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Not sure where to start learning Google Forms?
Give these tasks a try!

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Get access to files anywhere through secure cloud storage and file backup for your photos, videos, files and more with Google Drive.

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Integrating the social media and students with disabilities 

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Integrating the social media and students with disabilities 

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“According to Chickering and Gamson (1987), good practices in undergraduate education include encouraging contact between students and faculty, developing a reciprocity and cooperation among students, and encouraging active learning. Social media have the potential to enhance these good practices.” (p. 3)

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Blended Learning and Technology Integration 

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Blended Learning and Technology Integration 

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What is blended learning? How does it differ from classroom technology instruction? What are the hallmarks of a blended learning environment?

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Blended Learning and Technology Integration

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Assistive Technology at Easter Seals Crossroads

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Technology is a rapidly changing world with each change likely to bring new accessibility issues. Work is ongoing to make sure these issues are addressed but the challenges of social networks and accessibility remain.

Social media aims to deliver its message in a more innovative and engaging way rather than a leaflet or brochure. It can achieve this aim because of the wide range of technology available. The increase in its popularity means that social networking has many advantages:

Anyone can create content.

For many it's easy to use.

It makes information sharing easier.

It provides rapid delivery of information with audience interaction.

Provides easy communication access.

However, social networks are not always accessible to individuals using assistive technology, such as a screen reader. With the constant changes in technology and social networks, assistive technology cannot keep up, leaving individuals behind. On a positive note, social networks are becoming aware of this issue and providing new accessibility features.

Many people use Youtube to watch and create videos, although the small controls on the video player can be difficult for users to operate. Easy Youtube has been developed to improve these accessibility issues. Easy Youtube is clutter-free and has easy to recognize player controls.

Facebook can be a popular meeting place for individuals to keep in touch with old friends or meet new friends. Some functions such as drag and drop and adjusting slider settings may not be easy for screen reader users. Facebook provides Facebook Accessibility Information to provide more information on how users can become more accessible.

There are steps you can take to make social media more accessible and user friendly to use, check out the Accessibility and Social Media article online for more information.

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Social Media and Accessibility - Assistive Technology at Easter Seals Crossroads

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Technology is a rapidly changing world with each change likely to bring new accessibility issues. Work is ongoing to make sure these issues are addressed but the challenges of social networks and accessibility remain. Social media aims to deliver its message in a more innovative and engaging way rather than a leaflet or brochure.

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Have you been in a situation where you lost control of your classroom?
Share why? and what you did and learned of it ....

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Based on chapter 5 of foundations of education - perspectives on education in a changing world-- Created using PowToon -- Free sign up at http://www.powtoon.com/youtube/ -- Create animated videos and animated presentations for free.

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Teachers play a vital role in their students’ engagement and motivation Otherwise, a teacher’s enjoyment and confidence in teaching, pedagogical efficacy, and effective orientations in the classroom have a positive impact on student engagement and motivation.

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When I first started teaching I lost control of a classroom. They wouldn't calm down and it resulted in me raising my voice higher and higher until I was practically screaming. Even though eventually this worked I knew right away this wasn't the kind of teacher I wanted to be. I discovered a 'group points' system that worked perfectly with that particularly difficult group of students, and now after almost 10 years of teaching I can easily find a solution to the problem on the spot. My trick is to solve the problem RIGHT AWAY - and not give it a chance to escalate or for me to lose my temper. This means that my observational skills are at a high whenever I'm teaching, and it really helps.

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It's a great way to giveback and contribute to the world, reach to the less fortuned kids and be a helping hand for a better Educated Children

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Rwanda: transforming society through education

Since then, 100,000 children and teachers have joined the program, supported by the telecom giants who are rolling out connectivity across the country. The project team is supported by the country's largest universities and educational institutes. (Read the 2011 Report)

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Since then, 100,000 children and teachers have joined the program, supported by the telecom giants who are rolling out connectivity across the country. The project team is supported by the country's largest universities and educational institutes. (Read the 2011 Report)

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5 Great Tools to Make Global Classroom Connections

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5 Great Tools to Make Global Classroom Connections

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Sometimes it's just quicker and easier to show someone an idea or concept rather than try to say it to them. Other situations demand that you present an idea in multiple formats.

I know when I was in school (back in ancient, rotary-phone days), it would have been really helpful if my teacher could have sent me home with a recording of exactly how she tackled the example calculus problem. That way, I could have watched and re-watched her instructions at my own pace until it finally sank in. Instead, I had to rely on my own note-taking skills and not-so-steel-trap memory to guide me.

The kids today have it so easy. :)

In today's world, there are plenty of tools available to allow teachers to share and capture their screens with their students. I've had my team research and pull together a list of seven of the best screencasting software packages on the market today. All of these selections are highly-rated and are good choices for their particular market.

How We Chose Our List Of Great Screencast Software For Schools

We relied upon both primary and secondary research, along with our staff's own years of experience. After the hard work was done, I came along and pulled together everyone's opinions to combine with my own experience.

