Case Study #3: Emily

Emily is described to be a caring, compassionate, optimistic, highly intelligent, and spirited young woman who is trapped in a body that is not capable of moving the way she wants it to. Emily was born at 26 weeks prematurely. She had multiple complications growing up and was diagnosed as having spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. At the age of five, Emily noticed she was different from other children. Emily asked her mother why she was not able to run like the other children or why she could not jump or kick like the other children. Her mother had no reply to Emily’s question. Instead of wallowing in self pity, Emily decided to live in a happy world and chose to be surrounded by supportive individuals. To this present day, Emily stresses the importance of relationships and surrounding herself with people who love her and care for her. Although Emily has no academic challenges, Emily faces many physical challenges on a daily basis. Emily needs assistance with daily life skills such as feeding, bathing, using the restroom, writing, and sleeping. She struggles on a daily basis with her physical circumstance, but chooses to live optimistically and chooses to live her life for the Lord. She does not pity herself because of her disability, but instead chooses to help others in need.
Emily has just entered her senior year of high school. Her parents want Emily to become more independent in attending classes and completing homework assignments in preparation for college. Although Emily is fully capable of communicating, socializing, and getting around, she needs assistance in initiating social interaction and independently applying basic life skills on a daily basis. Therefore, at the beginning of each school year, IEP team members meet for Emily’s needs. Seven team members were present at the meeting. In attendance were the parents of Emily, the regular education teacher, the special education teacher, the school principal, the IEP coordinator, and the occupational therapist. At the meeting, Emily’s IEP goals and objectives were discussed for the entire school year. Three goals with objectives were planned out for basic life skills and social skills. The first goal and objectives were geared towards Emily’s life skills. The second goal and objectives were concerning Emily’s social skills, and the last goal and objectives were focused on Emily’s basic life skills.
The first goal and objectives for Emily is to be able to use a computer and write class notes, complete homework assignments, and write a paper independently by using input devices such as eye tracking or VisionKey Computer Controller 90% of the time for the entire school year without any assistance. By using these devices, Emily does not have to type with her hands. Instead, Emily uses her eyes to control input. If this device is too sensitive and complicated to use for Emily, she also has the option to use a SEMCO. This device is a QuadJoy mouse for quadriplegics. The objective for this goal is for Emily to get comfortable enough with the devices to become independent 90% of the time for the entire year. If this is too difficult, Emily can ease into being independent and have some assistance until Emily is confident to use the devices on her own.
The second goal and objectives for Emily is for her to initiate a conversation two to three times a day with people she is familiar with or with strangers for the entire school year. She can use the communication tool called Small Talk with built in icon holder to assist her in communicating with other people. Emily can first practice using this tool with her aide or with her parents. Using this tool will allow Emily to practice communication skills. Once Emily is comfortable communicating, she will begin initiating social conversations two or three times daily with peers or strangers for the entire year.
The last goal and objectives for Emily is for her to go to class independently without any assistance 95% of the time for the entire school year using a portable hands free digital voice recorder and transcription device and devices to help her access the computer such as eye tracking, SEMCO, VisionKey Computer Controller, or Origin Instruments. By using a portable hands free digital recorder, Emily can record her class lectures instead of taking notes. When she gets home from school, she can transcribe the voice recording and take notes on the computer. This will allow Emily to become more independent without the use of a one-on-one aid inside the classroom. Emily will be using the hands free digital voice recorder at all times along with other computer devices.
Any time the three goals and objectives are not correct or will need modification, Emily’s IEP team members will meet to adjust to her needs. Emily is truly an inspiration to us all. She lives life to the fullest, has no pity on what she cannot do, but instead focuses on what she can do and do it to the fullest. She motivates many to live life and to be happy.

