Increasing Collaboration and Knowledge in School Communities to Enhance Outcomes for Autistic Students

Purpose This paper describes a case study of a developmental program evaluation on the Autism Community Toolkit, a collaborative skills training program for parents and school professionals. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of the training on participants’ knowledge, competence and perceived collaboration; and potential improvements to the training program. Design/methodology/approach The program included multiple training sessions for families and school professionals, designed to educate participants on autism, evidence-based interventions and to increase home-school communication and collaboration. Data collection methods included pre- and post-measures and feedback forms. Findings Results indicated that the training program was beneficial for participants overall. Pre- and posttest measures indicated growth in knowledge and competency in autism interventions. While there were no statistically significant differences in the quantitative measure of collaboration, qualitative results suggest that participants reported increased collaboration posttraining. Practical implications Overall, the training program was effective, and the ongoing implementation assessment was conducive to continuous improvement. The authors also discuss difficulties with implementation and recommendations for future intervention implementation. Originality/value This case study provides practical information about creating, evaluating and improving a unique intervention designed to support school–home collaboration

La Salle Magazine Winter 2008-2009

https://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/lasalle_magazine/1200/thumbnail.jp

An Exploration of College Students with Diagnosed Mental Disorder\u27s Use of Everyday Technology

Mental illness affects roughly 1 in 5 college students in the United States and this number is growing according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI, n.d.; NAMI, 2012). There is an increased need for ways for people with DMDs to receive help in carrying out their everyday responsibilities and occupations. The college environment can be overwhelming for someone with a diagnosed mental disorder. Smart phones, cell phones, and tablets are technologies that people aged 18-24 utilize on a daily basis, which may offer a suitable resource to help them to manage their diagnosed mental disorder. There currently exists little research in the area of smart phone, cell phone, and tablet technology and how it is used to support college-aged students with DMDs, despite the increasing prevalence of such technologies in our society. Using an anonymous survey distributed to students on a college campus, the purpose of this study was to explore how college students with DMDs currently use and would like to be using everyday technology such as smartphones, cellphones and tablets to help them navigate their disorder and the cognitive disabilities that oftentimes accompany mental disorders. The results indicate that college students utilize their smartphones, cellphones, and tablets heavily for functions such as email, social media, and text messaging, and that they would like to be using these technologies to: record voice notes, track medications, manage or track their symptoms, relieve stress, and for health and fitness goals

Outcomes for graduates of baccalaureate interpreter preparation programs specializing in interpreting in K-12th grade settings

A Project under the Auspices of the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester. NY & Monroe #1 Board of Cooperative Education Services Rochester, N

Smartphones

Many of the research approaches to smartphones actually regard them as more or less transparent points of access to other kinds of communication experiences. That is, rather than considering the smartphone as something in itself, the researchers look at how individuals use the smartphone for their communicative purposes, whether these be talking, surfing the web, using on-line data access for off-site data sources, downloading or uploading materials, or any kind of interaction with social media. They focus not so much on the smartphone itself but on the activities that people engage in with their smartphones

Transparency and the Marketplace for Student Data

Student lists are commercially available for purchase on the basis of ethnicity, affluence, religion, lifestyle, awkwardness, and even a perceived or predicted need for family planning services. This study seeks to provide an understanding of the commercial marketplace for student data and the interaction with privacy law. Over several years, Fordham CLIP reviewed publicly-available sources, made public records requests to educational institutions, and collected marketing materials received by high school students. The study uncovered and documents an overall lack of transparency in the student information commercial marketplace and an absence of law to protect student information.https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/clip/1003/thumbnail.jp

Pushing the Boundaries of Participatory Design with Children with Special Needs

Despite its inherent challenges, participatory design (PD) has unique benefits when designing technology for children, especially children with special needs. Researchers have developed a multitude of PD approaches to accommodate specific populations. However, a lack of understanding of the appropriateness of existing approaches across contexts presents a challenge for PD researchers. This workshop will provide an opportunity for PD researchers to exchange and reflect on their experiences of designing with children with special needs. We aim to identify, synthesize and collate PD best practices across contexts and participant groups