I had a couple of thoughts during our talk on technology and inclusion. From my prior knowledge, I thought of how tech could be used as ways to help diverse learners access educational opportunities. My perspective was limited to assistive technologies like text to speech, speech to text and other softwares to give students equitable access to education.
The metaphor of the invisible backpack stuck with me too. Everyone comes into the classroom with a number of identities we cannot see, but are vital to understanding the student and their needs. This solidified to me the importance of getting to know your students, and makes me think that even though a certain student may not have a designation or any outwardly presenting learning barrier, there may be any. humber of intersectional factors that make participation in class without supports impossible. Assistive technology absolutely should not be confined to those who have designations or visible learning difficulties.
In my classroom going forward, I will really focus on integrating universal supports for learning. Thank you Kaori and Tracy!!
Here is a video of Google Read and Write in action, and some tips for how to use it. It seems to be a great universal assistive technology available!