I personally have the most time using the Techsmith, Screencast-o-matic and Screencastify software tools. I'd highly recommend any of those company's product lines. It's more of a matter of which software "feels right" for you, and how much control you want to have - at the expense of learning a little more about the program. Since both have at least free trials, take advantage of that time to see if it's a good fit for you. I tried out Screencast-O-Matic's free version; it seems to work well and will work for most educational settings. Since I'm already comfortable with Screencastify for my workflow of short, 5-minute-video-explanations, I didn't feel the need to switch over and pay for the full-price "O-Matic" version.

I've never been an "app guy", so I'm relying on others on my team for their opinion on the benefits of app-only products. That said, if you live and breathe on your iPad, you'll want to check out the app-based product section.

A great choice is Screencast-o-matic. One small download is all it takes to enable you to record the webcam and desktop screen at the same time. The scripting tool in the paid version enables syncing of the screen with the recording. The $18/year version allows for transitions, animations and other special effects to deliver a high-quality viewing experience.

Online tutorials show you and your students how to use the software. One nice quality of Screencast-O-Matic is how well it integrates with Chromebooks. If you are a Chromebook classroom, you should see for yourself how well it works with your hardware.

The free version limits recording time to 15 minutes with basic editing tools and includes a watermark. The paid version is really not expensive for what it offers. It includes zooming tools, onscreen drawing, and editing tools. There can be ads shown on hosted videos shot on the free plan, though this isn't always the case.

Screencastify is free with a Chrome extension which means it is immediately available to use. The software operates in your browser. No downloading of an application is required. Note: It only works in the Google ecosystem (Chrome or Chromebooks).

Recordings automatically save to your Google Drive; you don't need hard disk space to save the screen-casted videos. You can download your videos to your hard drive if you want, - it's just not required. If internet coverage is limited, record offline and upload the finished recording. The free version limits you to YouTube for distribution.

The premium version is really worth ponying up the $2/month. As I mentioned earlier, I use Screencastify for my own training and how-to videos for team members. (I also use it to record videos for my wife and kids to show them how to fix reoccurring PC issues that I'm getting tired of dealing with, such as printer disconnections, rebooting the router through a web page, etc. It's saved me a ton of time and aggravation in that role.)

By paying $24/year, you get the full feature package. This includes:

Most important in my opinion - the ability to trim video length and crop the capture area after a video has been recorded. This can save so much time avoiding having to re-record videos due to inadvertent collateral Imagine recording a video and then noticing you captured all the other browser windows you had open as well? With the premium plan, just crop the area. You can also cut out mistakes - something you can't do with the free version.

Unlimited video length - up from 10 minutes in the free version.

Unlimited number of recordings per month - the free version only includes 50 per month.

No watermark - this might not be a big deal for local classroom use but will matter for items you share with a larger community.

Both versions allow you to embed and size the webcam anywhere on the screen. You can also use a highlighted cursor to draw attention to a specific area on the screen

Cost: $2/month (billed annually) for Premium Version; free version is available but has restrictions on use.

Snagit: Free Trial and Paid Version

Camtasia: Free Trial and Paid Version

Snagit® and Camtasia® software are both TechSmith® products. They have been in this market for almost three decades, and are known for high-quality products. If you are most concerned with making sure the product you learn will be around in a few years, TechSmith is your software author.

Snagit is known as a great screencasting tool for quick-response and short videos with a shorter shelf-life. In my previous career, this was the tool I used to share information with my team. My company had some sort of company-wide license so it was the approved tool.

The built-in editing tools of Snagit allows you to edit within the captured screenshot; you don't need to open another screen for editing purposes. Tools include adding arrows, text, callouts, shapes, and numbered steps. The versatility allows you to make high quality screencast videos.

The getting started series shows you how to use all the features. For those who don't have the technical skills, there is a lot to learn before you can use Snagit to its full extent. That's not to say you can't jump right in and start using it; rather, there are more features underneath than meet the eye. Check out the series to explore them more fully.

Try the basic free version first. If you find it to be a good fit, purchase a site license or chose the volume pricing option for many installations. There is no monthly installment. Snagit is available for Mac and Windows. Education pricing starts at under $30 but drops into the teens as volume increases.

Camtasia is a larger, more complete video tool. The software does cost a little more but it is used for planned, polished videos.

Camtasia has the feature to avoid outdated videos by helping you 'magically' update older videos in the future. Another benefit is the ability to use outside video content, e.g., from a camcorder.

Features include adding overlays, intros and outros, animated backgrounds, and easy upload to YouTube, Facebook, Screencast, and Vimeo. You can add music tracks to your video to help you set just the right mood you are trying to convey.

With Camtasia, you can also add interactive quizzes to your creations and track student results. It's a great choice if you are looking for a robust

TechSmith does offer a bundle purchase of Camtasia and Snagit. Check the bottom of the combo page for more information on educational discounts.

Camtasia and Snagit software complement each other quite well. Since both have free versions available, you can try them out and see how you like the fit.

