Tools You Have and Tools to Try:AT Features of Common Software that

Any Teacher Can Use to Support Students

Why look at tools you have?

• Assistive Technology in the era of Universal Design for Learning (UDL)– More and more products are designed

with needs of varied users/learners in mind

– You need tools to meet the needs of more and more diverse learners in your classroom.

You have tools to help your learners access the curriculum

• Assistive technologies will always have a role in the education of learners with disabilities, and UDL will not eliminate the need for personal assistive devices.

• UDL curriculum materials assume diverse learner profiles, and therefore are designed with flexibility as their keystone.

You have tools that are flexible

• The cornerstone of UDL is flexibility. UDL leverages the inherent flexibility of digital media to support individualized learning.

• You have access to digital media every day.

You have tools that are research validated.

“Text Transformations” are technology tools that alter or add to the features of printed text – Findings from an expansive survey of the

peer-reviewed literature between 1980 and 2002, conducted in K-12 education settings, addressing the use of technology transformations to help overcome curriculum barriers that impede access to the general curriculum.

• National Center on Accessing the General Curriclum

Why look at tools you have?

• “The least complex solution that will remove barriers to achievement should be the first consideration.”

– “10 Things Everyone Needs to Know About Assistive Technology in Schools in 2005”, Joy Zabala

• Your own data on the effectiveness of tools you have is an important step in the AT assessment process, and can point the team to other tools needed by a particular student.

Tools available to teachers

• Operating System tools• Word Processors• Talking Text• Web Resources• Tools to try (at no cost to you)

Operating System Accessibility Tools

Allow adjustments for visual, auditory, and motor needs, as well as personal preferences

• Windows XP: Accessibility Options – Start, Control Panel, Accessibility Options – Start, All Programs, Accessibility, Accessibility

Wizard

• Mac OS 10: Universal Access– Apple menu, system preferences, Universal

Access

Window XP: “Accessibility Options”

Mac OS 10: “Universal Access”

How to learn more…

• Accessibility Options http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/windowsxp/demos.aspx

• Universal Accesshttp://www.apple.com/education/accessibility/technology/

Word Processors

• Most commonly available is Microsoft Word, but many of the same features apply to Appleworks, Word Perfect, etc

• Research validated– Ability to manipulate text in various ways is

beneficial– Positive impact of writing/editing on overall

writing quality and fluency

Text manipulation

• Font : Format- font• Font Color : Format- font- color (or use

Formatting Toolbar)• Word spacing: Edit-Find- (replace space with 2

spaces)

• Line Spacing: Format- Line spacing• Character Spacing – Format- font• Highlighting – Option on Formatting

Toolbar• Background Color – Format - Background• Zoom – Go to View – Zoom – choose %

Auto Summarize: Looks for keywords in document

Can produce a summary or abstract

• Good for – Pre-reading for

meaning– Post-reading to self-

test or summarize– Does well with

reports, articles, scientific papers; not as well on fiction, correspondence

How to: • Tools-auto

summarize– Choose size of

summary (in %)– Layout of

summary

Add Comments

Good for:• Providing built-in

support or prompts to students

• Peer reviewing• Student “notes-to

self”• Adding “Voice

comments” to documents

How to:• Click on location

for comment and go to Insert- comment

• Or, use icons in reviewing toolbar

Looks like this!Looks like this!

Highlighting Text

Good for• Aiding recall of

key information or vocabulary

• Providing cues to return to text later for clarification

How to:• View-toolbars-

formatting• When text is

selected, clicking will highlight once. Otherwise, it is activated and click and drag over text will highlight .

Spelling & Grammar

• Right click on misspelled word-possible word choices appear

• Right click on correctly spelled word to see choice for synonyms

• Spelling/Grammar preferences– Readability statistics

• Under Tools Options click Spelling & Grammar Tab – 26 fundamental rules– Choose style of writing that Word grammar check

will apply

Spelling & Grammar

Good for• Providing visual cues

so student tries to fix spelling on his/her own

• Providing possible word choices (appear with right click) or synonyms (right click on correctly spelled word).

