Assistive Technology For Postsecondary Students With Learning Disabilities

Abstract

An increasing number of students with learning disabilities are attending postsecondary institutions. To meet the educational demands of these students, support service providers will likely rely on assistive technology. This article lists types of assistive technology appropriate for use with persons with learning disabilities at the postsecondary level and discusses ways in which assistive technology enhances learning. Additionally, an overview of legislation that has had an impact on assistive technology at the postsecondary level is presented. Issues involving assistive technology programs at the postsecondary level are discussed. Postsecondary assistive technology program components, device selection, and training guidelines also are outlined.

Learning Disability and the Extended Mind

“…Indeed, this is precisely how many LD individuals understand their relationship to assistive technologies. LD individuals who have consistent access to assistive technologies in the classroom report feeling less anxious, more independent, and more confident in their own abilities (Day and Edwards 1996). Rather than making them feel as if the more they use technologies, the less they can do "themselves" (the picture of cognitive capability that the embedded thesis predicts), well-assisted LD individuals report feeling as if they are capable of doing more, and with an increased sense of independence and self-reliance.…”

“…These testimonies all indicate that many LD individuals who have access to assistive technologies view themselves as being more cognitively capable with the technologies ii . Day and Edwards (1996) discuss this kind of improved capability in the context of LD individuals who use word processing or spell-check technology in writing, tools that enable them to write unencumbered by difficulties with the "mechanics" of writing:…”

Participation and experiences of students with dyslexia in higher education: a literature review with an Australian focus

“…These specific resources include tailored study skills training (Price, 1997), mentoring (Fink, 1998), peer support groups (Griffin & Pollak, 2009) and multi-modal assistive technology tailored specifically to the needs of students with dyslexia (Day & Edwards, 1996;Griffin & Pollak, 2009). While it seems likely that some of these strategies could be effective, insufficient well-designed evaluative research has been conducted to either support or refute their effectiveness.…”

Developing inclusive e-learning and e-entertainment to effectively accommodate learning difficulties

“…Traditional approaches to the provision of interactive technology support for learning difficulties mainly focus on the use of various technologies, such as word processors, word predictors, spell checkers, calculators, etc., to compensate for the lack of particular abilities [2].…”