Explain Everything is an excellent screen casting app used on tablets or smartphones. The teacher or student use onscreen drawings and animations on the whiteboard while recording what is happening. It's a great collaborative learning tool since it is possible to share ideas between teachers and students in both directions in real time.

Import and integrate pictures, movies, and PDF files from a variety of sources such as your computer, Evernote, Dropbox, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, WebDav, or other sources. Use planned content or start with a blank screen with the option to adjust content quickly.

The annotation tools include colors, laser points, a variety of pens, moving tool, and magnification.

Compressing the video takes time on your tablet. The manufacturers, however, offer a compressing tool for your Mac.

A significant EDU Group discount is available for educational institutions and student groups.

ShowMe: Free and In App Purchase

ShowMe is an interactive whiteboard app for Apple tablets and smart phones. The videos are stored in the teacher's library for access.

This user-friendly app is easy to use for kids of all ages. Simply click to start recording and to share your video.

The free ShowMe version limits uploads to 5, drafts to 1 and 1-hour cloud storage. Paid versions have unlimited uploads, 300 hours cloud storage and an unlimited number of students and drafts.

ShowMe is limited to iPad users. The creators like the innovative usages of drawing with your fingers or stylus and aren't planning on creating a PC version. There's no Android version available at this time. However, if you are in the iPad ecosystem, it's a solid choice for flipping your classroom.

Leenso Create: Free and In App Subscription

Leenso Create uses your tablet as a whiteboard with voice recording and digital writing. Share your screencast video via email, LinkedIn or other social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

The free Leenso version allows unlimited recordings of 15 minutes each whereas the paid version recording is extended to 30 minutes per video. Custom background images and PDF imports are available in the free version.

The paid version includes a laser pointer tool, a highlighter tool, editor ability, additional shapes, and real time video capture. The Leenso Create watermark is removed with the paid version.

Leenso Create is available for iPad and Android tablet users.

Did we miss your favorite software package? Let us know in the comments below!

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7 Of The Best Screencasting Software Tools For Classrooms | Fractus Learning |

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Sometimes it's just quicker and easier to show someone an idea or concept rather than try to say it to them. Other situations demand that you present an idea in multiple formats. I know when I was in school (back in ancient, rotary-phone days), it would have been really helpful if...

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Social Media using with moderation to create balance 

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Social Media using with moderation to create balance 

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The more we dig the deeper we go until we find that hours had pass without noticing we realize, we need to be aware and create a balance in using the social media and start to be intentional.

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In this episode of the Truth for Teachers podcast, you'll get to listen in on a coaching call I conducted with a graduate of the 40 Hour Teacher Workweek Club. The coaching call is like instructional coaching and life coaching blended together, and I'm answering teacher's specific questions about productivity and balance and managing it all.

This particular call is with a 5th grade teacher named April. April's challenge right now is with trying to find balance and intentionality during times of year that are super demanding, such as parent conference week.

As we get into the conversation, we dig deeper into her social media habits, and explore how her desire to learn from and connect with other educators is sometimes swallowing up more time than she intends, and interfering with her ability to get a good night's sleep and stay in balance.

April has given me permission to record our conversation and share it here with you so that you can analyze your habits and get in better balance, too. Some of the key takeaways are recorded below.
Listen to the coaching call by clicking "play" or the download button to listen later offline:
April: I'm still struggling to find balance with my social media accounts. I have some teachers that I follow on Facebook and Instagram, but some of it is probably idle time spent in the evening, before bedtime. I'm starting to be concerned that it's impacting not only my sleep, but my relationships.

Time slips away so easily, but I am inspired and encouraged by fellow educators around the world. Any advice on ways to effectively manage my time spent with social media and still feel connected and up to date on ideas out there?

This is a really important issue that I think a lot of people aren't even aware of. They don't notice how their social media habits impact the way they feel and how much they get done. So I'm really excited to hear that this is on your radar and you're paying attention.

I think for myself at least, there is an amount of time that being on social media feels good, but there comes a point when it crosses the line over to unhealthy. And if I'm paying attention, I can feel that line being crossed. I get this sense of, "okay, that's enough, I've been sitting for too long, staring at a screen for too long," or I'm starting to see the same types of stories over and over and I feel like I'm sufficiently keyed in to what's happening right now, and so it's time to stop.

notice when it stops being productive and healthy and crosses the line into imbalance. Notice how you feel in that moment, pay attention to it, and notice how you feel when you do get offline. Don't judge or criticize yourself, just notice how it feels. Paying attention to that feeling will make it easier for you to draw boundaries in the future.

Notice also when you start to feel uncomfortable because you're comparing yourself to other people. Specifically with teaching ideas, this can be a problem, when it feels like Pinterest or Instagram have become a gigantic to-do list, like every single idea you see is incredible and you want to do it and you start to feel overwhelmed and inadequate, like you're not doing enough.

