Assistive Technology

Universal Accessibility is a very useful tool that teachers can implement into their daily lesson plans to help diverse learners and those with special needs. Computer technology has become a major component in the classroom and most schools today have some kind of access to a computer or computer lab for its students to use and learn from. Computer software can be used across all subject areas and for all grade levels. Universal Accessibility makes it even easier for some students to be able to use the computers and be able to get the most out of their learning experiences.

For this assignment I was a little nervous about finding a tool on my computer that would work well with students that I could be potentially teaching. I spent some time searching around on all my control panels and tools to find something that I found interesting. Under the Start menu I have an icon of a computer mouse on my control panel. I decided to click on it just to see what it would happen. I discovered that you could change the pointer speed as well as some other interesting things. These features could be very useful for teachers to turn on when they have students that have difficulties using or controlling their hand movements.

Some of the mouse features include:
• Double Click Speed – this allows the user to change how fast they have to double click the mouse in order to open up a certain folder.
• Click Lock – this feature allows the use to highlight or drag an item without holding down the mouse button.
• Can change what the Pointer looks like in order for the user to be able to see it better. You can change it to different shapes and colors.
• Pointer Speed – this allows the user to change how fast the pointer moves.

The Double Click Speed feature would allow students who do not have a fast enough reaction time to click on folders or programs at a speed convenient for them so they do not become frustrated before the assignment even begins. If a student gets caught up getting into a program this could throw him or her off for the rest of the activity. They will be worried about getting behind and not paying attention to what they need to be doing.

The Click Lock feature would be useful in math programs such as Geometers Sketchpad and Geometry Explorer. In these programs the students can use tools to create different shapes by dragging the mouse button around the screen. If students have trouble holding down the mouse button and dragging the shape around at the same time then they will spend too much time trying to figure out how to make the shape and less time learning. This feature could also be helpful for students who just have problems controlling their hand movements and would allow them to more easily complete their assignments. Changing the mouse setting to the Click Lock feature would allow the student to just click on the place they would like to draw the shape, let off of the mouse, and then just drag the mouse around the screen until they get the desired shape.

Changing what the pointer looks like on the screen would be useful for those students who have problems seeing it or keeping track of where it is on the screen. On my computer I can change my pointer to animals and fruits as well as bigger arrows and pointers. This would let the students easily see the pointer and be able to better function with the programs and software.

The student or teacher can change the Pointer Speed to a speed that the student is comfortable using and can more easily function with. Some times the pointer moves to fast and the student cannot keep up with where it is on the screen. Slowing the speed down would make it easier for this type of student to use the computer. If the pointer is moving too quickly across the screen then the student may become confused and frustrated and not be able to complete the assignment to the best of his or her ability.

All computers have many different Universal Accessibility tools that teachers can use to make their classroom more friendly for all students. Accessibility is very important for learning and all teachers should try their best to incorporate these features into their lessons and activities so all students can learn.