One of the biggest challenges in a diverse classroom is meeting the diverse needs of the students. An inclusive classroom promotes the learning of children with special needs alongside students’ learning without special needs. As innovative and thoughtful as it may sound, it’s far more challenging. However, the results are fruitful. Students with special needs have benefited dramatically from inclusive education. They’ve also been discovered to encourage more potent communication abilities and relentlessly find their inherent potential.

Digital media for education

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While technology has made everyone more accessible, it has benefited the education community at large. Here we aren’t referring to online education. There’s no denying that the online system forever altered the way students obtained an education. However, technology has also vastly benefited other sectors of the schooling community. For instance: the inclusive classroom.

Today, inclusive classrooms abundantly use digital media tools and assistive technology to aid students with special needs. Since online education has brought forth more challenges in the education sector, the demand for programmers, web developers, and other digital media experts is consistently rising. Owing to that, individuals are now enrolling in online digital media degree programs to jump-start their careers in this line of work. This degree offers a range of technical training courses that can open new doors of opportunities for your career. With the accumulation of diverse talents and innovation in the technology industry, it is predictable that education will prosper more than ever in the upcoming decade. Continue reading to find out how technology can assist inclusive education in classrooms.

  1. Text-To-Speech And Speech-To-Text Assistive Tools

Text-to-speech technology helps to assist students who face difficulties reading printed text. It can aid students with conditions like visual impairment, autism, dyslexia, or any intellectual impairment where students can grasp audio better than text. The TTS technology was introduced a couple of years ago but is now more accurate than ever due to the evolution of technology. It doesn’t just benefit the students with a physical or mental impairment. It also helps other students to retain course material better. Students tend to remember audio and visual content more than text.

Similarly, speech-to-text assistive technology converts audio into the text to assist students with other conditions. Children with dysgraphia and dyslexia have trouble forming and recognizing letters. Students with Down syndrome and Essential tremors (trembling hands) can also make use of this technology.

  1. Proofreading Software

Proofreading software is an assistive tool that helps students to fix misspelled words and other errors that halt the reader from seamlessly reading and comprehending the text. Although children with dyslexia and other intellectual impairments are super-talented and have amazing stories to tell, their medical condition can tamper with their ability to write. However, grammatical errors do not account for or represent a student’s true capabilities. Although the technology fits dyslexic and other intellectually impaired children, all students with or without special needs can use proofreading software to write better and more accurately.

  1. Talking Calculators

Talking calculators are an underrated technology in the education sector. Some people debated whether they’ll be of any use or not. They have proved to be very effective in an inclusive learning classroom. Talking calculators have voice synthesized software to read aloud the keys pressed in them and answer the calculations. Students with various intellectual and visual impairments can make use of them to assist them in mathematics courses.

  1. Virtual Reality

In stressful settings involving crowds, such as corridors, school events, and the canteen, virtual reality scenarios can aid autistic children. These kids may progressively grow used to these circumstances in a non-judgmental simulated space. They will therefore be better equipped to behave patiently and correctly in real-world situations. Children with mobility impairments can also use VR technology to control things that they can’t operate in actual life.

  1. MathTalk

MathTalk is a math-related voice recognition software tool that can assist children with a variety of impairments. Individuals may do arithmetic tasks by talking into a microphone on their laptop or any other device through different levels of education extending up to Ph.D. The software integrates with other speech programs for voice-to-text features, making it perfect for children with cognitive skill impairments. The inbuilt Braille converter can be helpful for students who are blind or have visual problems.

  1. Word Prediction Software

Word prediction software can assist users with their writing by foretelling or suggesting words that they intend to write. This technology can help students with various disabilities to speed up and improve their writing. It’s very similar to the auto-correct we have in cell phones. Students with autism, dyslexia and other impairments can use this software for school and activity purposes. The word prediction software can help students with special needs improve their comprehension, language, and speech delivery.

  1. Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers are an excellent digital tool to express virtually and organize ideas using charts and visuals. They can aid in brainstorming ideas, drafting problems and solutions, comparing and contrasting, designing plans and blueprints, etc. This technology is best suitable to begin a writing process and create outlines. Since students with special needs have difficulty organizing thoughts and coming up with things, graphic organizers help them journal them to retain and produce better ideas.

  1. YouTube

Show and tell has long been a successful model of teaching in the conventional classroom. Little did we know, it can benefit students in an inclusive classroom setting too. YouTube content isn’t just compelling to watch but to hear too. So students with hearing impairments can also benefit from it. Children with intellectual impairments or slowed cognition have trouble retaining course material, especially in the form of text. YouTube and other digital media like podcasts can help them immensely with this.

The Bottom Line

The digital age has many opportunities to make use of in the business and education sector. Inclusive education offers a plethora of conveniences to children with special needs. It’s also making the teachers and parents work extra hours to combat the challenges brought forth by it. Thankfully, technology and various digital media platforms have made their jobs easier for them. Students with intellectual, hearing, visual, and various other impairments can use digital media to help with their learning, writing, and retention. Subsequently, the demand for digital media degrees is rising for the career prospects available.

 

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