I've recently joined a group of teachers doing a book study of your book Awakened, which is such an encouragement. And knowing that I have a set, scheduled time when I'm going to be online for the book study made me realize boundaries would be really helpful for me. When it's a scheduled time that I'm going on for a reason, I don't go past that boundary. Also, when I'm going online to search for a very specific thing, I feel like that's also effective time spent and I find what I need quickly.

Creating routines for social media and building it into your day at times that make sense to you is great-do this in a way that feels healthy and balanced. This is about having limits, boundaries, and goals for the time you spend on social media.

It feels more intentional, which is one of the things you talk about in the 40-Hour Teacher Workweek Club with "eliminating unintentional breaks." It's one of the key things that really stuck with me that year, and I come back to that a lot when I'm feeling too busy and overwhelmed. I think that's going to work with my social-media time, too. Anything else I can do?

You may want to focus on following just specific bloggers via their email list, or cutting down the number of people followed on your favorite social media platform, or create lists so you see the most important posts on Twitter/Facebook. That way you're still connected to the people that are most inspiring to you but not filling your mind with everything else.

I'm going to be inviting teachers to join a free intentional connectivity challenge in May. It's completely free, and if you missed it last year, this might be a good year to do it.

Here's how it works: it's a 21-day challenge that will take less than two minutes per week to participate. You'll just read the message I send via email and implement the idea. The habit I share will not add anything to your plate or be "one more thing" you have to do, but will actually eliminate a time-waster and immediately free up your time and increase your mental focus.

The goal isn't to give up social media or stop using email. The goal is be intentional about our connectivity: to get on our devices because we want to, not because we feel compelled to.

These are the 3 basic habits that I'm encouraging you to make and that you'll be able to practice through the intentional connectivity challenge:

1. Reconfigure notification settings to fit with your connectivity goals

2. Create morning & bedtime routines that are more enjoyable than checking your phone

3. Give your mind space to wander during moments of boredom or procrastination instead of reaching automatically for your phone

We want to stop using our devices to waste time on unintentional breaks and procrastination, and to be intentional about when we connect. Almost every teacher I talk with feels like it's impossible to turn off his or her brain at night and rest. Teachers feel like there's always too much to do, too many things to remember, and not enough time for any of it. Being more intentional about your connectivity habits is the easiest, fastest, most powerful way I can think of to change that.

With the 40 Hour Workweek, I felt like I was really getting a grasp on the balance and that feeling of putting 'first things first' with my schedule and the list-making system. I felt it slipping away and I wasn't sure why, and now I think a lot of it has to do with my social-media habits. If I make some adjustments and put some of your suggestions into place, I think I'm going to feel that balance come back.
Thanks for listening to this coaching call with April. If you'd like to join us for the Intentional Connectivity Challenge, use the sign up form below or learn more here. See blog posts/transcripts for all episodes Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes Subscribe to the podcast in Stitcher

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How to be a connected educator & still find balance with social media

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In this episode of the Truth for Teachers podcast, you'll get to listen in on a coaching call I conducted with a graduate of the 40 Hour Teacher Workweek Club. The coaching call is like instructional coaching and life coaching blended together, and I'm answering teacher's specific questions about productivity and balance and managing it all.

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Age is not an excuse to fall of the wagon everyone can learn and surf..

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Supporting Communities is an independent charitable organisation which champions tenant and community participation by developing groups, supporting active citizenship and building cohesive communities.

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Bridging the digital divide means accommodating diversity

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Bridging the digital divide means accommodating diversity

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Technology services that are universally available, accessible, affordable and accommodate diversity, is something should be provided to all regardless of demography of who is accessing the internet

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It would be easy to think that the notion of a " digital divide " is now outdated. Whose life isn't digital in some respect these days?

As shown in the recent Australian Communications & Media Authority ( ACMA) report, Australians' digital lives, 92% of Australians use the internet across a range of technological devices. This suggests only a small minority of Australians are not using the internet. Perhaps they can't due to lack of availability or they don't out of choice.

But if we dig a little deeper, the digital divide re-emerges. The 92% of people online includes anyone who has accessed the internet in the past six months, even if just the once. It gives no indication of frequency of use, levels of digital literacy or how active those Australians are online.

Therein lies the problem. The report, and other studies of internet usage, are focused on the range of technologies being used and the demography of who is accessing the internet.

These findings are clearly showing that our technological landscape is becoming more diverse, with devices other than desktop or laptop computers being used for online participation. Furthermore, age, socio-economic status and level of education inform internet access and use.

Underlying these studies and other research on digital divides is an assumption that to be part of the 8% (probably more) who can't or don't use the internet is to be socially excluded or disadvantaged. It implies the digital divide to be asymmetrical, constituted by a technologically adept majority, and a small minority of laggards.

Demographically, the groups that are consistently identified as being on "wrong" side of the divide include: new migrants and refugees; people from non-English speaking backgrounds; older Australians, particularly women; people of low socio-economic status; people in regional, rural and remote areas; Indigenous communities; and people with disabilities.

