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In terms of resources, I would be considering using a lot of the Microsoft tools that were mentioned in this course. I think the immersive reader, dictate feature, text to speech and dictionary features would really support a lot of children in my class. I find audiobooks are hugely beneficial, particularly for children who find story time relaxing or regulating but in a busy classroom, it is not always possible to sit with a child for a long period of time to read a story for them. A lot of the phonics apps mentioned on this course would also work very well in my class and are ones I am going to try out this year.
The Inclusive Education Framework highlights that school development planning should be an ongoing process rather than a once off, tick the box activity. Theme 2, Whole-School Development Planning, explains that schools should have a clear vision for inclusion and ensure that their policies, practices, resources and staff development support pupils with special educational needs. Schools are encouraged to reflect regularly on their current practice, identify areas that need improvement and develop an action plan to make positive changes. This Framework highlights collaboration as a key theme and requires the whole school community to work together. The framework also recognises the importance of ongoing professional development for staff so that they are kept up to date and ready to engage with an every-changing educational landscape.
Sharon, I teach a number of children with a similar profile to the one you have outlined. I agree, I think a lot of the apps, resources and softwares that you have mentioned would work really well for this child and indeed for the children in my class too. My gang also find the iPad very motivating!
Fiona, I really enjoyed reading your reflection. I too have a child in my class who is not yet speaking but can read words and match them a photograph. The SETT plan that you described is one that has given me a lot of ideas for the child in my class and has given me the motivation to try out some of these features with them once we return to school. Thank you!
Part 1
I have found the SETT model to be useful and I feel that it compliments the Student Support File very well. It provides structure in ensure that the child’s Assistive Technology is utilised in a collaborative, strengths-based and child-centred way.
I feel that the SETT plan ensures that Assistive Technology is used to best of its ability to support the child in achieving the best of their abilities. The fact that the SETT plan is broken down into 4 headings is a valuable resource, in my opinion. It allows everyone involved in the child’s educational journey to be on the same page in ensure that the child is using their assistive technology for the correct tasks, in the correct environment, at the correct time and that this is all centred around the child’s needs, not what suits the teacher or class best at that time.
Consistency and collaboration are a huge part of the SETT model and they are also a huge part of a child’s SSP. I think the SSP will benefit hugely from the introduction of an SETT model for each child, ensuring that we all strive towards the same goal and reflect constantly on our practice and on the child’s progress and needs, so that their learning can be expanded and scaffolded appropriately.
Part 2
SETT Plan for Student 1
Student:
Student 1 is in 4<sup>th</sup> class in an Autism Class. He integrates into mainstream frequently throughout the day, but finds the literacy elements of his mainstream class and often feels a knock to his confidence during these lessons. Student 1 has excellent verbal reasoning and expression but finds it difficult to focus on a written task, to read ir and to respond to it. If the text is read to him, he can verbally share his responses but needs a lot of support to do this by writing.
Environment:
Student 1 integrates from his Autism Class to his mainstream class throughout the school day and uses an iPad in both his Autism class and in mainstream class. He is supported by an SNA when he integrates into mainstream.
Tasks:
- Read age-appropriate texts with improved fluency and comprehension, supporting him to feel included by his peers.
• Complete written tasks along with his peers through the use of his iPad. - Develop confidence in engaging in literacy tasks.
Tools:
Immersive reader would support this student hugely in allowing them to access the content of the text, and therefore the lesson. The dictate function would allow the student to share their thoughts and ideas, engage in classroom tasks along with their peers and develop their literacy skills. The picture dictionary will further support comprehension and could also be used by the student to share their ideas, thoughts and opinions in a more concise way that relies less on words and more on a visual. This would be hugely beneficial for a child in a classroom that uses a lot of visuals or in a situation where a child communicates using visuals
Part 1:
I have designed a task for a 10 year old child in an Autism Class who loves to read but finds large bodies of text with no illustrations difficult to manage. He wants to read age appropriate texts but would benefit from larger font size, less text on a page and illustrations to support meaning.
