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Conference shows new ways to hear, see and teach Hundreds of educators throughout California witnessed the latest technology during the Claremont Assistive Technology (AT) Conference on April 25 inside Harvey Mudd College’s Galileo Hall. Co-sponsored by Danbury School and the California Association for Physical & Health Impairments (CAPHI), the conference exposed teachers to a variety of communication devices and strategies to enhance learning in the classroom for special education students. “It was a good turnout and we had some good people come down and share their expertise,” said Danbury Principal Stephen Hamilton. “Dr. Klawe was so nice to allow us to come here. A lot of teachers don’t know about this stuff and the communication devices are really amazing.” The conference included 8 sessions ranging from topics such as demonstrating technology to strategies on how to get funding for assistive technology. Venders such as Dynavox and Blink Twice were a sample of the vendors in attendance displaying their latest gadgets. According to CALPHI representative Sherry Best, one of the more significant purposes of the event was to provide a venue for the interaction between educators who share a common ambition. “This conference is about making sure teachers interact with each other and with those that are trained in technology because technology is moving so fast,” Ms. Best explained. “Because not many people have severe disabilities, the teachers who work with those students are oftentimes isolated. This conference provided them the opportunity to get connected with other teachers and get specialized training.” DynaVox spokesperson Rick Hohn’s presentation during the late morning session inspired the audience after sharing his success story from his wheelchair on stage. Born with cerebral palsy in 1947, Mr. Hohn still leads an active life as a motivational speaker, artist, minister and consultant.
Using a headset device with a pointer used to enter commands on a keyboard attached to his wheelchair, Mr. Hohn can communicate with others without speaking a single word. The DynaVox device itself speaks whatever words he inputs on the keyboard. “It is my joy to empower others,” Mr. Holm told the COURIER. “It took me a couple of weeks to learn how to use my current device because I have other devices.” Blink Twice’s Tango communication device was the focus of an afternoon session with presenters Joshua Witt and Patrick Brune. The Tango is an Alternative and Augmentative Communication machine intended for children, teenagers and adults who are unable to speak. Weighing just over 2 pounds, the portable device is customizable and features programmable phrases and stories. The machine can create a customizable voice to speak each word. A camera is attached to the unit so pictures can be used as icons within the program. “We started out small doing what we could manage,” Mr. Brune said. “Now we’re really listening to what people are saying and incorporating it into the device.” Danbury student Elina Hughes has used Tango for approximately one year. The 12-year-old gave a demonstration of the device, putting together multiple phrases including jokes. “I like it [Tango] a lot,” Elina said. “It makes interaction a lot easier.” Coming from Santa Clarita, therapist Gloria Cassidy was impressed by the conference overall. Ms. Cassidy believes devices such as Tango are helping to give children opportunities they didn’t have before. “The amazing thing about this is the spontaneous part of it (Tango),” Ms. Cassidy said. “You can take pictures and then program it into the device for the person to use. Wow.”
—Landus Rigsby |
