A review of 38 articles published from 1990 to 2000 on college students with learning disabilities and writing difficulties (LD/WD) found four major topics were discussed: available assistive technology; effectiveness of assistive technology; characteristics and error patterns in the writings of college students with LD/WD; and instructional…

This article summarizes findings regarding the use of technology in helping students with learning disabilities succeed in postsecondary education settings. It identifies specific technology recommendations found in the literature and issues related to using these recommendations in postsecondary transition. Recommendations for transition planning…

Cochlear implants can provide partial hearing to individuals with substantial hearing loss. Because of improvements in early identification and intervention, more children with cochlear implants will be included in elementary school general education classrooms. Thus, general education teachers should be prepared for teaching children with…

To understand the role of early intervention (EI) practitioner confidence in the use and application of assistive technology (AT), a 24-item Assistive Technology Confidence Scale (ATCS) was developed and distributed to EI personnel. This article reports on the development and psychometric properties of the ATCS and the relation between scores on…

Although approximately half of the six million students receiving specialized services for an identified disability are learning disabled, research shows that assistive technologies are far more commonly used with students who manifest physical or sensory disabilities than they are with those with learning disabilities. Assistive technology can…

This brief article describes the Sixth Annual World Congress and Exposition on Disabilities (WCD), held December 1-3, 2005 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For three days, hundreds of people visited more than 150 exhibits, attended more than 80 work sessions on a wide range of special needs issues and were…

This article profiles Amanda Valentin, a 22-year-old woman with cerebral palsy who is a quadriplegic and nonverbal, who uses assistive technology to improve her life. The author was Amanda's assistive technology specialist who trained her to utilize software and hardware efficiently. She describes the steps she took to ensure that the assistive…

This article presents findings from a December, 2005, national assistive technology (AT) Outcomes Summit attended by AT experts representing vendors, higher education, government, and public schools. Discussions conducted centered around three questions: (a) What are the current challenges with the use of technology and AT in assessment of…

Background: In the context of the established finding that theory-of-mind (ToM) growth is seriously delayed in late-signing deaf children, and some evidence of equivalent delays in those learning speech with conventional hearing aids, this study's novel contribution was to explore ToM development in deaf children with cochlear implants. Implants…

An experimental procedure was developed to investigate word-learning skills of children who use cochlear implants (CIs). Using interactive play scenarios, 2- to 5-year olds were presented with sets of objects (Beanie Baby stuffed animals) and words for their names that corresponded to salient perceptual attributes (e.g., "horns" for a goat). Their…

To facilitate evaluations of cochlear implant candidates and to promote (re)habilitation efficacy and collaboration with families, this study examined the expectations of 35 mothers with typical hearing and their beliefs and difficulties related to their child's hearing loss and current or future cochlear implantation. Questionnaires measured…

This study examined parental preference of play outcomes and selection of toys and assistive technology used in meeting the identified outcomes for children, birth to 3, with developmental delays. Additionally, parent satisfaction related to how well selected materials assisted their child in meeting play outcomes was measured. Participants…

The acquisition of case and gender marking on the definite and indefinite article was studied in a sample of 6 normally-hearing children and 9 children with cochlear implants. Longitudinal spontaneous speech data are used. Children were matched by MLU, with 4 MLU levels: 1.8, 2.8, 3.6, 4.8. Age ranges for normally-hearing children were 1;4 to 3;8…

The value of identifying permanent hearing loss during the first few months of life and providing effective treatment to ameliorate or even eliminate the negative consequences has been recognized for many decades. Unfortunately, improvements in achieving this goal were very gradual until the early 1990s. At that time, the combination of…

The current model of early intervention with children who are deaf or hard of hearing emphasizes parental self-efficacy and involvement. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between mothers' self-efficacy beliefs and involvement and children's language skills in a group of mothers of children who are deaf or hard of…