Collectively, these groups cannot be considered a minority and certainly make up more than 8% of Australians. However, the focus on demographic data to identify those who are not "keeping up" with other Australians in terms of online participation, has only served to provide solutions that put the onus back on those groups to increase their digital literacies.

Defining the divide

A recent article outlines the many programs that seek to do this, but this approach blames these groups for what they lack, and places the responsibility back onto them to address it.

Much of the internet access research does not critically evaluate how the design of online environments may reinforce the existing age, class and education bias. What can we learn from those who can't or don't use the internet - their reasons for being offline, their alternative information and service-seeking practices - in order to design social solutions to more inclusive online services?

The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network ( ACCAN) has a number of research reports available which study the above-mentioned marginalised groups and their digital disadvantage.

One of the key findings is that, for most of these communities, mobile phones are the technologies of choice because they have a low technical and financial threshold to participation. Moreover, mobiles are primarily used for voice calls and text messaging rather than for internet access. Information is sourced from others in preference to the internet.

This has profound implications for how online content and information services ought to be designed to be more human-centred, simple and succinct. Indeed, the utopian promise of the National Broadband Network ( NBN) is that it will enable the delivery of rich, mediated face-to-face services that will not only appeal to the groups mentioned, but offer an inclusive experience to the 46% of Australians who are not prose literate. Particularly those who have difficulty getting through a newspaper, or understanding the directions on a medicine bottle, or comprehending pages of online content.

Unfortunately, debates about the NBN, to date, have revolved around carriage: the wire and cables and how much data these will carry. There has been less discussion about how it can facilitate more accessible content that is audio-visually rich, multi-lingual and has a low technical and financial threshold for engagement.

Until then, we need to interrogate the rationale for compelling everyone to participate online, when this involves costs (of devices, of ongoing access, etc) that are not subsidised for those who can least afford them.

Government responsibility

This requires re-thinking the push towards e-government, in which all information and services of government departments are available online, often at the expense of cutting existing (traditional or non-digital) alternatives.

It also raises the question of whether this privileging of one technology over others is essentially discriminatory and contradictory to the multi-platform, multi-device landscape in which we all now live.

Communications minister Malcolm Turnbull, at a recent Digital Innovation Forum held at UTS, called the internet the "uber-platform", where governments will be singularly interacting with its citizens, because it's cheaper than phone, letter or face-to-face. If this is his hope, then his new Digital Transformation Office ( DTO) will have to live up to its name, especially where content is concerned.

It will have to change the online environment for the 46% of the population who are not prose literate. It will have to transform the experience of one of my research participants who used up A$30 in prepaid mobile phone credit waiting on the line to speak to Centrelink.

It will have to revisit the Universal Service Obligation ( USO), which currently only applies to landline telephone services and not to mobile or Internet service providers.

Ultimately, the onus is not on groups and consumers to be digitally literate in platforms that are not preferred to access information that is opaque to them. It is the responsibility of government to provide technologies and design services that are universally available, accessible, affordable and accommodate diversity, both technical and human.
This article originally appeared in The Conversation.

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Bridging the digital divide means accommodating diversity

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It would be easy to think that the notion of a " digital divide " is now outdated. Whose life isn't digital in some respect these days? As shown in the recent Australian Communications & Media Authority ( ACMA) report, Australians' digital lives, 92% of Australians use the internet across a range of technological devices.

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This web site supports the use of cell phones in the classroom by providing a controlled, secure environment for users. Students join teacher-created "cells" where phone numbers are kept private....

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Blogs are a great way to learn and interact with other educators and learners.
This is a link to my blog.....

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Am willing to give it a try and to start being intentional ....are you?let me know! ...

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Microsoft Intune for Education Resource Collection

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Microsoft Intune for Education Resource Collection

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What is Padlet and what are some uses for it in the classroom? The video below introduces the tool and details several classroom uses.

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For people with a disability, such as a hearing, sight or mobility impairment, social media websites and applications have their own barriers. In late 2011, Media Access Australia undertook research funded by the ACCAN Grants Scheme, to determine how the accessibility issues found in each of the most popular social media tools can be overcome.

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For people with a disability, such as a hearing, sight or mobility impairment, social media websites and applications have their own barriers. In late 2011, Media Access Australia undertook research funded by the ACCAN Grants Scheme, to determine how the accessibility issues found in each of the most popular social media tools can be overcome.

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This is an important topic!
It reminded me of the day when I said to my mentor we need to control the students she said we don’t control.. we manage !

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Oh Lubna!
Your highlight here is very sensitive
You are true.. kids to be well educated in these days means technology literate

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What do you think make a great teacher from your experience as an educator or student...

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Educational social network integration into       instructional practices

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Educational social network integration into       instructional practices

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Currently,there is much discussion and excitement about Web 2.0 in education, but we still know very little about how these tools actually&work in the classroom.

