Technology+In+A+POHI+Art+Room

OPENING: To start, just a few questions:

1.) Can you draw? 2.) Can you create an artwork in your image? 3.) Could you do so if you had a physical impairment, or handicap?

To some people, art is a release from the everyday world. We can use our hands and have them perform functions that express our inner thoughts and ideas in art form. Other people have the same wish, but not the same capacity to perform.

The definition of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is: "A framework for designing educational environments that enable all learners to gain knowledge, skills, and enthusiasm for learning. This is accomplished by simultaneously reducing barriers to the curriculum and providing rich supports for learning" ( []). By implementing technology into an art classroom that services POHI - Physical(ly) and Otherwise Health Impaired - students, you can give them the freedoms to express themselves like you and I. This is UDL at its finest, creating level education abilities for all of your students.

LESSONS: 1.) [] - This is a Digital Photography Lesson that __all__ students may perform. Some POHI students have a great sense of visual imagery, but lack the ability to transfer it down into a two-dimensional format. Digital Photography allows them the opportunity to express themselves without having the fear of making mistakes. This lesson accommodates UDL by giving an alternative to the standard curriculum by using technology (the camera) instead of trying to draw, or paint the composition. 2.) [] - This is an art history lesson that has an alternate approach for POHI students. Performing Internet research can be a daunting process, so I provide a DVD format for students to still be able to perform the lesson successfully.

INTERVIEW: On 8 July 2010, I performed a phone interview with Jose Martin, Esq., J.D. According to his biographical information for a conference held by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, where he was a guest speaker, he is a "Partner with the school law firm of Richards Lindsay & Martin in Austin, Texas. His practice focuses exclusively on the representation of public school districts in litigation and consultation involving the education of students who are disabled under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. He served as chief editor and writer for the RLM Texas Disability Law Advisor and currently serves as contributing editor to The Special Educator, a national newsletter on special education law issues published by LRP Publications. As a speaker, Mr. Martin presents numerous topics each year to various audiences interested in disability laws at local, regional, state, and national conferences and workshops” (  []).

Mr. Martin and I talked for over 20 minutes and he told me a lot about UDL and Section 504 (which is basically the same concept, but for those students with lesser impairments). He used terms like “Assistive Technology” which can be broken down into two parts, “Assistive Devices” and “Assistive Services.” In laymen’s terms, this means that the assistive, technological devices used to help accommodate a student with special needs would be considered under special services.

Mr. Martin also led me to Federal Regulations 34CFR300.5, 34CFR300.6 and 34CFR300.320 (subsection A-4) to substantiate his stand for UDL (see links in "WEB PAGE SUPPORT" below). Those Federal Regulations spell out how a school is to modify a program for a special needs student. Sometimes it is merely just a lesson modification that needs to take place; others a curriculum needs to be re-visited. They also clearly state that schools are obligated to make accommodations when, or if, the need arises.

WEB PAGE SUPPORT:

The following web pages contain the Federal Regulations that spell out what Assistive Technology is, what Assistive Technology Devices are, and when/how Assistive Technology should be implemented. There is also a link for a visual image of Assistive Technology Devices.

1.) [] This is the web page that describes Federal Regulation 34CFR300.5. 2.) [] This is the web page that describes Federal Regulation 34CFR300.6 3.) [] This is the web page that describes Federal Regulation 34CFR300.320 4.) [] This is the web page that describes Assistive Technology 5.) [] This is another web page that describes Assistive Technology 6.) [] This is a governmental web page that shows and describes Assistive Technology items and their use.

CONCLUSION: You can sum all of this up this way: People are all different!

Sometimes nature adds a challenge to the equation and it is up to us, the ultimate responsible adults, to help those in need. The law clearly states that schools are obligated to provide Free Appropriate Public Education for everybody, POHI students included.

Art is expression. Everybody has an image they would like to be able to portray for future generations to see. Sometimes it takes just a little tweak of a lesson to accommodate those without the physical abilities to do so. Technology has been advancing so fast and in so many different realms that everybody can now participate in art with minor implementations of that technology. UDL states that we must make accommodations for those in need, but why wait? Why do we need a law to do that which is morally correct? As you can see in my lessons, I have made adaptations without making it so obvious that I am stepping out for any particular student. We may be different, but it does not have to appear that way.