Project Description

Standard 1: Learner - Educators continually improve their practice by learning from and with others and exploring proven and promising practices that leverage technology to improve student learning. This is a key idea from Dive Into UDL: as teachers we must be willing to take ownership of our professional learning, be willing to experiment and use technology to solve problems (Grant & Perez, 2018). I have investigated each of the recommended technology in the infographic during this course. I installed both Snap&Read and CoWriter and explored their free trials by simulating the experience of an exceptional learner. I also attended the PATINS expo and learned firsthand from vendors. This was my first time using the Venngage website to create an infographic and GoDaddy to create this web portfolio. 

Standard 2: Leader: Educators seek out opportunities for leadership to support student empowerment and success and to improve teaching and learning. This project is a model for colleagues on the new and available resources for learning. My role is to advocate for my students to receive access to these technologies to improve their access to life changing technologies such as the Proloquo2Go AAC app. The decision making process must always center around students, with active input from parents; this is a key philosophy of the disability rights movements (Dell et al., 2016).

Standard 3: Citizen: Educators inspire students to positively contribute to and responsibly participate in the digital world. All the above technologies require the supervision and training of teachers before sharing with students. Teachers should first explore tools and evaluate their effectiveness, reliability, safety, and suitability for learners before recommending them. This is imperative when providing access to online content, particularly for learner with developmental delays. The MagniLink is an example of a tool that promote curiosity and fosters digital literacy for students with Visual Impairments but should only be introduced to a student after they have been mentored in safe, legal and ethical practices.

Standard 4: Collaborator: Educators dedicate time to collaborate with both colleagues and students to improve practice, discover and share resources and ideas, and solve problems. This project is a result of collaboration with my SPCE631 class through the discussion boards and during Zoom calls. The top recommendation from my classmates was for keyguards. I also reached out to Amanda Crecelius at PATINS to ask for her recommendations of the optimal tech tools for accessibility. While it is not my current job title, I see myself developing skills as an accessible-design facilitator (Bugaj, 2018) with the responsibility is to support classroom teachers to construct accessible, engaging and empowering educational experiences.

Standard 5: Educators design authentic, learner-driven activities and environments that recognize and accommodate learner variability. This standard is met through the design and creation of tactile books. Tactile books should be designed by students and utilized by students, making learning a meaningful, resourceful, act of community service. The UDL teacher brings tactile experiences to the hands of their learners, promoting deeper interaction with real-world concepts. Tactile books are an example of how teachers should plan for learner variability but provide them for students of all abilities. According to Grant and Perez(2018, p.126), tactile books are "essential for some, but useful for all".

Standard 6: Educators facilitate learning with technology to support student achievement of the ISTE Standards for Students. Educators create opportunities for students to explore 3D design and understand the design cycle through maker spaces, hence the reason for a 3D printer and the justification that it benefits all students. Bugaj (2018, p.46) encourages teachers to embrace the Maker Movement by teaching students without disabilities to use their talents to create adaptive technology to assist their peers with disabilities. Adaptive switches and keyguards are examples of 3D designs that make it possible for students with physical disabilities to interact with the computer and participate in the lesson.

Standard 7: Educators understand and use data to drive their instruction and support students in achieving their learning goals. A resource room or school lending library should always be data driven, monitoring the use and popularity of technology. Items should be updated as frequently as necessary to maximise accessibility. Many of the above tools can be used during assessment. I strongly recommend the noise canceling headphones which dampen sounds from the classroom and improve focus. I also recommend Live-Scribe Echo Pens which can be programmed with the teacher's voice reading the test questions aloud to a student with reading difficulties, improving comprehension while promoting independence. While it is important to make data driven instructional decisions, data should not restrict our learning goals for students. UDL teachers should construct learning opportunities without limits. According to Bugaj, when we set the bar for exceptional learners, we risk setting it too low, therefore, it would be better not to set the bar at all (Bugaj, 2018, p.58).