Technology is a valuable educational tool for all students, offering more than Internet access for researching class projects. Today's state-of-the-art technology is opening educational doors for the most challenged students, including children of special needs.
As the mother of an 11-year-old son limited only by the physical challenges of cerebral palsy and the social challenges of outdated stereotypes, I'm excited about the role technology may play as one of the special needs resources we use to maximize Eric's education and future independence.
Here's why.
The inability to use language to clearly communicate makes it hard for Eric's teachers to accurately assess what he knows. Lack of appropriate staff training and dynamic resources further compound this challenge.
Like other parents, we have boldly faced the challenges of including Eric in regular classrooms, determined to grant him a good education in light of a physical disability. Our commitment to quality education holds for both of our children. Eric's sister will head to California next fall to pursue long-held dreams of becoming a photojournalist.
Granted, it's more challenging meeting her brother's educational goals. But why should quality education be viewed as less important for a child with a disability, especially when he also has a bright mind and eager spirit?
Promise of Technology
The good news is technology promises to help Eric show how bright he is. Under-educating students with special needs today is inexcusable, especially given state-of-the-art technology, unlimited Internet access and dynamic educational resources.
In today's standardized-testing climate, there's little room for gray when assessing a child's knowledge. Teachers feel pressure to deliver black and white assessments and rock-solid test results.
Knowledge is power, if you can access it. But children with special needs rarely fit into neat and tidy educational boxes.
Nearly twenty years after passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) many children with special needs remain at high risk of being undereducated. Despite the best efforts of those involved in education, some children are left feeling flawed. This powerful childhood scar can result in a frustrating cycle of underachievement and societal dependence carried into adulthood.
Testing Special Needs Students
For almost eight years, my son has been asked repeatedly to prove that he understands simple knowledge, despite the fact this confident and social child often makes choices clear through solid eye gaze and other strong non-verbal cues. But professionals must be willing to take time to read and interpret them.
More than one professional has commented on Eric's sophisticated sense of humor. He gets the punch lines others miss, a sign of intelligence. But laughter alone can't prove intelligence, and spoken and written language is considered more conclusive.
Today's technology, including computers activated by simple eye blinks and computers that speak human thoughts clearly, hold keys to locked doors for students with special needs. This same technology offers parents and professionals valuable access to a wealth of free resources and information, including nationwide networking opportunities to help reduce isolation.
Perhaps that is the real marvel of technology.
Best of Times
For children with disabilities this may well be the best of times. With technology changing rapidly, there now exist opportunities for educating the most challenged children, offering hope for a better future.
I've always refused to under-educate my son, preferring instead to give him dynamic opportunities for hands-on learning to fill in the educational gaps. But my engaging preteen has a growing need to express his knowledge more independently.
Eric needs his voice to finally be heard.
Our son will soon take part in an exciting augmentative assessment with Dr. John Eulenberg, a respected expert on communication and director of the Artificial Language Laboratory (ALL) at Michigan State University. Eulenberg's expertise and professional commitment to individuals with communication challenges is impacting people with special needs nationwide.
Our educational team will also continue to explore the dynamic services of the Michigan Assistive Technology Resource (MATR) in St. Johns, where the staff skillfully assessed Eric's augmentative needs and presented us with an individualized plan for classroom success. We plan to revisit this valuable program soon for updates and to take advantage of the equipment-lending library.
We're on an amazing mission to prove that disability alone shouldn't serve as an excuse for under-educating a bright child eager to learn. Children with special needs don't want pity and limiting labels. Like other students, they want a chance to reach their potential, and a good education offers them a better shot.
Today's state-of-the-art technology promises to grant Eric his long-awaited wish to speak his mind clearly and to pursue his own dreams, just like his sister.
I can't wait to hear what he has to say.
Judy Winter is a molther and the recipient of the 2002 Exceptional Parent Award from the Michigan Federated Chapters of the Council for Exceptional Children.