‘Universal design’ boosts inclusion and achievement with use of computers, software

The Boston Globe documents a movement in education that integrates computer technology and software into mainstream curriculum, allowing students with disabilities to work alongside their peers in general education classes. The practice, called universal design …

… allows children with special needs to feel included in a school’s social life, provides for a more equitable education, and better prepares them for life outside school, supporters say.

“You’ve made it almost seamlessly accessible,” said Jennifer Edge-Savage, director of implementation services for Kurzweil Educational Systems, a Bedford company that develops reading technology for those with learning difficulties or visual impairments. “When you’re surrounded by technology in a classroom, that one student with a laptop doesn’t look so out of place anymore.”

… Technology has been used for special education for decades, but the advent of the federal No Child Left Behind Act and the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act have spurred more intense efforts to mesh technology with mainstream curriculum. The education act requires educators to consider technology for students with special needs so they can be accommodated in the general classroom.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008 at 5:43 am and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, News_2_Use, curriculum, education. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post