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This presentation will share how a team of teachers tackled the tough job of teaching multiple-meaning words by using technology. The teachers used a collaborative and integrated approach that allowed students to create interactive stories using presentation software and digital video.
"I was running a good race." "My nose is running." "Don't leave the water running." When reading these sentences, many deaf students will use the same sign for each sentence though they have very different meanings. This presentation will share how 4th-5th grade teachers use technology to teach difficult concepts such as multiple-meaning words to their students. The students work on teams of two and create stories that include a selected word and its various meanings. After consultation with the teacher to verify that the story has depth and meaning, the students videotape each other. These digital video stories are transformed into a student created interactive PowerPoint presentation in which the user can view the ASL and read the English. These stories are shared with other students to help them in their reading of multiple-meaning words. With the help of technology these students are learning how to bridge ASL to English, while improving their ASL skills, expanding their vocabulary, and enhancing their literacy skills.
Since there is little software specifically designed for elementary deaf children it does not mean we need to stop our search. This presentation will take a discerning look at good mainstream educational software which can be used effectively with Deaf children.
Some educators of deaf and hard of hearing students shun the idea of using software developed for hearing students because of accessibility issues. But you'll find that regular, mainstream software is the best software, even for deaf students. Much of the software created especially for deaf children is mediocre in design, presentation and content. All children deserve and want quality interactive experiences, and much of what works for the general population, will work for deaf children, too. Last summer, the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center conducted a software evaluation workshop in which teachers and staff evaluated educational software and its application to their grade level and/or content area. Some of the software reviewed were specifically for deaf students but most were mainstream software titles. They discovered software that is engaging, intuitive, visual, structured, challenging, motivating, or interactive and can meet their instructional needs regardless if it was not completely accessible to deaf students. This presentation will take a first hand look at some of educational software products designed for hearing students that we found can be effectively used with deaf students and we will discuss what to look for when you begin your search for appropriate software for your deaf students.
Through funding from the National Science Foundation, New Jersey's Marie H. Katzenbach School for the Deaf has facilitated a project using interactive television and other technologies to enhance teaching and learning for K-8 students across the state. This presentation will highlight the effective use of ITV and other technology resources.
The Distance Learning Science Project for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students is a three-year project funded by the National Science Foundation, the goal of which is to increase deaf and hard-of-hearing students' interest and aptitude in science. Participating in the project are 65 students from across New Jersey, ranging in age from 5 to 14, and 12 teachers of the deaf. The eight participating classrooms were provided with a variety of technologies meant to enhance science teaching and learning. Interactive television (ITV) technology is used to engage the students in each aspect of the scientific process. In addition to the ITV science classes, students participate each year in a summer science camp. Two clear benefits of the project have been: 1. An increase in communication and socialization among participating deaf students. 2. The use of classroom technology by teachers to enhance their curriculum. Attendees at this presentation will learn: 1. Effective ways to utilize ITV technology for virtual visits, socialization, and communication. 2. Ways to integrate technology, such as laptop computers, digital cameras (still and video), and iMovie software to enhance teaching and learning. 3. Issues associated with the use of ITV technology with deaf and hard-of-hearing students.
This presentation will focus on how traditional classroom instruction can be complemented by the use of web-based technology to create a "hybrid learning" environment. A web-based instructional development tool created by Simon Ting called IdeaTools, and more specifically, the Reading/Writing Tutor, will be demonstrated and its uses in the development of reading and writing skills for deaf students will be discussed. There will also be discussion on how this technology can help students and teachers prepare more effectively for classroom instruction.
The Reading/Writing Tutor, part of a comprehensive web-based course building/ management tool (IdeaTools), has been in development for the past several years and used for the delivery of two required RIT courses, Writing and Literature I and II. The Reading Tutor implements strategies to enhance student comprehension of texts. A set of annotation tools enables the instructor to insert hypertext notes that appear when students click on the highlighted texts. These notes serve to alert students to textual elements they need to attend to, provide historical or cultural information necessary to understand the text, or contain analytical questions that prompt students to reflect on what they are reading. Thus, the notes play the role of a reading coach, helping weak readers learn techniques that good readers employ intuitively, but which less skilled readers often do not use. The Writing component of the web-based course delivery helps students develop editing and proofreading skills. The Writing Tutor provides the instructor with tools to mark up assignments submitted by students. A" sticky note" tool can be used to insert margin notes and comments about content and organization. An "inline comment" tool allows the instructor to correct student sentence level text and insert direct comments. Further, the "inline comment" function allows the instructor to highlight a writing/grammatical error (e.g. subject/verb agreement) and to direct students to an a) explanation of the mistake, b) examples of how this mistake could be corrected, c) practice exercises that focus on the grammatical misunderstanding. The current Writing Tutor consists of a database of 18 most common writing exercises with two sets of exercises.
