Academic Relevancy :: essays papers

Academic Relevancy Meeting the educational needs of all students is a challenging task for educators. This task is intensified when the student has acquire, and/or strong-arm disabilities. A learning disability is defined as both of dissimilar conditions, thought to be associated with the nervous system, that cause difficulty in get the hang a basic skill such as reading (Wordsmyth, 2000). A physical disability is defined as the condition or conjure up of incapacity, esp. as caused by an injury, congenital defect, illness, or the like (Wordsmyth, 2000). Many of these students await special instruction. For example, students with mental retardation benefit from very organized learning situations, because of their limited cognitive abilities (Duhaney, Duhaney, 2000). Students with learning disabilities often encounter difficulty in reading and composing modifying instruction for these students is necessary in order to run across their academic success. Assistive technolog y will play an important habit in helping students with disabilities to improve their learning experience. Assistive Devices People with disabilities confide on assistive technology devices and services to sustain, regain or ontogeny their functional capabilities. About 13 million people with disabilities report using assistive devices to provide functional capabilities needed to participate in major(ip) life activities (RERC, 2001). The Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1988 (Tech Act) defines assistive technology devices as any item, piece of equipment, or product system whether acquired commercially, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. Some examples of the various categories of assistive technology acknowledge TALKING WORD PROCESSORS WORD PREDICTION PORTABLE NOTE-TAKING DEVICES Communication help Am plification Devices Switches Optical Pointers Touch Screens Touch Pads Specific Uses in education Talking word processors give the student auditory feedback to reinforce the writing process. Letters, words, sentences, paragraphs, or entire documents can be read aloud man the student types. Features can be customized to individual student needs by selecting what text is read from pull-down menus (Quenneville, 2001).