The activity would be created using Microsoft PowerPoint and would present a story ofinterest to him in small, manageable sections. Rather than showing a whole paragraph on one slide, each slide would contain only one or two short sentences, with a relevant picture or visual symbol to support understanding. The student can move through the story at their own pace by clicking to the next slide. Each slide would use a consistent layout, large easy-to-read font, plenty of white space and minimal distractions. Key words could be highlighted to support comprehension and the narrator tool could also be used here to support the child in reading the text and to aid comprehension.
This activity is relevant to the student’s learning needs because it reduces the amount of text presented at one time while still encouraging independent reading. The predictable structure and visual supports can make the task feel more manageable and less overwhelming. It also allows the student to experience success with reading, which may increase confidence and motivation. As the student becomes more comfortable, the amount of text could gradually be increased.
Part 2:
I fully believe that teachers are lifelong learners. We need to keep up to speed with an ever-changing landscape within our schools – from advances in technology, changes in school dynamics, nurturing a more inclusive society, policy and curriculum changes, the list of changes happening on a frequent basis are endless.
One of the key principles of Cosán is that professional learning should be meaningful, relevant and connected to teachers’ everyday practice. Teachers need to constantly reflect on their own practice to ensure that we are constantly supporting the children in our schools, our school staff and communities and the changes happening in the education system and beyond. One of my favourite sayings is “when we know better, we do better” and I think this is very closely linked to the key principles of Cosán and of being a teacher.
Monita, I loved reading your reflection and found your idea to use the narrator tool inspiring as it is something that I could use in my own practice. While I don’t currently teach any children with a visual impairment, I am teaching in an Autism Class where a number of our children are minimally speaking or not yet speaking. The narrator tool is one that I can see myself using in my own classroom too.
The immersive reader tool is not one that I have ever come across before and I am so disappointed that it has taken me this long to hear about. I am surprised at how many amazing features that are available to us as teachers and schools, but how under-used they are.
I feel that the text to speech feature is really great for empowering students with literacy difficulties to write, to share their ideas and thoughts and to engage in written tasks that otherwise may have posed challenges for them.
Similarly, the line focus feature is fantastic for emerging readers or those who may get overwhelmed by large bodies of text. I also think that this feature would really aid comprehension, where the student is enabled to focus on a short body of text at a time. The picture dictionary feature will be hugely beneficial in my Autism Class to link in with AAC devices that are used by some of the children in my class.
The translation features available hugely support EAL learners in our schools, but also support communication and collaboration between schools and homes who may not speak the same language. Overall, learning about each of these features has shown me how inclusive, collaborative and empowering digital technology can be in schools and how invaluable it is to use these resources and supports to the best of our ability in schools. Keeping on top of the ever-changing digital landscape is where the challenge lies for me.
I completely agree Sabina, sometimes we feel that we need to purchase new resources, particularly when it comes to digital technology and the ever-expanding and updating resources that come with it. As you said, small changes to existing equipment can make a huge difference to the resources that we have. Supporting children to access the curriculum and their SSP goals can be expanded hugely through the use of digital technologies throughout the school and classroom environment and this does not always need brand new, top of the range technology or resources.
Teaching in an Autism Class, I have a lot of experience of using high-tech AAC devices and low tech AAC, such as talking buttons, in my classroom. I do feel that there is a gap in my practice between using digital technology to aid teaching and learning and my current practice of using digital technology to support communication. While I understand and value that there is a huge link between communication and learning, where I feel my practice is lacking is more in the area of using assistive technology, apps, software and so on. I have already gained some knowledge on other digital technology that I can use in my classroom.
This links well with the Learner Outcome of the Digital Framework, where we are striving to empower students to use digital tools at their own pace to explore topics of interest to them. Student voice and independence is a huge aspect of my role as teacher in an Autism Class and I feel that this standard is one that underpins the culture of my classroom environment. This also links in well with school self-evaluation, where schools will look at how digital technology impacts on school culture, community, inclusion and learning, rather than digital technology being a standalone topic.
I am looking forward to continuing to learn throughout this course and to expand my use of digital technology in my practice, particularly in SEN and in my role as an Autism Class teacher.
- Read age-appropriate texts with improved fluency and comprehension, supporting him to feel included by his peers.