Finally, another component of the web-based instructional delivery system is the discussion board forum where students debate and respond to each other's interpretation of texts. This public forum enables students to explore the different meanings possible in literary texts, view models of strong and not so strong writing about texts, and expand their understandings of multiple readings and interpretations. For the instructor, this tool provides invaluable information on what students actually comprehend and what areas should be emphasized in classroom instruction or individual tutoring sessions. Because of the conversational nature of this type of writing, students are able to venture beyond their safety zone in expressing their ideas.
The presenters will discuss the planning, development, delivery, and evaluation of a weeklong teacher-training workshop for international teachers of English to deaf and hard-of-hearing students at postsecondary institutions. The successful use of instructional and multimedia technologies for pre-workshop readings, workshop presentations, hands-on activities, and post-workshop dissemination will be demonstrated. The presenters will discuss the planning, development, delivery, and evaluation of a weeklong teacher-training workshop for teachers of English to deaf and hard-of-hearing students at postsecondary institutions in Russia, the Czech Republic, Japan, and the Philippines. Workshop presenters used a combination of technological resources and traditional teacher-training techniques to familiarize workshop participants with best practices in teaching English. Given the unique challenges of teaching deaf and hard-of-hearing students in non-English-speaking countries, the workshop sessions reviewed state-of-the-art methods and materials both for teaching English as a second language generally and for teaching English to deaf and hard-of-hearing students specifically. This professional development activity for university professors took advantage of lecture, print, electronic, video, and multimedia technologies. Participants accessed workshop pre-readings via the World Wide Web (WWW) from their home countries. During the workshop, presenters used combinations of lecture and discussion, PowerPoint presentation, examination of English teaching materials via the WWW, and videotapes of NTID English teachers in action. Workshop participants were also given hands-on practice with individual laptop computers in accessing English teaching resources on the WWW. A post-workshop CD-ROM containing all workshop materials to be used for international dissemination has also been produced. Participants' high ratings of the workshop reveal that the combination of technological and traditional resources contributes to highly successful teacher-training experiences. This workshop was supported by PEN-International, which is funded by a grant to NTID from the Nippon Foundation of Japan.
Join Together represents a nation-wide collaborative effort to reduce isolation and enhance education through the innovative and collaborative use of Internet linked technologies and resources. The presentation will focus upon the use of H323 web based video conferencing technologies to identify, share, and support innovative and effective teaching and learning. The primary problem of deafness is not too little hearing, but too much interpersonal and informational isolation. The primary problem of deaf education is not too little effort, but too much difficulty in achieving "critical mass" of needed expertise, resources, and meaningful learning opportunities. The primary problem of deaf education teacher preparation is not too little knowledge, but too much of a "gap" in the preparation of teachers and the realities of teaching. "Join Together: A Virtual Professional Development School & Community of Learners for Deaf Education" represents a four year collaborative effort by the nation's major deafness related organizations (i.e., ACE-D/HH, ASDC, AGBell, CAID, CEASD, CED & NAD) to enhance both the preparation of teachers and the education of deaf/hard-of-hearing (d/hh) students via the effective and innovative use of computer based, Internet linked technologies and resources. This effort has resulted in a wide array of Web based resources, technologies, and collaborative activities. This presentation will focus upon the use of H323 video conferencing technologies to link the nation's most innovative and effective teachers of d/hh students with: a) one another; b) novice deaf education teachers; and c) deaf education teacher preparation programs. The technology will also be used to link d/hh students and their families with: a) one another; b) d/hh individuals at post secondary settings; and c) d/hh adults. The presentation will provide information concerning how individuals can become involved in the "Join Together:…" effort and how they can directly benefit from the rapidly expanding array of collaborative partnerships/agreements that are being established for deaf education.