Technology Day Two! (and the water works continued!)
Well, the second day of the assistive technology course had me sniffling again...what a powerful video of growth, perseverance and change. It was clear from the first seconds of the video that Tyler (and his family) were exploring a difficult life that they had filled with joy and experience. It was amazing to witness the role that we as educators could play in that joy and growth...okay, I am going to get weepy again so I better transition to my "Aha!" moments. First, I was struck by the life changing impact technology had made in his life both on a day by day basis and on his future trajectory. It was also overwhelming to hear and see him advocating for himself and all students with physical exceptionalities that were not having their needs met in the current school setting. The last note I will make is that of the overarching presence and impact of technology in a variety of forms across his daily life. Far from focusing on the impact of technology on 'core academics' technology was used to open doors to experience music, extra-curricular and build socially inclusive relationships with is peers.
Awesome video...awesome story!
Communication made up the end of our day together and we were sent off to think of 15 different forms of communication...so here is what I am thinking about communication:
1. Verbal
2. Physical
3. Behavioural
4. Pictorial
5. Symbolic
6. Tone
7. Cadence
8. Volume
9. Eye Contact
10. Proximity
11. Gestures
12. Facial Expression
13. Non Verbal Utterances
14. Orientation in Space
15. In Text (like a blog for example!)
Super jazzed to start construction tomorrow on our activities! Until then, I am going to take a break from communicating...wait, would that still be a kind of communication!?!
HAHA thanks Tracy. You noted Behaviour as a means of communication...thankyou! We often forget this mode of communication but it is so prevalent in our schools today.
ReplyDeleteHi Tracy, I giggled my way through parts of your blog as I could picture you making the comments lol I too was very impressed with Tyler's story because it was so amazing to see like you mentioned how AT supported him not only academically, but socially as well. I think we need to always remember there is more to a student than their academic life and that all sides of the student are connected. The more we make their learning authentic to their individual needs socially, emotionally and academically the better prepared they will be to ensure they become positive members of society :)
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