Case Study #2: Joe

Joe is described to be a quiet high school student that needs to communicate using a Dynovox. He has just completed his 1st semester and entering his 3rd quarter in the tenth grade. Based on the Social Responsiveness Scale, Joe has been diagnosed and assessed for severe autism. Joe is capable of completing 2-3 tasks independently and is proficient at communicating as often as 10 times during the day his wants and needs. Joe’s strong points are being able to work well with visual prompts and repetition. He enjoys playing video games and repeating tasks. Although Joe is very limited with his math skills and language skills, Joe is competent at lifting boxes, following directions with prompts, and is skilled at performing most jobs independently. Joe is knowledgeable about rounding money amounts up to the nearest dollar in the classroom, cooking, and life skills. Joe’s weakness is his expressive social communication. For instance, Joe becomes very frustrated when getting his ideas across and has great difficulty in the ability to interpret social cues. He also lacks the understanding of cause and effect and being able to problem solve. Joe’s major set back is not initiating or actively interacting socially.
At the beginning of the school year, the IEP team members met for their first IEP meeting for Joe for the new school year. Seven team members were present at the meeting. In attendance were the parents of Joe, the special day class teacher, the school principal, the IEP coordinator, the speech therapist, and the basic life skills teacher. At the meeting, Joe’s IEP goals and objectives were discussed for the entire school year. Three goals with objectives were planned out for academics, communication skills, and basic life skills. The first goal and objectives were geared towards Joe’s math skills. The second goal and objectives were focused on Joe’s communication skills, and the last goal and objectives were concerning Joe’s basic skills classes.
The first goal that was set up for Joe was to be able to count money and change to the exact amount instead of rounding to the nearest dollar. Because Joe is already familiar with coins and is able to round money amounts up to the nearest dollar in the classroom, the IEP team wanted Joe to count the exact change and to take his money and count not only in the classroom, but also at the local grocery store. Joe will meet this goal at least 4 times a month for 6 months at the local grocery store and classroom. Joe will first learn to count exact change by using a visual aid to guide him on the place value of coins (notebook with place value of coins and names of coins). After Joe accomplishes counting exact change, Joe will take his knowledge to the local grocery store, purchase two items, and count the exact amount that is owed at least 4 times a month. If this cannot be accomplished right away, Joe will use his visual aid in the grocery store to assist him with counting.
The second goal and objectives were directed towards Joe’s communication skills. The IEP team members made this goal to be a focal point in Joe’s IEP. They stressed that Joe learns to initiate social interaction instead of only communicating his needs and wants. The goal for Joe is to be able to initiate a conversation at least two times a day or at least 10 times per week. At this point in time, Joe only converses his wants and needs 10 times per day. Instead of Joe communicating his wants and needs, Joe needs to be able to strike up a conversation by starting off with “Hello, how are you?” In order to meet the objectives, Joe must walk up to a person he is familiar with and state the following, “Hello, how are you?”, “my name is Joe, what is your name?” This objective will be met by using a Dynovox (medium tech). Joe will meet these objectives with 75% accuracy rate in 6 months. If Joe has difficulty meeting these objectives, Joe will practice inside the classroom with the teacher and repeat five times daily each line, “hello how are you?” and “my name is Joe, what is your name?” for six months.
The last goal and objectives were related to Joe’s basic skills classes. The parents wanted Joe to continue with cooking classes and basic skills classes. Since, one goal for Joe is to practice counting money, Joe can practice going to the grocery store, picking up a box of cake mix, and purchasing the item with change. For the last goal, Joe will practice baking a cake by learning to tell time, following directions, and purchasing items in a grocery store. The objectives for the goal are for Joe to follow directions on the box by using an enlarged kitchen timer and enlarged clock (low tech device) to help Joe read time. Joe will also purchase the cake mix in the grocery store using change. Joe will accomplish this goal within six months. He will go to the local grocery store once a week for 6 months.
Any time the three goals and objectives are not correct or will need modification, Joe’s IEP team members will meet to adjust to his needs. Hopefully, with these goals and objectives Joe can live a successful life and live to become independent from his parents. His parents hope that one of these days Joe will be able to live in a group home after high school. In order to live in a group home, Joe must accomplish and succeed in basic life skills class and meet his goals and objectives.

