Assistive Technology Tool

D4: Data-Based Practice or Assistive Technology Tool

1. Have you ever known anybody with a speech and or language impairment? Not that I can recall.

What challenges did he/she face? N/A

Think about famous people that possess a speech and language impairment. Two examples are posted in this module (John Larking and Diane Rehms). Who comes to mind and how did they work to overcome it?

Famous basketball player, Bill Walton, has had a problem with stuttering most of his life. “The Stuttering Foundation website lists him among their “18 Famous People Who Stutter.”

Within an article in wikibooks, Bill Walton mentions that he was “laughed” out of a speech class because of his stuttering. Playing basketball was his method of avoiding having to

Research a specific Data-Based Practice or Assistive Technology Tool used to assist children with Speech and Language Impairments. Describe the tool or practice and discuss how it helps those children, and post a picture to represent your strategy or tool. Some examples of tools and practices are listed below. You may choose one of these or come up with your own.

After our visit at the Briarwood School, I chose the iPad, along with appropriate software, based on the testimonial of the Speech Therapist who stated that they have had good success in using this technology to help children with language impairments, especially in the area of improving articulation.

The iPad, with the right apps installed, is a very easy to use tablet that works very well for both children and adults. Children find it easy to use the touch screen to move within an app then scroll to various images and listen to the “electronic voice” so they can practice hearing and repeating the words.

Further, the iPad can use additional apps to assist with providing augmentative and alternative communication for students with various language disorders. For example, just visit the web site http://www.friendshipcircle.org/blog/2011/02/07/7-assistive-communication-apps-in-the-ipad-app-store/, and take a look at the many apps that are

“ iCommunicate: “allows you to create pictures, flashcards, storyboards, routines, visual schedules and record custom audio in any language. Aside from being an AAC device iCommunicate also includes task completion and audio visual prompting. iCommunicate comes preloaded with 10,000 symblstix pictures. You also have the ability to insert Google images and the story boards are printable.”

Since I cannot afford to purchase an iPad, iPhone, and the software, I searched and found a YouTube video which shows how to use the software on an iPhone. The examples demonstrate the flexibility, and ease, of creating storyboards, etc. Follow this link to view the video which runs for 6 minutes, 45 secs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FkSNMLVlmk

As you can see, it is very user friendly and simple to operate. I really like the fact that one can create a “lessons” such as a storyboard, using pictures you take with the phone. In the classroom, I would use it to create flashcards and storyboards with both stock and personally taken photos. This will help the kids to use the app with the goal of improving their language