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Putting the technology in the hand of the students with disabilities and learning how to apply and utilize the technology according to their needs...I found this really in-lightning

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1. Introduction

2. Matching Technology to Your Student's Needs

3. When Should Assistive Technology Be Introduced?

4. Keeping Current and Being Comfortable with Technology

5. Technology and the Expanded Core Curriculum

6. Problem Solving - The Hallmark of a Good TVI

CHAPTER 1: Introduction
SIU: Technology is difficult to keep up with. It's sort of like, anytime you feel like you've learned something, there's already something new that you need to know or that you don't even know that you need to know. With TVIs in particular, the challenges are multi-layered because you not only have to understand what the classroom technology is, but the specialized technologies and often it's understanding how to manipulate mainstream technologies to suit your student who is blind or visually impaired.

And then when that's not enough, then it's knowing what specialized technologies are out there and available. So, with the case loads, TVIs are always kind of stretched. You're doing prep-time at home and then you also have to keep up with what the newest technology is - it's really difficult.

Most teachers; it's hard enough just to keep up with email, and I can understand that, but when you think about the affordances of technology and how that really facilitates that independent and timely access to information, this access to information - it's not really a choice whether or not you keep up with technology.

Your students don't have the luxury of that choice. They need you to be on top of what's available and a lot of classroom teachers - they also have the luxury of having a peer next door, and most TVIs are itinerant; itinerant meaning traveling from school to school.

So, for example, I might have a student that I see 30 minutes a week and I'll travel to the school, see the student for 30 minutes, and then I go to my next school. So I don't get that same network, that same comradery that classroom teachers have, and I think that's a really important missing piece. So TVIs lack that naturally built-in community of practice, I like to call it, so that professional learning community that really supports learning and professional development.

It's really difficult for itinerant teachers, and it could be any kind of itinerant teacher, whether it's a teacher of students with visual impairments or a teacher of students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Any teacher who is itinerant it's going to be really difficult to keep up with that professional learning network because that community of practice isn't just inherently there.
CHAPTER 2: Matching Technology to Your Student's Needs
SIU: Understanding that when you make any sort of technology decision, it needs to be driven by how the technology influences that student learning and how that influences the content knowledge and making a decision about technology based on the intersection of all those things.

Rather than choosing a technology and fitting it into a student or a classroom context, it's considering the classroom context and the student need first, and then making a decision about how the technology fits into that landscape.

NARRATOR: In a video clip we see a 4-year-old girl who is blind learning braille by using an iPad app called Exploring Braille with Madeline and Ruff. The iPad has been linked via Bluetooth to a refreshable braille display, allowing the girl to navigate the iPad screen and answer questions posed in the exercise.

SIU: When it comes to carrying out an assessment for assistive technology, or just technology in general, if you're lucky enough you might have a local school for the blind that you might contact as a resource. Those are pretty far and few between and I would say that most people don't have that immediate access.

Most school districts do have ITs, just information technology, and while those people might know the general technologies, they don't understand the specialized needs and technology that is available for blind or visually impaired students.

So it usually does come down to the TVI to carry out that technology assessment. So what are the various features of technologies that help our students and once you understand the variety of features you can get from technology, whether it's text to speech, refreshable braille display, magnification, but it's understanding what the technology brings to the table and then finding the right fit for the student in the classroom.
CHAPTER 3: When Should Assistive Technology Be Introduced?
SIU: What age should technology be introduced? To me it's, well, what about other kids? What are other kids using? Are other kids - are peers using social media or are peers using iPhones or iPads? What's the classroom using? And I think the same standard should be the same for students who are blind or visually impaired.

There should be no lower or different standard for when they get access to technology, so for my students, I say as soon as possible; as soon as they can benefit from what technology brings to the table or as soon as they need to access the same information as their peers or in the classroom. That's when technology should be introduced.

In the kindergarten classroom, it might just be getting used to playing around on an iPad. It might be just learning how to move your finger along a screen and to listen to what is begin spoken as your finger touches different things, because that's what the peers are doing.

Then maybe further down the line it might be using that same iPad, but to access reading, writing, or research. But by that time that they need to use it for academic content, that student should already be familiar and comfortable with just playing around with an iPad. So I like to introduce technology as early as possible.

NARRATOR: Once again, we see video of the 4-year-old girl who is blind in her preschool classroom. She is working with her iPad and refreshable braille display.

By using the voice over accessibility option on her iPad, the navigation button on her refreshable braille display, and certain braille keystrokes or chords, she searches for the Exploring Braille app on her iPad.

SIU: Availability of technology really comes back to having a number of different tools available. So, having the lo-tech and then the hi-tech. When it comes to funding for technology, it's actually not as much as a barrier anymore with better access to mainstream devices. So now instead of having to maybe apply for a district to pay for a device that costs $3000 to $5000 dollars, you can now ask for your district to pay for, let's say, maybe an iPad or iPod and then pair that with a refreshable braille display.

