REFERRAL AND ASSESSMENT FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

1. STAGE:1 ONCE A STUDENT IS REFERRED, EITHER BY A FAMILY MEMBER, A REFERRING AGENCY, A PHYSICAN, OR ANOTHER SCHOOL PROFESSIONAL, A TEAM MEETS TO CONSIDER THE REQUEST. THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL HAVE A FORM CONTAINING THE INFORMATION THE TEAM MUST CONSIDER. THE TEAM WILL WANT TO ORGANIZE AND CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION: -STUDENT DATA OR PERSONAL INFORMATION -MEDICAL DATA FOR VITAL CONCERNS -VISION AND HEARING REPORTS -INFORMATION ABOUT ANY TECHNOLOGY OR EQUIPMENT CURRENTLY IN USE -BACKGROUND INFORMATION REGARDING ANY RELATED SERVICES PROVIDED PREVIOUSLY FOR THE STUDENT

2. STAGE 2: ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT DURING DIRECT OBSERVATION, THE AT SPECIALIST SPENDS TIME FOCUSED ON OBSERVING THE STUDENT’S ABILITIES AND SKILLS, INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING: -COGNITIVE SKILLS -CURRENT USE OF ANY AT DEVICES-SENSORY SKILLS-MOTOR SKILLS -COMMUNICATION SKILLS-SOCIAL SKILLS THESE OBSERVATIONS SHOULD TAKE PLACE ACROSS TIMES AND ENVIRONMENTS. FOR OLDER STUDENTS WHO CHANGES CLASSES MULTIPLE TIMES PER DAY, THE OBSERVATIONS SHOULD BE MADE, IF ALL POSSIBLE, IN ALL OF THE ENVIRONMENTS. FOR YOUNGER STUDENTS, IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO OBSERVE DURING ACTIVE LEARNING EVENTS AS WELL AS PLAYTIME. OBSERVATIONS PROVIDE FEEDBACK TO THE IEP TEAM ON BEHAVIORS THAT MAY BE INTERFERING WITH THE STUDENT’S ABILITY TO BE A SUCCESSFUL LEARNER. THEY ALSO ALLOW COMPARISONS TO BE MADE BETWEEN BEHAVIORS OF THE STUDENT WITH A DISABILITY AND TYPICALLY DEVELOPING PEERS. INTERVIEWS ALLOW THE SPECIALIST TO GATHER INFORMATION ABOUT SPECIFIC AREAS OF INTEREST AND GIVE PARENTS, TEACHERS, AND THE STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPRESS THEIR EXPERIENCES, INTERESTS, AND CONCERNS. THESE INTERVIEWS CAN YIELD A WEALTH OF USEFUL INFORMATION, INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING: -FAMILY CONCERNS AND EXPECTATIONS, -PERCEIVED NEEDS AND ABILITIES OF THE STUDENT,-ACADEMIC EXPECTATIONS, DIAGNOSTIC INFORMATION, MEDICAL INFORMATION. IN ADDITION, FOR OLDER STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES MAKING THE TRANSITION FROM SCHOOL TO THE ADULT WORLD, THE INTERVIEW SHOULD INCLUDE INDEPENDENT LIVING AND VOCATIONAL PERFORMANCE FORMAL ASSESSMENT: A FORMAL AT ASSESSMENT GENERALLY INVOLVES SELECTED ACTIVITIES IN PREDETERMINED ENVIRONMENTS. ONE AREA OF NEED IN AT IS THE DEVELOPMENT, AND PUBLICATION OF FORMAL AT INSTRUMENTS. BECAUSE THESE INTRUMENTS ARE SCARCE, THE AT SPECIALIST MAY USE INSTRUMENTS THAT WERE NOT DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR ASSESSING AT BUT THAT ALLOW INFERENCES TO BE MADE ABOUT HOW THE STUDENT’S SKILLS ARE INTERRELATED WITH THE NEED FOR AT.

3. STEP 3: THE INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM TEAM. THE SELECTION AN IMPLEMENTATION OF AT ARE NOT INDIVIDUALS’ DECISIONS AND SHOULD BE APPROACHED WITH THE TEAM CONCEPT IN MIND, AS ALREADY DISCUSSED. THE IEP TEAM, WHICH IS MULTIDISCIPLINARY IN NATURE, WILL MAKE IT’S DECISIONS BASED ON THE REPORT GIVEN BY THE AT SPECIALIST AND IN LIGHT OF OTHER INFORMATION FOUND IN THE STUDENT’S IEP. THE TEAM SHOULD CAREFULLY CONSIDER THE STUDENT’S LEARNING GOALS AND SEE HOW THE AT ALLOWS THE STUDENT TO ACCESS THE CURRICULUM. OTHER DECISIONS MADE BY THE IEP TEAM INCLUDE TRAINING NEEDS FOR THE STUDENT AND FOR THOS WORKING WITH THE STUDENT. THIS INCLUDES THE FAMILY. TRAINING ISSUES SHOULD BE DISCUSSED AND DECISIONS MADE AT THE TIME THE IEP IS DEVELOPED. THE TEAM MAY CONSIDER DEVICE TRIALS BEFORE MAKING A FULL INVESTMENT IN THE AT DEVICE. DEVISE TRIALS: AFTER THE TEAM DECIDES THAT THE STUDENT NEEDS AT FOR ACCESS AND SUPPORT AND DETERMINES THE DEVICE OR DEVICES THE STUDENT MAY NEED, IT IS TIME FOR THE TEAM TO PROCURE THE DEVICE. BECAUSE MANY DEVICES ARE HIGH TECH AND EXPENSIVE, THE TEAM SHOULD RESEARCH THE DEVICES THEY CONSIDER. IF THE TEAM IS ABLE TO OBTAIN THE DEVICE, THOSE WHO WILL BE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE STUDENT MUST KNOW HOW TO USE IT.

4. STEP 4: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVICES AFTER ALL THE PRELIMINARY WORK AND DECISION MAKING BASED ON THE ASSESSMENT, THE TIME COMES TO PURCHASE THE DEVICE AND IMPLEMENT IT TO MEET THE STUDENT’S LEARNING OUTCOMES. AFTER THE DEVICE HAS BEEN PROCURED, THE STUDENT MAY NEED SHORT-TERM ASSISTANCE AND MONITORING TO ENSURE THAT THE DEVICE IS USED CORRECTLY AND APPROPRIATELY. DURING THE EARLY STAGES, IT IS CRITICAL THAT THE STUDENT, CLASSROOM TEACHER, AND FAMILY RECEIVE SUPPORT FROM RELATED SERVICE PERSONNEL AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE IEP TEAM. RELATED SERVCE PERSONNEL MAY INCLUDE THE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY SPECIALIST, SPEECH THERAPIST, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST, AND PHYSICAL THERAPIST. DEPENDING ON THE INDIVIDUAL NEEDS OF THE STUDENT, OTHER RELATED SERVICE PERSONNEL AND OTHER AGENCY PERSONNEL MAY BE INVOLVED.

5. BEARD, L., CARPENTER, L., JOHNSTON, L., (2011) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY ACCESS FOR ALL STUDENTS, 2ND ED. UPPER SADDLE RIVER, NJ, PEARSON EDUCATION