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Presenter(s)
Kevin Reinhardt
Email: kevin.reinhardt@senecac.on.ca
416 491 5050 ext 2900
Sherri Parkins
Email: sherri.parkins@senecac.on.ca
416 491 5050 ext 6137
We have all been inundated with the message that we need a steady diet of expensive software to meet the needs of students with learning difficulties. At Seneca College students can receive training in the use of technology to assist in reading, writing, and studying. Years of frustration and being unsuccessful means that these tasks are approached with apprehension, trepidation or procrastination. In writing they report difficulties getting started, feel overwhelmed by the task, and/or the physical writing task is difficult and labour intensive. They often struggle with the writing process itself. Reading can cause fatigue and in spite of intense effort yield little in terms of comprehension.
The use of technology or a word processor alone cannot eliminate writing and reading difficulties but can enhance student performance. MacArthur (1999) states that technological tools can make writing easier as well as more motivating for students with learning disabilities. Using a word processing program does not eliminate all errors. A spell checker, for example, will not eliminate spelling errors or 'miss steaks'. In fact, students with learning disabilities only correct about one half of their errors when using such assistance (MacArthur, 1996). The use of word prediction software has been shown to positively affect the amount of writing produced (Wiig & Semmel, 1980). Students gain access to a wider range of words which encourage a greater flow of ideas (Laine & Bristow 1999). In addition, other researchers have shown that reading may be improved through the use of technology, such as text-to-speech. Improvements in reading were noted for comprehension, fluency, and conc! entration (Leong, 1992; Lundberg & Olofsson, 1993). Assistive reading technology allows students to pay better attention to their reading. It can also reduce distractibility. It is reported that they experience less stress and fatigue, were able to read faster and for longer periods of time (Hecker, L. Burns, L., Elkind, J. Elkind, K. 2002).
We believe that we can demonstrate, by combining word prediction, word processing, text to speech features, and speech to text, a method of inducing lasting gains in reading comprehension and writing. You will be able to show your students how to construct and use studying tools. We also believe that we can show you how to accomplish this and spend less than $300.00 in addition to the costs of a standard computer with a word processor and scanner installed.
The 'marriage' of WordQ features to Microsoft Word is taught from the viewpoint of how we can use the features of these programs to enhance the reading, writing and study skills of students. WordQ is a writing tool for people of all ages and levels of writing ability. We will show its uses along with Microsoft Word. Techniques used to train WordQ's word prediction and language assistance will be presented. The use of text-to-speech feedback, including the reading of menus, buttons, text and aural editing of work will be shown. Skills are emphasized such as "cut and paste," synonym functions, auto-correct, phonetic error correction, find and replace, voice comment, spell and grammar check, and the use of wizards and templates in combination with all other techniques. Study skills features can be developed using the built in features of Microsoft Word allowing a student to prepare verbal cues, definitions and answers to questions for self-quizzing study purposes. Extraction of t! ext for organizing study notes or construction of cue cards will be presented. Examples will be presented. We discuss WordQ shortcomings and other available software options. Demo CDs will be distributed.
Research findings will be presented in reading comprehension, for five different groups over the past five years. The results show significant gains made by our diverse students who experience learning challenges. Statistics showing decrease in attrition rates of students who access services for training in adaptive technology versus those who did not will be shared.
References
Hecker, L. Burns, L., Elkind, J. Elkind, K. (2002) Benefits of Assistive Reading Software for Students with Attention. Annals of Dyslexia.
Laine, C. J. & Bristow, A. (1999). Using manual word-prediction technology to cue students' writing. Paper presented at California State University Northridge, 14th Annual Conference: technology and Persons with Disabilities, Los Angeles, California (March 18).
Leong, C.K. (1992). Enhancing reading comprehension with text-to-speech (DECtalk) computer system. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 4, 205-217.
MacArthur, C. (1999). Overcoming barriers to writing: Computer support for basic writing skills. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 15, 169 192.
MacArthur, C. (1996). Using technology to enhance the writing performance of students with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 29, 344 354.
Wiig, E. H., & Semmel, E. M. (1980). Language assessment and intervention for the learning disabled. Columbus, OH: Merrill
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