Help Deaf/Hard of Hearing Students Access Technology

Funded Mar 8, 2016

Dear Donors,

I want to share my profound thanks for your part in making my classroom more accessible. It is hard to find the right place to begin in describing the immense impact the four Chrome books and external hard drive have in my classroom.

When the Chrome books arrived, we opened the boxes as a class. The students' jaws dropped when they saw the new technology and realized that it was ours to use in the classroom whenever we need it. Their joy in knowing this technology was theirs was a beautiful sight. Since that first time, both the students and I have learned about how to use Chrome books and integrate this technology within our classroom.

First, we started using the Chrome books to access books on Kids A-Z, a website with a large collection of books set up in Guided Reading levels. While we already have a large number of these books in our room, we do not have access to printers with color ink in our school. This means the books are printed in black and white, handmade, and are wearing down. The students have become disengaged with these books that make up over 75% of our classroom library. With the new technology, however, their perspective has changed. The students love reading the same books on the Chrome books and in color that they had previously dismissed. All books have an option to "look" through the book or "listen" to it being read. I have always encouraged my students, when they took turns using my laptop, to click on the "look" icon, as it made the most sense for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. To my delight, the Chrome books offer a new level of independence that led to a fantastic discovery. When my students decided to not listen to their teacher and clicked the "listen" icon, we realized that words are highlighted as they are read aloud. This benefits students reading familiar books, as it models an appropriate reading rate. They sign with the read aloud and highlighted words, trying to keep up. Similarly, I was happy to see the students being able to explore the books at new levels and have technology that allows them to access quizzes.

Secondly, we have started using the Chrome books with Clip Champ. This app allows the students to record themselves signing. The students have time throughout the week to film themselves discussing a topic. From the first week, I have seen a change in their signing register. The ability to see what their signing looks like from the other side has allowed them to become more aware of the effectiveness of their communication and language skills. They are learning that what they mean to say and actually say might not be the same. Their signing has developed to include a formal register, rather than the casual register they are used to in chatting with friends.

This is where the external hard drive has been invaluable. Some unforeseen glitches in saving videos from Clip Champ caused some videos to save and replace previous student ASL samples. I had already copied some of the videos to the external hard drive, so we were relieved when we found many of the videos we thought we lost.

Overall, the most exciting aspect of these Chrome books in our classroom is the increased level of independence the students are able to achieve. We have a wide range of student ability and a continuing struggle is students working independently with meaning. For example, one student struggles with processing issues that make it difficult to write without one-on-one support. With Typing Club, not only is she able to practice her typing skills with independence, but increased stamina. She now works without the need for support for over 30 minutes. This task was impossible on the outdated technology we used. Previously, every day was a gamble and a guess as to what would load and for how long. Today we are confident that the technology will meet our needs at all times. The students, as a class, read for longer periods of time. They are able to create and develop research projects without needing to log into the same device each time or move to a lab. They are learning how to use an email address and password to log in. This list is by no means all-inclusive, but rather a small glimpse of the wildfire that has grown from the spark your donation ignited.

As the students learn, I am learning with them, working to continue to innovate and find new ways to provide the access to technology that had previously been limited. Thank you for your overwhelming generosity.”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Burns