Assistive Technology and Self-Determination

By Cecilia Robinson

This series of lessons on Assistive Technology and Self-Determination are part of a larger unit from Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI) Outreach on teaching Self-Determination skills to students with visual impairment.  Self-Determination is one of the nine specific areas of the Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) in which students who are blind or visually impaired should receive specialized instruction.

Unit 5:  Assistive Technology – Lesson Plan 1

• Goal: Student will identify visual tasks required for their classes. 
• Lesson objective(s): Student will be able to articulate visual tasks they need to complete in their classes and their current methods for access.
• Read the full Teaching Procedures and Steps. (Scroll down to Unit 5.)

Unit 5:  Assistive Technology – Lesson Plan 2

• Goal:  Student will define low, mid, and high tech tools for classroom task completion.
• Lesson objective(s): Student will be able to list visual tasks in their classes they need to complete and the possible tools that might help them complete these tasks.
• Read the full Teaching Procedures and Steps.  (Scroll down to Unit 5.)

Unit 5:  Assistive Technology – Lesson Plan 3

• Goal:  Student will define low, mid, and high tech tools for classroom task completion.
• Lesson objective(s): Student will explore assistive technology (AT) options and identify AT tools that might help them to be more efficient when completing the stated tasks.
• Read the full Teaching Procedures and Steps.  (Scroll down to Unit 5.)

Unit 5:  Assistive Technology – Lesson Plan 4

• Goal:  Student will define low, mid, and high tech tools for classroom task completion.
• Lesson objective(s): Student will explore AT tools to try.
• Read the full Teaching Procedures and Steps.  (Scroll down to Unit 5.)

Unit 5 – Assistive Technology – Supplemental Handouts

Near and Distance Tasks  

On this worksheet, students make a list of the near tasks that they have to do during each period, with a space to indicate the strategy they use for each task. (Scroll down to Unit 5.)

• Worksheet 1 – Near and Distance Tasks – MS Word
• Worksheet 1 – Near and Distance Tasks – PDF

Observation Checklist Interview

• Worksheet 2 – Observation Checklist Interview – MS Word
• Worksheet 2 – Observation Checklist Interview – PDF

Improve My Strategies

• Worksheet 3 – Improve My Strategies – MS Word
• Worksheet 3 – Improve My Strategies – PDF

What I Like and Don’t Like

• Worksheet 4 – What I Like and Don’t Like – MS Word
• Worksheet 4 – What I Like and Don’t Like – PDF

Sample of AT Tools for Access

• Worksheet 5 – Sample of AT Tools for Access – MS Word
• Worksheet 5 – Sample of AT Tools for Access – PDF