jerrod l. bain and caroline l. burdett. specific difficulties producing written language (szklut,...
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ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY AND STUDENTS WITH DYSGRAPHIA
Jerrod L. Bain and Caroline L. Burdett
WHAT IS DYSGRAPHIA?
Specific difficulties producing written language (Szklut, & Breath, 2001). -- Forming letters and using a pen and paper
Energies are diverted toward the physical process of writing itself (Richards, 1999).
Can interfere with students’ abilities to learn since teachers often depend on written work to measure learning (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2001).
“Writing skills are substantially below those expected given the person’s chronological age, measured intelligence, and age appropriate education,” which “significantly interferes with academic achievement or activities of daily living that require composition of written texts” (American Psychiatric Association, 1994).
Verbal organization and production of information far exceeds the ability to do the same via written expression (Kronenberger, 2003).
WHAT DOES DYSGRAPHIA LOOK LIKE? Students are often be misjudged as lazy or
unmotivated given their poor handwriting or sloppy work on written assignments.
Teacher interview: low self-esteem, high anxiety levels, lack of
motivation to write, and poor quality in writing assignments Also, poor handwriting, difficulty organizing ideas, poor spelling, and weak sentence structure
struggle to elaborate on ideas, and they spend more time on written assignments than their peers
WRITING SAMPLES
http://www.donjohnston.com/media/flash/cowriter_student_samples/index.html
MORE WRITING SAMPLES
http://www.donjohnston.com/media/flash/cowriter_student_samples/index.html
TOOL 1: INSPIRATION / KIDSPIRATION
TOOL 1: INSPIRATION / KIDSPIRATION
Concept mapping software Brainstorm and organize graphically Various view options Presentation manager Differentiate instruction Individualized needs addressed
TOOL 2: CO:WRITER 6
TOOL 2: CO:WRITER 6
Word prediction software Works with any program that accepts
text Multisensory Word suggestions and prompts Speech feature for words and
sentences Topic dictionaries
TOOL 3: NEO 2 KEYBOARD
TOOL 3: NEO 2 KEYBOARD
Wireless keyboard Assists in writing, revising, and editing Link and upload files for collaboration Individualize and differentiate practice Monitor student progress Works with other AT software
ADDITIONAL STRATEGIES
Teacher Interview: Allow extra time whenever possible
When allowed by the school
Do not over-penalize students for spelling errors
Be patient and positive!