Using Technology to Bolster the Academic Success of Students
with Disabilities
from T/TAC Link Lines
September-October 2000
Only since the issuance of the 1997 amendments to the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act have educators been required to
consider the need for assistive technology supports for every student
for whom an IEP is written. Progressive school districts and educators
have made a commitment to finding ways to support the learning needs
and styles of their students. However, many educators as well as
administrators have not yet witnessed the transforming power of
technology when integrated with effective instruction. In the past,
the only students who were seen as needing technology to access
the curriculum were students whose disability limited most activities
of daily living in addition to the curriculum. In considering technology
supports for students with mild disabilities, this perception needs
to change. Educators must recognize the potential of technology
to increase academic success. Only then can they make the types
of decisions that will give students the opportunities to achieve
this success.
During this school year, we will examine technology supports that
allow students with mild to moderate disabilities to access the
curriculum in the least restrictive environment and how these tools
can be used to help students reach new levels of academic success.
T/TAC will also offer professional development opportunities in
the form of in-depth presentations as well as lab opportunities
for educators to allow them to become more familiar with materials
through guided hands-on instruction. This article will explore technology
supports for learning, studying, and organizing content, specifically
the use of computer-based graphic organizing programs.
Computer-based Graphic Organizers
The success of graphic organizers as a teaching tool to assist students
in grasping concepts has been widely documented. Graphic organizers
allow the user to depict, organize, and relate information in a
graphical or symbol-based format. Traditionally, this has been accomplished
through the use of concept maps, a way of using symbols to represent,
or make visible, concepts and their relationships. Originally constructed
with pencil and paper, these maps were used as a tool to help students
understand new concepts by showing a concept's relationship to the
students' prior knowledge base. While its potential as a powerful
learning strategy and assessment tool for identifying gaps in a
student's knowledge base had become apparent, the process of refining
these maps was often frustrating and quite messy until the advent
of the electronic version of this instrument (Anderson-Inman, Ditson,
& Ditson, 1998). Electronic mapping, as with a word processor,
allows for easy manipulation of information and can support the
unique learning styles and needs of all students, particularly students
with learning difficulties. It is a comprehensive tool that can
be used to support teaching new concepts as well as promoting academic
success across the curriculum. Applications include information
organization during note-taking, writing, and studying (Anderson-Inman,
et al., 1998).
Using Computer-based Graphic Organizers with Students with Learning
Difficulties
Many features inherent in computer-based graphic organizers contribute
to their successful use by students with learning difficulties.
Often students who struggle in reading, writing, and organizing
information benefit significantly from the opportunity to see information
depicted in a visual format and to actively manipulate this information.
Some of the better graphic organizers also enable information to
be constructed and depicted in a variety of formats, offer multiple
strategies for completing a given task, and allow students to switch
between formats as they are working with the material (Tenny, 1992).
Computer-based graphic organizers are one of the most effective
ways not only to support meaningful learning, but also to foster
independence and the development of critical thinking skills. This
is accomplished through effective teacher modeling and instruction
of strategies that integrate the use of computer-based graphic organizers
within the curriculum.
To learn more about the computer-based graphic organizer Inspiration
and instructional strategies that can be used to impact the academic
success of students with disabilities, please refer to the workshop
insert, containing workshops and professional development activities
on this topic.
References
Anderson-Inman, L., Ditson, L., & Ditson, M.T. (1998). Computer-based
concept mapping: Promoting meaningful learning in science for students
with disabilities. Information Technology and Disabilities
[Online serial], 5(1-2). Available: www.rit.edu/~easi/itd/itdv05n1-2/article2.html.
Ellis, E.S. (1999). Using graphic organizers to water up the
curriculum. Tuscaloosa, AL: Masterminds, LLC.
Tenny, J. (1992). Computer-supported study strategies for purple
people. Reading and Writing Quarterly: Overcoming Learning Difficulties,
8, 359-377.
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