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Students in need of special care face a variety of learning, development and physical challenges. Special need teachers help students overcome these obstacles, though there are barriers in bringing education to those who need it. Students with disabilities may already feel different than their peers then add in the fact they may not be able to do even the simplest tasks like write their own names. With the help of assistive technology students would feel empowered to do things they wouldn’t normally be able to do in their own.

An increase in government funding will allow Children with disabilities to have the opportunity to learn, be social and participate in the same way children without disabilities do. More government funding for children with disabilities should be used in grade schools.

The first reason why the government should increase funding is because special need students on the autism spectrum process learning very well from using certain apps on I pads. As stated by one researcher, “There is a growing body of knowledge on the implementation of iPads that has identified affordances such as instant access to resources, increased communication and an increasing number of educational apps which have the potential to enhance student learning”(Ruth).

Special need teachers face new specific challenges with every new student. Whether they work in an inclusive classroom or in specialized groups, each child is unlike other. They have different needs, different behavioral patterns, different challenges, and different talents.

Apps can help customize the curriculum to the needs of students without making the process time consuming and overwhelming.

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Unlike many other devices and previous technologies, touch technology is intuitive to use. This means that I Pads make sense for students whose disabilities cause them to struggle with visuospatial awareness, as apps are efficiently organized and even more natural to navigate. Apps such as, My Talk tools which help students with communication difficulties to say what they want, using a sequence of words, sounds and images, ModMath is an app that helps students with dyslexia and dysgraphia do math. Choice works, is an essential learning tool for helping children complete daily routines, understand and control their feelings, and Memory Trainer is an app that helps students to improve their spatial and working memory.

It comes with a feature that allows users to monitor their progress. This app has been shown to improve critical thinking skills, focus, and the ability to multitask. These are just a few of the hundreds of apps that are there to help children with special needs. Because of the high price of Apple I pads and the low budget that the government provides; many schools districts have been avoiding the chance to introduce I pads. Meaning that thousands of disabled children across the United States won’t be able to receive the help they need to succeed in their school career.

The second reason why government funding should be increased in grade schools is to provide Smart Boards in every special need classroom. Smartboards support inclusive classrooms by offering students many ways to learn information, express ideas, and demonstrate understanding. One researcher stated, “ studies indicate that use of the SMART Board at these levels has positive effects on student achievement, attentiveness, and motivation”(Patricia). Meaning that if more smart boards are introduced in special need classrooms, students will have

a better chance to succeed. For students with disabilities, the smart board’s touch-sensitive surface gives all students the opportunity to participate in learning. Since students with special needs frequently respond well to visuals, the smart board takes this one step further by projecting really large visuals. With this technology, every child in the classroom has the ability to utilize the smart board at the same time. As well as I pads, smart boards also have apps that can be very efficient when it comes to teaching children with disabilities. Smartboards also give teachers the ability to create their own apps/lesson and share them with teachers across the country. Having smart boards in every special need classrooms can be a huge step in grade schools, giving children with disabilities the opportunities they deserve as students.

The third reason why the government should increase the budget in grade schools is so that they can introduce text to speech software such as Kurzweil 3000. This is beneficial as some students are more likely to understand text when unfamiliar words are red to them. One researcher stated, “Text-to-speech offers students a choice in terms of how they would like to receive written information, and, hence, can be used to accommodate a variety of learners, including students with disabilities” (Erin K). Text to Speech can also have a positive effect on decoding and word recognition, as well as reading fluency and reading comprehension. It can be helpful for students who retain more information through listening than reading. This Sofware can also assist special need students with monitoring and revising their typed work, as hearing the text read aloud may assist students in catching grammatical errors that may have otherwise gone unnoticed.

The American government spends tons of money on special education programs every year. There are thousands of disabled children across the united states that are not receiving all the useful tools they need to be successful in school such as I pads, smart boards and Text to speech programs. If the government was spending tons of money on special education programs, then why are there some schools that can’t afford these types of technologies that could have a great impacts on how these kids are being taught. Being able to provide all of the useful technology, should be a priority for every school. In that case, the government should increase its budget when helping kids with disabilities.

If the government provides more funding, a lot of schools will be able to provide all of the useful materials to help children with disabilities. The use of I pads will help students by showing them different methods of learning and staying organized. It will also introduce them to over 20,000 educational apps that could be used for better understanding of the material. The use of smart boards will help students by offering many ways to learn information, express ideas and demonstrate understanding. Using smart boards will not only help children understand the curriculum, but it will also keep them engaged in class activities.

Text to speech software could help students by improving their reading comprehension by using Kurzweil 3000 to have text read aloud. And lastly, Memory Trainer an app that helps students to improve their spatial and working memory. There are thousands of apps out there that could be used to help teach children with disabilities. These apps can be used with virtually any electronic device, including mobile phones. Also, many come no cost, and those that are fee-based are usually inexpensive. Special need children deserve all the help they could possibly get. If the schools don’t provide all of the useful technology to them; how will they be able to prepare themselves for their high school years