interview with Manju Banerjee, a disability service provide outlined a few key components in the approval of an assistive technology.  1. Appropriateness of Device: Firstly and most importantly it must be determined whether the device requested meets the needs of the students. Tools such asTechMatch or Microsoft Accessibility allow individuals and disability service providers to find adequate matches. In addition, factors such as settings in which it would be used, compatibility, and the student's future needs to be examined. 2. Personal item/mainstream technology vs. accessibility/assistive technology: The disability service provider must then determine whether provision of this accommodation is going to increase the student's accessibility to postsecondary education of if it is only classifiable as a personal item. Issues around mainstream technology are challenging as there is now a push to increase the use of mainstream technologies as assistive technologies.  3. Legal requirements- Disability service providers must ensure that their approvals/rejections fall within the legal mandates. For instance they are not required to provide any assistive technology that gives "an unfair advantage, requires significant alteration to the program, results in lower of...standards, or causes...financial hardship." They also can provide an "effective alternative" if the original request is not approved (ncld.org).  Once an assistive technology is approved students must be provided with adequate training. This should invovle a multi- sensory approach with high amounts of visuals, along with oral and written directions. In addition, modeling, frequent reviews, as well as clear and concise instructions are key components to training (Raskind & Higgins, 1998).

Based on searches across various websites, articles, and interviews with disability providers it is certain that there are unresolved and emerging issues surrounding the availability and provision of assistive technologies mainly because of the lack of nationwide protocols. Approvals and funding are judgment decisions made by the disability service providers, and therefore can vary among postsecondary sttings. Secondly, with the advances in technology there has emerged a gray area in what classifies as assistive technology or simply mainstream technology, resulting in questions over funding. Some individuals may argue that mainstream technologies are considered a personal item and therefore not funded through assistive technology. However, others who strive for Universal Design would argue that using mainstream technology is the direction we should be headed. Universal design has also challenged the idea of assistive technology as a way to remediate or compensate for an individual’s disability. An outcomes shift to increase efficiency and supporting an individual’s strengths has driven the development and use of assistive technologies (Shay & Edwards; Banerjee, 2011).
 * __ Issues __**

__**Where are we headed?**__

Assistive technology for students with learning disabilities has come far from where it began years ago. The technological era has reduced stigmas, allowed for customization and increased portability specifically. These advances will indisputably increase efficiency. Universal Design is also a promising notion as it supports the use of mainstream technologies as assistive technologies. Developers have become more aware of individuals with disabilities as a market group and will likely continue to target them. If mainstream technologies can provide students with learning disabilities with devices like those provided by commonly known assistive technology, prices will likely drop. This may allow more colleges and universities to fund some devices they hadn't previously, or make those devices deemed "personal items" more affordable to students.

**__Resources__**

** //General post secondary information// ** [|College Scholarships]-Provides information on all colleges, including those with programs for students with disabilities.

[|Get Recruited] Allows students to get match to colleges which reflect their interests and needs.

**// Laws //** [|Access Board] This site lists the Section 508 standards as they apply to assistive technology

[|LD Online] Provides articles, multimedia, and recommended information to viewers.

[|Family Village] This is probably the most comprehensive site with information regarding legislation. [|National Council on Disability] Offers information on meetings, newsletters, and publications.

[|National Center for Technology Innovation] - Provides information on future projects/directions.

[|Parents Let's Unite for Kids] - This site is funded by OSERS to provide families with a tutorial on assistive technology.

[|Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology society of North America] Provides resources on legislation and product information

** //Products// ** [|AbleData] Products grouped by disability, as well as additional resources

[|Able Net Inc] – Provides a step by step guide to find what technologies are a match for the individual. Gives users situations that illustrate use of a particular device.

[|Assistive Technologies] - Provides users with an array of products and articles regarding assistive technology.

[|Enablemart] Groups products by disability. Includes items such as livescribe, smart pens, claro read,

[|Open Source Assistive Technology Software] - Excellent site. Gives an easy way to find the best open source asstitive technology software

IOWA Compass - This site presents a chart with all types of assistive technology.

__**References**__ []

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Profile of undergraduate students 2003-04. (2006). The chronicle of Higher Education Almanc (18).

Parker, D. and Banerjee, M. (2011). Leveling the Digital Playing Field: Assessing the Learning Technology Needs of College-Bound Students with LD and/or ADHD. Assessment for Effective Intervention. 5-14.

Day, S. and Edwards, B. (1996) Assistive Technology for Postsecondary Students with Learning Disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities. 29. 486-492.

Wolfe, G. and Lee, C. (2007). Promising Practices for Providing Alternative Media to Postsecondary Students with Disabilities. Learning Disabilities research and Practice. 22. 256-263.