Case Study #1: Justin

Justin is described to be a high energetic, creative, and artistic 6 year old boy. He is now completing his 1st semester of Kindergarten and now entering 3rd quarter. His regular education teacher stated that when he is preoccupied with an activity, he often does not reply. This may be due to his diagnosis as having a hearing impairment. He uses hearing aides to assist him in hearing. Although Justin is hearing impaired, he can now speak about 150 words both receptively and expressively in the classroom. Although he is considerably slower than most in acquiring language, he is expanding his vocabulary at a steadily increasing rate. Along with having a hearing impairment, Justin exhibits lots of energy at play and frequently falls down which causes problems with his hearing aides. Instead of having one set of hearing aides, Justin needs to have two sets in case the other one gets damaged.
At the beginning of the school year, the IEP team members met for their first IEP meeting for Justin. Seven team members were present at the meeting. In attendance were the parents of Justin, the regular education teacher, the special education teacher, the school principal, the IEP coordinator, speech therapist, and occupational therapist. At the meeting, Justin’s IEP goals and objectives were discussed for the entire school year. Three goals with objectives were planned out for academics, behavior, and gross motor skills. The first goal and objectives were geared towards Justin’s language skills. The second goal and objectives were focused on Justin’s hyperactivity and lack of attention, and the last goal and objectives were concerning Justin’s gross motor skills.
The first goal for Justin was to complete his thoughts and ideas into full utterances for at least 60% of the time. For instance, Justin would need to state full utterances such as, “I need the toilet” or “I am hungry” instead of “toilet” or “hungry”. This goal was agreed upon by the regular education teacher and the speech therapist. In order to increase Justin’s language skills and social skills, the regular education teacher and the speech therapist found it important for Justin to respond in full utterance. By using a teacher made picture board (low tech assistive technology device), Justin will need to point to the object of his needs and state in full utterance at least 60% of the time. Of course this objective can be modified at any time by taking out the picture board if not needed. If this goal cannot be accomplished 60% of the time, the teacher will then correct Justin and state in full utterance; have Justin repeat the teacher; and Justin and teacher will state the utterance together with 95% accuracy.
The second goal for Justin was to respond at least 75% of the time to the teacher or peers when spoken to, and to make eye contact with his teacher and peers. The IEP team members decided this goal was essential in Justin’s IEP because it would increase Justin’s social skills and language skills. The IEP team members came up with one way to approach this goal; however, they knew that if this objective did not work, they could always modify the objectives to meet the goal. The way the team members carried on with the objective was to have Justin raise his hand 75% of the time when he hears the teacher speak to him. His hearing aid is a necessary device that must be worn at all times in order for Justin to meet this goal. When Justin hears his teacher, he must make eye contact with the teacher with 75% accuracy. Justin will also do the same for his peers.
The last goal the team members came up with was involving Justin’s gross motor skills. Justin’s team members are concerned about Justin having two pairs of hearing aides at school. They feel that if they can modify Justin’s gross motor skills, he will no longer cause damage to his hearing aides. The high tech device that will be needed for this goal would be orthopedic braces for his legs due to his imbalance. The orthopedic braces will help Justin balance and would not allow Justin to fall over unless he trips. The goal for Justin is to wear orthopedic braces during his break and for physical education at least 95% of the time. The objective is for Justin to remember to place the orthopedic braces on before break and physical education. The teacher will also remind Justin to wear his orthopedic braces. Justin is not allowed to take the braces off until he has completed the task or until break is over. Therefore, Justin will be in orthopedic braces for at least 1 year to prevent him from tripping or falling. If he meets this goal before he enters 1st grade, the team members will then modify the goal to where he does not need a high tech device during break times or for physical education.
Any time the three goals and objectives are not correct or will need modification, Justin’s IEP team members will meet to adjust to his needs. Hopefully, these goals and objectives will help Justin live up to his full potential and meet his needs in life. With the correct support, Justin will lead a full, healthy life and receive the best education possible.

Research Summaries

Assistive Technology Devices:

1) http://www.newhorizons.org/spneeds/inclusion/teaching/kahn.htm

This website is titled Assistive Technology for Children with Cerebral Palsy: Augmentation Communication Devices. This website provides information on the symptoms of cerebral palsy and outcomes of having cerebral palsy such as having seizures, mental disabilities, auditory problems, visual problems, and communication problems.
Augmentative Communication Devices are devices that help individuals communicate more easily and effectively. This website provides several examples of communication devices individuals may use. For instance, a picture board, board maker/communication board, and speech synthesizers are all examples that can be used with individuals with cerebral palsy.


