Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Helping Children with Autism via iPad Apps...What does this mean for ALL children?

I rarely watch televised news programs because it is just easier to visit the website then pick and choose to watch what interests me. On Sunday, while skimming through a DVR recorded event that was postponed due to a football game, I stopped and watched a news program on 60 Minutes.

The story involved the use of an iPad as an outlet of communication for some children diagnosed with Autism. Several students, aged toddler to adult, demonstrated the benefits and communication aspects of the iPad. One of the greatest tragedies of Autism is that many of the students are trapped within themselves, unable to effectively communicate their needs, wants, emotions, and thoughts that we know exist. The iPad seems to have helped many of these children express themselves as parents and teachers always hoped but never expected they would.

Like all technologies, no one can effectively predict what long-term impact this technology will have on children with Autism and all children. Will we decide that the benefits are only for children identified with a "disorder"? Should we refrain from allowing "normal" children to use this technology because it may rewire their brain in some manner making these children harder to teach using traditional models of education?

I hope that educators do not allow the fear of the nontraditional dictate their opinion and use of new technologies. This story went beyond my academic interests. My own daughter exhibited and still does show some signs of being within the spectrum of Autism. As an infant, she rarely took naps, showed minimal interest in the emotions of others, tended to not make eye contact, was obsessed with lining things up and creating order, and when she began speaking she often expressed herself in the form of stories rather than traditional expressions of self. She was interested in the computer so I set up an account for her as soon as she could understand how to click and make things happen...sometime shortly after her first birthday. She began to modify many of her behaviors soon after.

I don't know if using the computer helped her. I'm not sure if playing Sesame Street and Starfall until, at least on one occasion, she fell asleep with her head on the keyboard resulted in changed behaviors through the repetitive modeling and digital interactions. What I do know is that my belief in the necessity of incorporating authentic use of technology into our system of education seems to be repeatedly validated in study after study that demonstrate increased motivation, collaborative thinking, developmental gains, and now possibly developmental acceleration in language and communication skills for the students that actively participate in authentic digital and online activities. I also know that my daughter and son have minimal interaction with computers at school indicating that many teachers are ignorant of these benefits and how to make use of the technology, or simply choose not to use the technology as a result of their own beliefs or fears.

The education revolution has begun, will you choose 100 years of tradition and rhetoric that support creating the Model A student through the factory teaching model designed to create a standardized student or will you choose applications and methods that are current and relevant allowing students to explore topics from their strengths, developing the whole child, each one as different and creative from the next in their own unique way.

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