This pamphlet introduces assistive technology (AT) as an essential support to daily living for people with disabilities. It describes AT's benefits to those who cannot afford devices, the agencies and programs involved in AT reuse, and how we can improve AT reuse. The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative…

The legislative and policy background for evidence-based practice (EBP) is presented with implications for research on assistive technology (AT) research in general and for the AT consideration process specifically. Requirements for the development of research-based evidence of AT effectiveness are presented as a guide for researchers and…

The hottest technology trends in higher education today can be boiled down to two roughly converse capabilities: the delivery of time- and space-shifted instruction to individual students (think podcasts), and the coordination of disparate-source content within the classroom, for enriched group experiences. The first is taking advantage of…

Having read about the 2008 Medicare and Medicaid budgets, the author concluded that more families are going to be turned down for the equipment they are going to need. Here he shares a story of hope, determination, and perseverance. A call came into the ExoMotion office from an anxious mother asking about strollers for her daughter with special…

This study examined the relationships between identity orientations and attitudes toward cochlear implant (CI). A total of 115 deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) adolescents completed a demographic questionnaire, the Deaf Identity Developmental Scale (DIDS) and an attitudes toward CI questionnaire. The DIDS results showed that participants'…

Purpose: To assess the effects of short- and long-term changes in auditory feedback on vowel and sibilant contrasts and to evaluate hypotheses arising from a model of speech motor planning. Method: The perception and production of vowel and sibilant contrasts were measured in 8 postlingually deafened adults prior to activation of their cochlear…

Narrative abilities have been linked to literacy, communicative competence and development of identity. Children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) may be at risk for difficulties in the development of narrative skills due to differences in their language learning opportunities and limitations of their AAC systems. The…

A considerable body of evidence obtained from studies of children who are deaf and who use cochlear implants has been useful in guiding practices that lead to higher levels of English language proficiency and age-appropriate literacy. Both (a) research conducted at implant centers and (b) educational programs with significant numbers of children…

A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to (a) determine the prevalence of need for wheel-chair seating intervention in two long-term care facilities in Vancouver, BC, (b) determine the extent of the residents' independent mobility within these facilities, and (c) explore the relationship between proper wheel-chair seating and…

This article illustrates how teachers can infuse best practices from both gifted and talented education and information technology to benefit gifted and talented students through the creation of a virtual classroom learning environment. The author has used this assignment in an assistive technology course as an assignment for teacher preparation…

Developing countries face many obstacles in the process of implementing inclusive education (IE). Effective use of assistive technologies (AT) can help governments in developing countries achieve inclusive education by helping children with disabilities in schools. Despite the importance and positive impact of AT, prior research on the use of AT…

The purpose of this guide is to help families prepare for those times during which their child moves from one environment to another and from one developmental stage to another. The focus of the guide is on the role of assistive technology (AT) during those times--how to consider a child's evolving AT needs, how to identify and address the AT…

With detailed discussion and invaluable video footage of 23 treatment interventions for speech sound disorders (SSDs) in children, this textbook and DVD set should be part of every speech-language pathologist's professional preparation. Focusing on children with functional or motor-based speech disorders from early childhood through the early…

Baltimore's school-based vision-screening program may be leaving thousands of children with uncorrected eyesight problems. Vision screening in public schools is essential for students to learn, especially when low-income children face a high rate of eyesight problems and have poor access to health care. Left undetected and uncorrected, vision…

The specialty preparation program within the speech-language pathology master's degree program at Nazareth College in Rochester, New York, was designed to train speech-language pathologists to work with children who are deaf and hard of hearing, ages 0 to 21. The program is offered in collaboration with the Rochester Institute of Technology,…