In the past years I have become really impressed with how the American Printing House for the Blind, or APH, how they have really recognized the need for technology in the classroom and they facilitated access to it by including a number of different technologies on the quota system. So now you can a refreshable braille display, you can get a video magnifier, you can get a talking graphing calculator, so that's been really helpful in putting technology into the hands of students.
CHAPTER 4: Keeping Current and Being Comfortable with Technology
SIU: I think this is another challenge for TVIs in keeping up with technology and maintaining technology is that you might learn about one device in school, but once you get out into the classroom things change, and things change very quickly depending on the classroom teacher for that year, or maybe it's a difference between math content versus language arts content.

What you might know about one device; you might use it differently for different areas or with different teachers, so understanding how to use technology in a flexible manner is really helpful, and I think that is also one of the challenges in learning technology as well, is you can't really learn it in a device-centric way. You have to learn it almost as a case-based way, so scenario-based learning or learning by case study.

It's learning how to apply the technology and that's really going to facilitate genuine implementation of the technology as a real tool, rather than an annoyance.

NARRATOR: In a video clip, an adolescent girl with Albinism is shown using the voice over accessibility tool on an iPad for the first time.

While the girl can read large print, knowing how to use voice over will be helpful for those times when her eyes become fatigued.

GIRL: This is crazy.

SIU: So I love the idea of having a bag of tricks because that's really what it is in incorporating all the different uses of different technologies. So, for example, I have a high school student now who where when he goes into his English classroom, he has an English teacher who is using these very old grammar books. They are not available digitally and so what we've done there is he has a couple choices depending on the situation.

So he can either use a video magnifier or a CCTV, where he can place the book under a camera and it magnifies it onto a screen. Or if it's something that he's going to need to study later, he might take a photo of it so then it's saved on his device and he can magnify it on his personal device, such as an iPad or laptop.

And I really emphasis that in having the bag of tools, is being able to - for students to choose their own learning media and be in charge of their own accessibility.

NARRATOR: The same adolescent girl with Albinism is now demonstrating how she can access, on her iPad, the same textbooks that her classmates use. She can alter the size of the pages and text via the touch screen.

She also demonstrates how she has used the camera on the iPad to take pictures of illustrations in textbooks, such as maps, which she can enlarge for later view if desired.

TEACHER: What did she say about it?

GIRL: That she loved it.

GIRL: So, um...this is - what is this? What? I bet this is for today. How to study...Yeah, this is probably for today.

TEACHER: It's good, isn't it? And you can tell when she put it in there because of the date. But can you make it full screen for us? There ya go. So that's a Power Point. And what about the camera feature? Do you use it for things afar in your classroom?

GIRL: So I screenshoted, um, most of the thing and the other two that weren't showing I just went to Dropbox and did them.

SIU: Another challenge for teachers, especially those who aren't tech savvy, is being afraid of technology and it's sort of like, "Oh, I'm not really sure about this" or "It makes me nervous" or "I'm scared to break it." But your students can't afford to have you be fearful, so I think when you can keep that larger goal in mind, maybe that could help overcome that fearfulness.

But it's also knowing that there is always tech support out there and there is support out there can keep that larger goal in mind, maybe that could help overcome that fearfulness. And you don't have to be the expert, so it's being open to just trying different things and seeing how it fits your student's needs because the beauty of being a TVI is that you are the expert in how blind students learn and you are the expert in understanding the differentiated learning needs.

And then it's just taking a little step further to know what a student needs to get out of technology and being comfortable that you have that knowledge so that you can look at any technology and determine how that's going to support your student.

I think technology is for everyone. So people always say, "Well Ting, you're talking about all this hi-tech stuff. These are for that small portion of high-functioning academic students," and I think that actually the beauty of all this great stuff in technology now, especially the access to mainstream stuff, is that even those kids with multiple disabilities; they can be using the same devices as the kid next door.

NARRATOR: In a video clip we see a young girl who has cortical visual impairment and is multiply disabled in her preschool classroom, along with some of her classmates. The girl and her friends are looking at an iPad that displays bright, colorful animations.

SIU: It's great for a number of reasons. One, of course, is cost. It's much cheaper to buy something like the iPad, which has built in accessibility features. It's much more affordable than spending several thousand dollars on a specialized device. And yes, sometimes those specialized devices are necessary, but sometimes it's not.

It's not always needed and what is really nice is for two kids to play on the same device together, and maybe one student is in a wheelchair; maybe one student has multiple disabilities and their peer doesn't, but either way it's great when you can see kids playing with their peers.
CHAPTER 5: Technology and the Expanded Core Curriculum
SIU: TVIs are tasked with teaching the expanded core curriculum. So these are areas of instruction outside of the academic curriculum and TVIs recognize the need for differentiated instruction in various areas such as living skills, social skills, just adaptive activities - activities that students who are blind or visually impaired need more specific instruction in, and part of the expanded core is assistive technology, so it is learning how to use these technologies to access both mainstream information and devices, and also knowing how to use the specialized technology when needed.

