Christopher Abbott

Special Schools, Inclusion and the World Wide Web—the emerging research agenda

A comprehensive survey of UK special schools and Pupil Referral Units (PRUs) has shown that the rapid increase in Internet use on the part of mainstream schools has not been mirrored in special education. Despite this situation, interviews with IT coordinators and Headteachers in special schools and PRUs indicate some of the reasons for creation of special school WWW homepages. The interview data indicates concerns relating to issues of separation and inclusion that have been increased by recent moves towards inclusion as a goal within the special education sector.

Defining assistive technologies ‐ a discussion

Definitions of assistive technology are varied and sometimes contradictory and this raises particular issues for a new Journal seeking to address this area. A preference for loose and wide definitions is seen as leading to a more inclusive grasp of the field. Disability itself is a contested concept and this has affected the approach taken to technology use for groups that have been identified as having special educational needs. A key focus of the Journal of Assistive Technologies is on the practices of technology use, rather than the tools themselves, and this is discussed in the light of the social model of inclusion. The use of the term e‐Inclusion leads to a discussion of a tentative taxonomy of this area: technology to train and rehearse; technology to assist learning and technology to enable learning. Practitioners and researchers from a range of backgrounds are invited to contribute to the debates raised in this article.

Fool's Gold or Hidden Treasure: Are Computers Stifling Creativity?.

A description of a recent report issued by the US-based Alliance for Childhood indicates the main criticisms made of the use of ICT in primary education. These criticisms are considered and the arguments developed in the report are examined. The effect of the reports publication is also discussed, as is the media response in the US and beyond. As a partial answer to the reports claims regarding creativity and computers, two practitioners provide case study evidence of the ways in which ICT has been used to develop innovative classroom activities. The paper concludes with a call for enlightened discourse in this area rather than polemical stance-taking.

Emerging issues and current trends in assistive technology use 2007-2010: practising, assisting and enabling learning for all

Abstract Following an earlier review in 2007, a further review of the academic literature relating to the uses of assistive technology (AT) by children and young people was completed, covering the period 2007–2011. As in the earlier review, a tripartite taxonomy: technology uses to train or practise, technology uses to assist learning and technology uses to enable learning, was used in order to structure the findings. The key markers for research in this field and during these three years were user involvement, AT on mobile mainstream devices, the visibility of AT, technology for interaction and collaboration, new and developing interfaces and inclusive design principles. The paper concludes by locating these developments within the broader framework of the Digital Divide. Implications for Rehabilitation The rapid move to mainstream mobile devices is challenging to providers of assistive learning technologies, to those who commission and advise on these technologies and to those who fund in this area. Recent research around assistive learning technologies is moving away from being solely oriented around product evaluation and towards a user-centred approach. Current and developing interfaces, such as brain control and eye gaze, offer potential for assistive learning technology support for those to whom no such devices were valid in the past. There is a need for longitudinal research related to the uses of assistive learning technologies.

Methodological issues in researching online representations: production, classification and personal web space

This paper argues that if education practitioners, policy‐makers and researchers are to gain insights from new forms of online self‐representations, there is a need to take stock of research involving homepages in order to identify important methodological issues and lessons that need to be addressed in future research. Home page authorship research is characterized as being associated either with production or classification, very much as other areas of research in literacy such as new literacy studies and multimodality have identified process and product. In this paper, key aspects of research into homepage authorship are reviewed and tensions and contradictions identified. From this review four key implications for methodology are discussed: the varying degree to which content or context are defined in research; the interaction between researcher and researched, within learning disability contexts and more widely; a consideration of the sometimes blurred distinction between public and private online spaces and a wider discussion of the ethical issues facing researchers.

Animation: children, autism and new possibilities for learning

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to discover whether and to what extent children with autism can find the production of animations useful for their learning and self‐experience. The study seeks to understand how the participants produce animations and what implications this has had for their learning abilities and social interaction skills.Design/methodology/approach – Through a mixed methods approach, but with participant observation as paramount, the authors worked with two children identified as being on the autistic spectrum to document their understanding and use of animation as a tool for concept development and for narrative and meaning‐making.Findings – The project showed that the two participants in question gained greater learner autonomy through their involvement in animation. Teachers also reported that they understood more about the two students than had previously been the case. One participant has become much more actively involved in learning processes than before and sees herself in a n...

tiresias.org Information resource for people working in the field of visual disabilities

Tiresias.org is a website set up by the RNIB Scientific Research Unit (SRU) to provide information and resources for people working in the field of visual disabilities, but the site and its linked publications offer much that is of use to a wide range of users. A glance at the What’s New listing for 2007 shows resources as varied as web accessibility guidelines, e-voting, international ICT accessibility standards and involving people with disabilities in the standardisation process. The latter is an excellent document and contains much to ponder. Much of the content on tiresias.org has evolved from the Cost219ter European project, which was concerned with increasing the accessibility of future and developing network services and equipment to the elderly and those with disabilities. This means that, although the site focuses mainly on visual difficulties, there is much more here as well. For example, under Guidelines it is possible to search under headings such as ‘hearing impaired’, ‘physically impaired’ or ‘older people’. Searching on ‘cognitively impaired’ leads to further information under headings such as ‘dyslexia’, ‘learning disabilities’, ‘language disabilities’ and ‘dementia’. Following each of these headings leads to well-written and clear information and statistics, as well as a wide range of links to organisations offering further information. The Cost219ter site is still available at www. tiresias.org/cost219ter/index.html, and this is another example of the ways in which this site is continuing to disseminate valuable information. Tiresias.org is not just an information and link directory however; there is much here in the form of publications that can be downloaded in PDF or other formats, and at no cost. Among many recent publications are: l Making Life Easier – how new telecommunication services could benefit people with disabilities l Equal Measures – closing the accessibility gap l Involving People with Disabilities in the Standardisation Process l an international list of organisations that assess technology for disabled and older people.

ICT: An Aid to Inclusion? Reflections on the Potential of ICT for the Changing Role of the Special School

Inclusion has been an aim for many national education systems but progress has, in some countries, been slow or halting. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been a key factor in the greater inclusion of individuals with special educational needs, either by enabling them to communicate more readily and widely, or by assisting them to overcome their learning difficulties. The paper examines the extent to which ICT can contribute to social change by redefining the role of the special school. A case study of one special school, given a range of support and resources, attempts to discover the potential of ICT in this area. If a school is provided with appropriate hardware and software, training in ICT for all teachers, and the support of a specialised advisory teacher, can that school develop valuable resources for the wider education community? How should these resources be disseminated? The progress of the case study is described through the use of semi-structured interviews, diaries and commentary, and a number of emerging issues are identified.