MANAGING ICT ICT with ASN pupils

Sarah Clark and Lynn O’Brien from Isobel Mair, an additional support needs school in East Renfrewshire discuss the types of ICT they use with their autistic learners and how new technologies can be effectively introduced with these students

staff to have a comprehensive level of expertise in understanding specific learning requirements. Learners who have autism typically prefer to

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work in a one-to-one environment, liking their own space, and are usually focused on their own activity. In addition, they tend to be visual learners and are better able to comprehend the surrounding world via visual aids. At Isobel Mair, the development of language and

communication is at the heart of learning and teaching. In order to ensure our students are fully supported by whichever method of communication meets their needs, we deliver an individualised communication system. To engage and support the learning of our

students, similarly to mainstream schools, we provide opportunities by delivery of Access 1, 2 and 3 courses through the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). Creativity is essential as our learners do not learn in the usual way and to fulfil this we use a range of technologies to motivate them. However, the way we use ICT requires careful

consideration and planning. With our learners, we find that in order to successfully implement any new resources, if certain goals are in place, this improves its chance of being well accepted. We also strive to encourage children to take the lead.

Trialling new technology

Recently, Isobel Mair became a showcase school for the new piece of technology – a multi-touch, multi-user “learning table” that encourages groups of students to work simultaneously on its surface. We were invited by the producers of the technology,

SMART, to trial the table, which has the ability for gesture recognition, answering questions by dragging answers to a central image, and group tasks where pupils solve puzzles or identify parts of a diagram. Although very useful for visual and interactive

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teaching and learning, because of the synergetic learning environment of the technology, we were unsure of how our autistic children would react.

We always strive

to take the time to find out about each individual learner and see what motivates them. We use our learners’ passions to apply the technology and enhance learning

SOBEL MAIR School has a student population of more than 70 and is staffed by 55 adults. Our students have complex learning difficulties and many have Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and therefore require a high degree of structure across all aspects of the school day.

To fulfil our learners’ needs, it is necessary for our

Trail-blazing: Isobel Mair School is trialing a new ‘learning table’ technology with its autistic students. One of the school’s students is also shown using technology in class (inset)

We assumed the technical nature of the product

would attract them, but the collaborative nature of the activities might act as a deterrent. However, we allowed the students to take the

lead which led to an unexpected but very natural co-operation. They took to it extremely well and enjoyed being able to touch and interact with the lessons and activities. We immediately identified the speed at which

learners began working together on the activities. They had not received formal instruction, yet immersed themselves in the technology and began completing the tasks together.

Other technologies at Isobel Mair

iPods also play an important role within the curriculum here. Students frequently use the iPod Shuffle for a range of things, including listening to music, and this acts as a huge motivator. Audio books are recorded onto iPods and pupils

who do not have the ability to read can listen to a story via spoken word and receive a copy on digital format. Last year we focused on The Lion, The Witch and

The Wardrobe and recorded chapters of the book onto the iPod. These were then taken home to listen to and due to the modern association with iPods it meant students were not embarrassed, which removed the potential stigma. We use iPod Classics to support both learners and

staff. Students are able to create videos of themselves travelling independently for example, which is thoroughly motivating because they enjoy watching the videos. Not only does this reinforce teaching and learning, it also improves parental engagement as they can share with parents what they have been doing at school. Our school extends into the local Williamwood

High School, where we have great facilities including a classroom, kitchen area and fabulous life-skills flat, meaning our senior students are placed in a realistic setting with a greater student population and can learn skills for life, such as how to make their own bed! Students are also provided with an iPod Touch to

support teaching and learning, and of course, to have some fun. As the iPod is portable, they are able to use it in a

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flexible manner at home and in school. We are currently waiting to introduce the iPad which we hope to add to our teacher’s 21st century toolkit. For non-verbal students we are currently trailling

an application-based communication system called Proloquo2Go. Using the app on the iPod Touch which

has a built-in speaker, this enables the iPod to be used as a portable communication system. In addition we incorporate digital videos and

cameras, gaming technology such as Nintendo DS and also Wii gaming systems. For our learners with more complex needs, we

provide devices that can be activated by a switch, which allows some degree of independence and choice, and access they would not otherwise have. They can activate technologies such as the interactive whiteboard via a head switch, for example.

Being creative

At Isobel Mair, we are pro-active in finding solutions that may help remove barriers to learning. This may require a leap of faith but in our experience it is usually worth taking the chance. On the whole we find that, when introducing new

technologies, to enhance the learning outcomes and maximise the benefits of learners with autism, it is important to be as creative as possible. There is wide scope and potential for maximising the benefits of technologies to ensure that all our students, including those with ASD, receive a positive learning experience but it is also vital to be creative. Technology should be accessible to all and fun to

use. Many of the resources we introduce are common place technologies that anyone can use – many people have them at home, for example – so our challenge is to integrate effectively within a learning environment with a purposeful outcome.

Individualised and motivated learning

We always strive to take the time to find out about each individual learner and see what motivates them. We use our learners’ passions to apply the technology and enhance learning. For example, if they love Abba, we try and use this love and passion to provide a stealth approach to learning. To deliver our SQA target in maths last year we

used “the Simpsons” to motivate the learners. We asked questions such as, how much would it cost the Simpsons to travel via bus into town? Through applying an interesting topic they can relate to, students are learning without realising it. Children with ASD are generally able to process

visual information better than that given orally. We consequently find that the design of learning activities is important; often the more self-explanatory they are the more positive the results are. Solutions that provide immediate instant visual or auditory reinforcements are extremely effective in enhancing the learning journey.

Staff training

Another approach we maintain when introducing new resources is to invest in staff development and explore as many activities as possible. Whenever we implement a new technology within

the school we always strive to ensure that three to four people are competent in using the solution. Staff receive comprehensive training and attend seminar programmes to enable them to become experts. We always invest time in staff development as this

is empowering; our staff know the students best and recognise their needs and are therefore best placed to be creative in developing resources tailor-made for their students. It is important to establish what works most

effectively and therefore through experimentation we can become familiar with new products being implemented. Through sharing resources locally on our own server, we find that teachers find it easy to access and adapt existing resources, and view guidance videos.

Conclusion

At Isobel Mair, technology is used to enhance the work we do. We do not use it as a discreet method of teaching, instead our aim is to use it across all aspects of learning and teaching. We are constantly seeking new and innovative

ways in which to connect everything, across a variety of subjects and topics. We endeavour to integrate the technology to ascertain how the children interact with it, then evaluate and assess. Our outlook is that technology belongs to the

children; it is our responsibility to provide motivating high quality teaching and learning resources and activities. The key is that implementing any technology should be well considered and planned by the teacher. Ever striving to familiarise ourselves with each

individual learner and their interests, this supports us to successfully introduce technology to enhance the learning that takes place. We have to continually be creative, and as such, in

some lessons the purpose may not always be clearly evident and may look as though learners are simply playing; however, this is not the case as all of the creativity is completely purposeful.

SecEd

• Sarah Clark is deputy head and Lynn O’Brien ICT co-ordinator at Isobel Mair, an award winning additional support needs school based in the Clarkson area of East Renfrewshire in Scotland. Visit: www.ea.e-renfrew.sch.uk/isobelmair

SecEd • August 26 2010