2) http://www.computers-technology-cerebralpalsy.com/cerebral-palsy-communication.html

This website is titled Cerebral Palsy and Technology. This website can take the viewers to several sections to technology. There are three sections to this website. The first section is on communication and technology. In this section, the viewers can find information on communication devices from low tech to high tech devices. The second section is on mobility and technology. In this section, the viewers can find information on mobility devices such as self-propelled walkers, manually or electrically powered wheelchairs, and powered recreational vehicles like bikes and scooters. Lastly, the third section is on links to other informational websites on assistive technology and cerebral palsy.


3) http://www.cerebralpalsysource.com/About_CP/assistive-technology/index.html

This website is titled Cerebral Palsy Source. This website provides information on cerebral palsy and assistive technology. Just like other websites, this website provides information on low tech and high tech devices for communication, mobility, auditory, and visual.
What is different about this website compared to other websites listed, this website also provides information on treatment and therapy for cerebral palsy, types of cerebral palsy, news, articles, and resources for people with cerebral palsy.

4) http://www.rehabtool.com/

This website is titled Rehabtools.com. This website provides information on assistive technology for all people with disabilities. This website provides information on a variety of high tech devices for communication, computer access equipment, and builds custom software solutions for children and adults with disabilities. Not only does this website provide information on different assistive technology devices, but this website also allows individuals to search for assistive technology products and provides listing of vendors that carry these devices.
This website is also very useful to search for news or updates on assistive technology, and also provides support groups or online communities that assist in finding devices that match the individual’s needs.

5)http://www.technologyawards.org/assistive_technology/Assistive_Technology_and_disabled_children.html

This website is titled Assistive Technology and Disabled Children. This website is different than other previous websites. At this website, the viewers can read through articles in regards to assistive technology. There are several sections that discuss technology. For instance, there are five sections that discuss information on technology such as SEO technology, information technology, computer technology, future technology, and assistive technology. Viewers can find assistive technology devices for disabled children under the section of assistive technology. In this section, the viewers can find several articles on assistive technology and special education, assistive technology and in the kitchen, and assistive technology at home.

Assistive Technology Organizations:

1) http://www.ucp.org/

This website is titled United Cerebral Palsy. At this website, parents and children can find information on cerebral palsy. According to the website, United Cerebral Palsy is a pivotal advocate for the rights of persons with any disability. Furthermore, the website continues on stating that United Cerebral Palsy is one of the largest health charities in America. This organization does support individuals with cerebral palsy, but also supports all individuals with any disabilities. At this website, viewers can navigate information on news, events, and topics related to cerebral palsy.


2) http://www.cerebralpalsy.org/

This website is titled 4MYCHILD. This is an organization that provides all families of children of special needs with Help and Hope for Life. There are specialists in this organization that help provide answers, support, and care for families of children with cerebral palsy. The specialists provide help in assistance to purchase high tech devices, get access to legal services, determining whether the child is entitled to financial support from the government, and access to current medication, medical care, and therapy for families of children with cerebral palsy.
Doctors, teachers, nurses, therapists, and government agencies refer many families to this website. This website provides plenty of information on cerebral palsy and other disabilities.

3) http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/cerebral_palsy/org_cerebral_palsy.htm

This website is titled National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke: Cerebral Palsy Organizations. Although this website is not like previous websites where it provides information on cerebral palsy, it does provide information on the types of organizations that support individuals with cerebral palsy.
The types of organizations that were provided were United Cerebral Palsy, March of Dimes Foundation, Children’s Neurobiological Solutions Foundation, and Cerebral Palsy International Research Foundation. What is nice about this website is that the organizations provide information such as address and telephone number for anyone to get in contact with the organizations. Not only does this website provide information on cerebral palsy organizations, but the website also provides information from disorders beginning with A and ending with Z.

