UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
ASSISTIVE
(from page 9)
on-screen keyboards and word prediction software have
assisted those who cannot use a standard keyboard. In the
past, many of these technologies were expensive add-ons
to computers but are now built into the operating system
or other mainstream software programs. This makes the
devices more accessible than ever before.
Since there are close to 7 million students identified with
a disability in this country, it is critical that every special
education teacher knows and understands what assistive
technology is and how it should be considered for, and
implemented with, each of those students as needed, Bausch
said.
BRAIN
(from page 15)
never read a neuroscience study in their lives make claims
about how the “brain” reads and learns, they’re really
using the word “brain” as a stand-in for something else: the
essence of our ability to think. We used to call it the mind.
Before that, the psyche. Before that, the human spirit. Before
that, the soul. Now it’s the brain. That’s just a placeholder
16
Knowing not just how to use the technology, but how
to build, adapt and troubleshoot, provides confidence to
students like Armstrong who will have careers in schools.
“In this class I will have learned how to prepare myself
for any situation if a child was to come into my classroom
in the future with a certain disability and need assistance or
guidance on how to use their assistive technology device,”
Armstrong said. “This class will also prepare me for any
circumstance in which a device is broken, being used
improperly, or not providing the correct assistance for the
individual using it. Dr. Bausch has done a great job teaching
us the ins and outs of assistive technology and I have no
doubt we will all be fully equipped with all the knowledge
we need necessary for our future careers.”
for processes we still don’t understand very well, which is
why we need more serious attention to the research, or we
won’t really be talking about the brain at all. Knowing how
brains make learning and reading possible might helpfully
focus literacy practice and policy. For instance, learning is
literally a growth process. Teaching is literally nurturance.
Variance among students is natural, necessary and beautiful.
COE COMMUNICATOR | MARCH 2015