Technology can definitely be just as much of a barrier as it can be a facilitator of bridging communications. So one example is I have a 3rd grade student right now where they've worked really hard on getting her materials to her in a digital format so she's able to annotate her PDFs, she's able to work in a Microsoft Word document; and yes, this is a 3rd grader, and so the classroom had set her up at a desktop computer in order to do all her work on the computer and she can use a screen magnification program to do that, and access all of the documents.

However, I walk into the room and I see her in the back corner on her computer and she's got her accessible instructional materials, but the desktop computer itself has excluded her from the community of the classroom because all of her peers are working at their desks. So I really looked at that situation and it made my heart hurt a little bit to see her working in the corner away from her peers. In that case the technology really isolated her.

What we're moving to is having her work on the iPad so that she can have that same access to digital material, but she can sit next to her peers to do that, and she can still communicate with her peers and work in group activities in order to fill out worksheets, and when they're doing group reading, instead of sitting at her computer and reading on her desktop computer, she can read on her iPad right next to peers and engage with her peers, and in that way, it's motivating for her to use her technology.

It's motivating for her to use her iPad when she can sit with her classmates and they are all interested to see what she's doing on her iPad and she's not necessarily having to sit alone and by herself at the desktop computer. That's a really nice example of leveraging what different types of devices can bring to the table and building that community around technology.

So the common core really challenges students to be thinkers, and to be critical thinkers, and what's really great about having technology available to our students is it allows them that primary and independent access to information. Again, it all comes back to access to information, and this means both being able to get the information, but also to output the information as well.

NARRATOR: We are watching as a young girl who is blind and appears to be approximately 9-years-old works with her TVI to type and print a document for her teacher.

The girl has learned to pair the Bluetooth keyboard to her iPad. The iPad then sends the document to the printer.

SIU: So technology really facilitates that exchange of information, so when you talk about accessing the common core, it's having that student be the primary receiver and giver of information, rather than having to rely on a secondary party to parse the information for them or to dictate information to somebody else to write it down.
CHAPTER 6: Problem Solving - The Hallmark of a Good TVI
SIU: Technology is really important for students, but for anyone who is considering a career in TVI or in the visual impairment field, I don't think that should be a turn-off for teachers. A good TVI is open to new experiences and open to learning, and it's an exciting career. Everyday is different; there's always new challenges, but that also means there's always new solutions too.

So, I think people who are creative thinkers; people who can think on their feet and are open to fresh experiences everyday they go to work - those people would love being a TVI. It's a puzzle, so I love puzzles and it's about problem solving and being able to have a problem and really manipulate it in your mind and in your hands and think about solving this accessibility issue, or communication issue.

I think to be a good TVI you don't necessarily have to be tech savvy, but you have to be open to technology, and if you can just be open and adventurous, that's really going to help your students. There's always going to be new tech coming out and it's just knowing where to find the resources, or knowing how to connect your students to the right resources, and helping your students find those resources for themselves.

So you might not need to be tech savvy, per say, but knowing where to find the support and help that you need; knowing who to contact or where to find those video tutorials; being a really good Googler is going to help.

NARRATOR: We see an example of a web resource for TVIs. In this case it is a site called TeachingVisuallyImpaired.com. The site has aggregated a number of online resources and webinars and compiled a list of links to organizations such as Paths to Literacy and Perkins School for the Blind, as well as many others.

SIU: So I think that is one of the biggest challenges of how do we really prepare TVIs to use technology in the field when it's hard to anticipate what they're going to need to know, what they're going to need to use, and for these reasons, it's really important to start that community of practice piece in pre-service.

So while teachers are in their pre-service programs, in their teacher prep programs, it's really important to build those supports for them so that when they go out in the field, they already know how to use a listserv or they already know how and where to find resources online, and they already have a community of practice.

So when you have that community of practice, or COP for short, you have other people that are helping you build your toolkit. You have a teacher that says, "Hey, I just found this and I tried it with this student and it worked really well!" Or you might have another teacher that says, "Yeah, I'm also using that same technology but it's not working in this application, so how can I problem solve that."

So together you're building that toolkit and you are not having to do that alone, and that kind of leads to the second dimension of a COP is that solve that." So together you're building that toolkit and you are not having to do that alone, and that community piece. It's really building that community where you're exchanging information and sometimes you might seeking information and people provide it, and other times you might be the person providing the information.

What's really nice about that community piece is you kind of check in with your community and when you don't need to, you just maintain and keep going.

Interested in learning more? Sign up for Yue-Ting Siu's online class "Multimedia in the Modern Classroom: Assistive Technology for Students with Visual Impairments" starting August 3rd. http://www.perkinselearning.org/earn-credits/online-class/multimedia-in-the-modern-classroom-assistive-technology-students-visual-impairments

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Keeping Up With Technology and Student Needs

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Introduction Matching Technology to Your Student's Needs When Should Assistive Technology Be Introduced? Keeping Current and Being Comfortable with Technology Technology and the Expanded Core Curriculum Problem Solving - The Hallmark of a Good TVI CHAPTER 1: Introduction SIU: Technology is difficult to keep up with.