4) http://www.cpfoundation.com.au/

The website is titled Cerebral Palsy Foundation. Cerebral Palsy Foundation’s mission is to prevent and cure cerebral palsy. The goals of this foundation is to provide enough funding for research, expanding a grant’s program, encouraging researchers to study cerebral palsy, and to build partnership. For this foundation, they have seven major supporters, 11 supporters, and 5 media supporters. This foundation has a donation section where viewers can donate to Cerebral Palsy Foundation. The foundation’s main goal is to raise over $500 million dollars a year for research.

5) http://www.resource4cerebralpalsy.com/topics/organizations.html

The website is titled Resource 4 Cerebral Palsy. Although this website is not an organization, there is a section provided on this website that lists several organizations related to cerebral palsy. There are four organizations that relate to cerebral palsy. The four organizations are United Cerebral Palsy, Easter Seals, March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation, and Epilepsy Foundation.
Besides providing organizations supporting cerebral palsy, this website also includes information on what is cerebral palsy, the causes, the symptoms, the diagnosis, the screening, treatment, the types of cerebral palsy, and medical resources for cerebral palsy. Because there are so many individuals diagnosed with cerebral palsy every year, there is plenty of information on the world wide web to inform, educate, and make aware to the world.

Assistive Technology and Cerebral Palsy Research Articles:

1) Dyal, A., Carpenter, L.B., & V. Wright, J. (Spring, 2009). Assistive Technology: What Every School Leader Should Know. Education, 129 (3), 556-560.

For students with disabilities, assistive technology devices and services allow the students to access the general education curriculum for social, academic, and extracurricular activities such as sports, music, or art. The article provides information to teachers and administrators the benefits of accessing assistive technology devices for students with disabilities.

2) Smith D, Kelley P, Maushak N, Griffin-Shirley N, & Lan W. (August,2009). Assistive Technology Competencies for Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, 103(8), 457-469.

This article is about the challenges teachers of students with visual impairments have with assistive technology. According to the article, many studies have been done and all studies state that teachers feel they are incompetent when it comes to learning assistive technology devices. Many of the devices visually impaired students have cannot be accessed due to the lack of knowledge and experience of the teachers accessing these types of devices. Therefore, the authors asked a very important question in their study. The pertinent question they wanted answers for is which barriers are creating these deficiencies in teachers’ knowledge of accessing assistive technology devices? The result of the study was the development of a highly reliable and valid set of 111 assistive technology competencies.

3) Kelley, S. M. (August, 2009). Use of Assistive Technology by Students with Visual Impairments: Findings from a National Survey. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, 103 (8), 470-480.

This study examined the use of assistive technology by students who are visually impaired. A national survey was completed for the sake of this article. The survey found that majority of the students that are visually impaired did not use assistive technology device (high tech). Because of this conclusion, the authors wanted to investigate the reasons why assistive technology devices were not being used, implications for intervention and potential changes in policy or practice was being investigated for the purpose of this study. The result of the study shows that with exposure and experience to assistive technology, students are eager and obedient to learn. Majority of the students that were exposed to assistive technology in this study used their high tech devices.

4) Supon,V. & Ruffini, M. ( January, 2009). Technology Integration During Student Teaching: A Case Study. College Student Journal, 43 (2), 347-351.

The authors of this article wanted to examine the usage of technology in general education classrooms. The authors wanted to examine if student teachers were using assistive technology for their students and if they were integrating assistive technology into their curriculum. Results of the study indicated that teachers were integrating assistive technology into their lesson plans and curriculum; however, the authors also concluded that without the proper equipment and funding, assistive technology will not be included inside the classroom and curriculum.

5) Lancioni, G. E., O’Relly,M. F., Singh, N. N., Sigafoos, J.,Campodonico, F.,& Oliva, D. (May 2009). A Wheelchair User with Visual and Intellectual Disabilities Managing Simple Orientation Technology for Indoor Travel. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, 103 (5), 308-313.

According to the article, this study assessed the use of orientation system by a wheelchair user with visual and intellectual disabilities. This individual that was examined for this study used a system that included a sound source at each destination and an electronic control device. The authors wanted to examine if this system could be used for every setting of the day versus only 5 settings in a day. Results indicate that as time went on, the individual’s percentage increased and noticed that the individual could use this system in all settings.