By Aarul Malaviya
Education is one of the greatest enablers for building a successful and fulfilling career. And this applies to everyone including the differently-abled students, who form a substantial proportion of the school student population in the country. At a time when edtech platforms, tools, devices and processes are increasingly finding traction and acceptance among the wider learner audience, the whole classroom experience for students as well as instructors has been changing in multiple ways. And personalised learning has been one of the cornerstones of a differentiated learning experience for learners facilitated by new-age edtech. Indeed, with the wide array of assistive learning devices and solutions that are making their presence felt among differently-abled students today, edtech is not only giving a new impetus to the learning journeys of these school children but also shaping a more inclusive educational landscape in the country.
In what ways is edtech and particularly the modern assistive tools and devices coming to the aid of differently-abled children and even providing the latter a high degree of personalised learning.
What is personalised learning?
Broadly speaking, personalised learning is a learner-centred process that adapts the pedagogy, curriculum and learning environment to the needs, interests, aptitudes and motivations of individual learners.In the same vein, for the differently-abled, apart from the pedagogy and curriculum, it is the assistive tools and devices that exemplify the adaptation of the learning environment to the needs of these children with special needs.
Different disabilities, different tech-based devices/solutions
And edtech with its wide range of assistive devices and solutions – from low-tech to mid-tech to high-tech – caters to most kinds of disability found in differently-abled children. For instance, for visually impaired students or those with print disabilities, there are options such as specially-designed braille keyboards, multi-line braille displays,text-to-speech apps,screen readers, magnification software that enlarges the font, voice recorders etc. The text-to-speech apps are also useful for those with conditions of dyslexia, autism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In fact, for children with significant cognitive disabilities, there are basic low-tech graphic organisers, also known as knowledge maps, that allow students to organise as well as establish relationships between different ideas and concepts using different visual symbols.Graphic organisers are particularly useful for children who are pre-disposed to learn visually. Similarly, cue cards are another low-tech solution that helps children with learning disabilities.Likewise, for students who are deaf, or hard of hearing, there are assistive listening systems and speech-recognition technologies available including speech-to-text software solutions. In addition, there are soundfield systems that not only help children with hearing problems but also deal with central auditory processing disorders, language delays and developmental delays. For those with reading problems, apart from notepads and audiobooks, there is an assortment of reading solutions including optical character recognition (OCR) systems or reading machines and highlighter strips.For students who may have some mobility issues in their hands and have difficulty in writing, there is a host of writing tools and solutions including computerised pens, pencil grips and slant boards in addition to apps that predict words, and help in grammar and spell checks. Furthermore, for students with motor disabilities, there are sip and puff (SNP) devices; these are switch devices that allow the child to operate a computer or a mobile by way of ‘taking a sip’ or ‘blowing a puff’. Some of the other switch devices are push buttons, chin switches, eye trackers and joysticks.
Edtech caters to subject-wise needs
Apart from the disability factor, edtech is also serving the subject-wise needs and requirements of differently abled children. Mathematics has been one of the most common causes of fear and anxiety not only for regular school children but also for differently abled students. So, a large number of apps have come up today intending to make learning and practising mathematics easy, fun and interesting for disabled children.There are edtech startups that employ gamification techniques and are exclusively focused on learning and teaching maths. In a similar vein, several apps have emerged promising to improve language and comprehension proficiencies of children with special needs. Also, there are apps available today that are aimed at improving the communication skills of differently-abled children.
Edtech addresses distinct learning styles too
Just like most regular children, differently-abled children also have individual learning styles. Edtech and its offerings address and accommodate different learning styles too. While some students may be better at grasping things visually, some are inclined to use auditory stimuli more often and with greater efficiency. Similarly, some may be kinesthetic learners, those who prefer to learn by doing. Some even lean towards making sense out of verbal or linguistic cues and tend to make use of reading and writing more often. Alternatively, some logical learners are good at recognizing patterns and making connections. Then some social learners feel at home in a group setting where they learn more effectively, as opposed to solitary learners who prefer to learn on their own. Notably, the distinct learning style could well be a result of the specific disability that a child may have. However, what is important is that the wide range of devices and solutions or different combinations of them take care of each of these learning styles, thereby personalising the learning process for children.
Therefore, edtech and the related products and services including assistive devices have not only helped the differently-abled children overcome their limitations but also improved accessibility to learning, a fundamental right for them. While accommodating their individual learning styles, edtech helping them to overcome their individual limitations essentially amounts to enabling a personalised learning environment for the children. As such, edtech also provides these children with a sense of autonomy as well as purpose in their pursuit of learning. Equally important is that it facilitates their joining the mainstream educational process, as an important equaliser of sorts.
The author is the Founder of Zamit.