The article I just read really enhanced my understanding of what disabled students can accomplish with the new assistive technology being introduced daily.

The article gave examples of students who had to use their eyebrows with a headband to communicate with their computer which would then verbalize what the student was trying to say.  Another student who had cerebral palsy could make movements with her cheek that the computer was able to read and then verbalize what she wanted.

Another student who had limited use of both his hands and legs, could not participate in sports but finally found that he was able to participate in the band with the special accommodations made for him by a nearby music store owner.  This young man would not give up and when these accommodations were made for him he is now able to participate fully by the use of a joystick that punches the buttons on his tuba-like instrument.

As I hope to go on to earn my credential in special education, and currently volunteer at an alternative school for students with behavioral and emotional problems, learning that these types of assistive technology are becoming more and more accessible to our schools, I was quite pleased with the information I obtained from this article.  I wholeheartedly recommend that anyone who hopes to work with the physically, psychologically or learning disabled in the future should read this article and remember that it is possible if you want something bad enough.

Curtis, D.Disabled Bodies, Able Minds: Giving Voice, Movement and Independence to the Physically Challenged.  Retrieved at http://www.edutopia.org/assistive-technology-class-school-participation

Copyright 101

This article demonstrates the importance of acknowledging work that you use in the instruction of your students by delineating copyright laws and giving examples of when a teacher may copy material to distribute to her students and when she may not do so.

The article lists four examples of what constitute "fair" usage of copyrighted material.  These include (1) the purpose of the use; (2) the nature of the work (3) the amount of the work used in relation to the work as a whole; and (4) the effect of the use on the market or potential income for the work.

Fair use is considered on a case-by-case basis, but some examples of fair use are teachers copying an article for distribution to her students or perhaps copying an article to use in planning a lesson for her upcoming class.  An unfair use example is a teacher copying an entire textbook and distributing the copies to her students.  This affects the author's source of income and is prohibited.

This is a great example of what is copyrighted and what is considered fair use of copyrighted material.  It also delineates the various types of copyrighted material and should be consulted in order to better understand what a teacher can and cannot do in regards to using copyrighted material for her classroom.

Thompson, Kate A. Copyright 101. Learning and Leading with Technology, Vol 39. No. 7
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