Most teachers
will tell you that the most difficult part of their job is providing
instruction that meets the needs of today’s diverse student population. Large class sizes, varying skill levels, and different
environmental circumstances are just some of the challenges present in many
classrooms in The United States.
One
solution many schools are entertaining to make learning more accessible and
individualized is Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This concept regards how schools approach
both physical and instructional design challenges. UDL, as stated in the text Transforming
Learning with New Technologies , considers the recent discoveries about
neurological processing when planning the physical layout of a school as well
as the curriculum. The goal of UDL is to
create a learning environment that accommodates a vast spectrum of student
needs.
A
key component of UDL is the use of technology in schools. Due to technology’s flexible and malleable
nature, teachers can tweak digital resources to meet student needs. When designing a classroom curriculum,
teachers can make high, mid, or low tech changes to their classrooms to meet
the needs of the students. Low tech is
the easiest and most inexpensive change and it does not include the application
of any electronic materials. Mid tech
refers to a shift in the planning and implementation of curriculum that
includes some technologies. High tech is
a more forceful shift that includes the integration of technology into the
classroom curriculum. For example, the
use of post-it notes is a low tech change.
Word processing would be considered mid tech, and a high tech example is
the use of a tablet with a stylus.
Specifically,
assistive technologies are especially useful to accommodate all learners.
Assistive technologies make materials more accessible to the student. Some assistive technologies include
electronic spellers and dictionaries, handheld calculators, speech recognition
software, text reading software, and interactive electronic storybooks.
As
an elementary school reading teacher, there are many assistive technologies
that I would like to use with my students.
Many of the students I work with are English language learners therefore
electronic dictionaries and spellers would significantly help students increase
vocabulary and become more familiar with English spelling patterns. Another assistive technology I would like to
utilize more is speech recognition software.
Many students are very reluctant writers because they believe they have
no good ideas. Often times these
students are quite verbally expressive and have great potential as
writers. Perhaps if students could
record their thoughts and witness them transferred into text, they would be
more confident and motivated writers.
Due
to the variation of reading levels among students, text reading software and
digital storybooks make differentiation easier.
Not only does text reading software make texts more accessible to
students of lower reading abilities, they are also great models for
fluency. Many second language learners
have difficulty with phrasing and pronunciation. They need repeated experiences hearing fluent
readers. Text reading software provides
endless opportunities to hear fluent reading.
Digital storybooks offer a similar accommodation with the added bonus of
being stimulating and of high interest to the child.
Finally,
technology plays an important role in the writing process. The biggest challenge when teaching writing
is convincing students that they are capable of producing quality texts. The trick to producing good writers is
getting them excited about a topic and giving them the support they need to
successfully produce writing regarding that topic. Unfortunately each student works at their own
pace in the writing process. Technology
can provide individualized instruction every step of the way. Prewriting can be done use recordings, Smartboards, and interactive story writing software. Drafts can be created through word
processing, tablets, and text to speech software. Revisions are more easily made with the use
of editing software such as spelling and grammar check. Emails and discussion boards can also provide
a way for students and teachers to give suggestions, support, and
feedback. Finally, the choices for
publishing formats are greatly increased with technology. Students can create websites, PowerPoints,
digital portfolios, movies, and digital art work to name a few.
As
you can see, technology is a tremendous help to any teacher struggling to meet
the needs of his or her students.
Hopefully in the future all students will have more access to technology
so they can reach their full academic potential.
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