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Thank you for sharing your reflection. I completely agree that assistive technology is becoming an essential part of teaching and learning. It’s great that you started by introducing these tools in your support class and then recognised the benefits for all pupils. I really like your point that the accessibility features already available on phones and tablets are valuable life skills for every learner, not just those with additional needs. Your experience highlights how inclusive technology can support independence, confidence, and equal access to learning across the whole classroom.
For me, the greatest reflection from this module is that assistive technology is not about replacing good teaching—it enhances it. In a special school setting, success is often measured through increased communication, improved engagement, greater independence, or a pupil making a choice for the first time. Assistive technology can make these achievements possible. Embedding its use within the School Self-Evaluation process ensures that it becomes part of a whole-school commitment to providing every pupil with the opportunity to communicate, participate, and achieve their individual potential.
Working in a special school with pupils who have severe and profound learning needs has reinforced for me how valuable assistive technology can be in supporting communication, engagement, and independence.
Many of our pupils have complex communication, sensory, physical, and medical needs, so there is no single solution that works for everyone. The practical examples in this module reminded me of the importance of selecting technology that is personalised to each child’s strengths and needs. Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices, switch-accessible activities, eye-gaze technology, visual supports, and sensory apps all have the potential to increase engagement and give pupils more opportunities to make choices, express themselves, and interact with others. Seeing technology as a tool to remove barriers, rather than simply an additional resource, has been a key takeaway for me.
