The best way to understand how a child may benefit from using assistive technology to support their learning needs is to let a child who uses assistive technology to support their learning needs tell you how they are successfully doing so! Meet the TechDudes!
Oh my goodness you are going to love the video below if you are a parent or teacher who is wanting to help a child with learning needs using assistive technology.
It maybe that you are working with a child who is reluctant to use technology because it makes them stand out amongst their peers?
Then this video should be watched by parents, teachers and more importantly kids who need support but want to learn with independence and confidence.
Assistive Technology company, Scanning Pens, allowed a group of Primary School pupils from the US called ‘The TechDudes’ take over their YouTube channel with a video explaining how they use Assistive Technology.
The TechDudes describe themselves in the following way…
“We are a small class of 8, we all have learning difficulties, we are all learning new ways to learn.”
“More importantly, we all rely upon technology to make our learning more meaningful.”
These remarkable pupils are incredibly self-aware and explain how they used to behave in class:
“Some of us were faking it!”
“Some of us missed a lot of school.”
“Some of us were just plain old angry!”
For me this is a valuable insight into what is happening for our children with learning needs such as dyslexia, ADHD, Dyspraxia etc.
The video below will give you a good insight into the types of assistive technology that makes a difference to young people and it also highlights how valuable it is to give children access to assistive technology as early as possible in their academic careers.
Personally I believe that if we give all children access to this technology as soon as possible then we have a better chance of developing confident independent learners within our education system which ultimately brings about benefits to our society when they eventually move into the workplace.