• Establishing Readability of text for students

How to:• Tools -

Options,Spelling & Grammar Tab – 26 fundamental rules– Choose style

“Replace” as a Spelling Tool

• Create abbreviations “on the spot” • When editing, replaced with the correct

text. • For example, a student could type “pht”

during class and then use the Replace function to change all of those entries to “photosynthesis”.

Readability Statistics

• Option in Spellchecker– Flesch-Kincaid Reading Grade Level– Reading ease score– # of passive sentences

– Text at higher reading level can be augmented with additional features such as images, guided notes, highlighting, or text-to-speech

Equation Editor: Support for Math in Word

• Type equations into Word and Excel using Equation Editor which comes free with the products.

• Recommended for Grades 4 and up;

• Allows you to build equations by picking symbols from a toolbar, as well as by typing numbers and variables

More Resources on Word

• http://www.westedrtec.org/techtips

Text-to-Speech

• Uses– Tool for supporting comprehension– Proofreading tool in writing process– Listening to text/menus across apps– Listening to words that are difficult to decode,

or to connected text above reading

• Availability– Built in to Mac OS 10– Featured in some common applications and

many “AT” apps – Can be added via software

Get headphones!

Text to Speech

• Mac OS 10: Finder- system prefs-Speech- Spoken User Interface

• Software Downloads for Windows:– Text Aloud ($29) at www.nextup.com – Neurospeech IE Speaker (free), Word

Speaker (purchase $12), or All-in-One Text to Voice ($29) at www.mycomputerspeaks.com

Text-to speech: Accessing the world of digital text

Web Options: • Read the web with text-to-speech (Free E-

text reader, with Multicolor highlighting http://www.premier-programming.com/elib/etext_reader.htm)

• Copy and paste into any talking word processor (or Word)and benefit from manipulating size, color, spacing, even summarizing and embedded supports

Links to Digital Texts

• Digital Book Libraries (lists over 90 sites) http://www.ditext.com/etexts.html

• National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (extensive list of links)http://www.loc.gov/nls/index.html

• Bibiomania (2000 classic texts) http://www.bibliomania.com/

Textbooks go digital

• Current offerings:– Audio CD versions– CD-based supplementary material

• National Instructional Material Accessibility Standard (NIMAS):– Eliminate barriers to electronic

textbooks

Other Web Resources

Math websites • National Library of Virtual Manipulatives

http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html

• Webmath http://www.webmath.com/index4.html

Tools to Try (at no cost to you)

PaTTAN Short Term Loan

http://www.pattan.net/supportingstudents/shorttermloan.aspx

Tools to Try (at no cost to you)

PIAT:PA Technology Lending Library

http://disabilities.temple.edu/programs/assistive/atlend/index.htm

Graphic Organizers“flexible and endless in application”

Good for:• Generating ideas• Increasing recall• Pre-reading device• Integrating old/new

info• Teaching thinking

strategies

Common Apps• Inspiration/

Kidspiration• Word• PowerPoint• Writers Companion• Index of types and

uses at http://www.graphic.org/goindex.html

ReferencesWestEd’s Regional Technology in Education

Consortium: – Handouts on “Technology Tips for Differentiated

Instruction” www.westedrtec.org/techtips – Knowledge Brief on Using Flexible Technology

to Meet the Needs of Diverse Learners: What Teachers Can Do

National Center on Accessing the General Curriculum – “Text Transformations” by Nicole Strangman

and Tracey Hall http://www.cast.org/publications/ncac/ncac_textrans.html

Castellani, J., and Jeffs, (2001). Emerging Reading and Writing Strategies Using Technology. Teaching Exceptional Children, 33(5), 60-67

Zabala, J. (2005). 10 Things Everyone Needs to Know About Assistive Technology in Schools in 2005. Presented at the National Conference of the Assistive Technology Industry Association, Orland , FL.