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Apple Macbooks Provides More Individualized Instruction

Pictured above:  Students at New Albany High School use their Apple Macbooks.

The New Albany Schools Special Services Department is able to provide Apple Macbooks for students with disabilities and the teachers who work with them on a daily basis.  Thanks to funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (AARA) of 2009, there are 52 Macbooks for students and 22 Macbook Pros for special education teachers.

Kelly Coltharp, Director of Special Services, wanted to do extraordinary things with the stimulus funds that the school district had been promised.  She wanted to especially reach high school students, ages 14-21, with disabilities.   “My goal is for students, with disabilities, to reach their maximum potential and be productive citizens of their community,” Coltharp said.

Each student, who has a disability according to IDEA, at New Albany High School (NAHS) and pursuing a traditional diploma, has been assigned a laptop computer.  The thirty-two computers at NAHS can go home with the students if the student and their parents have gone through appropriate training and paid a minimal returnable deposit fee of $50.

According to Coltharp, students will be able to meet IEP (Individualized Education Plan) goals and access more information because individualized learning will be enhanced through technology.  “All readers, especially struggling readers, need to be engaged and given incentive to learn to read,” Coltharp said.  “The laptops will provide this incentive.”

The laptops give students a variety of software to access during the school day and at home. Textbooks, writing software, required readings, access to Internet, and literacy programs have been loaded onto each laptop.

One of the most impressive aspects of this new learning tool is the “text to speech” program.  The “text to speech” program allows most reading documents on the computer to be “read” to the student.   This includes textbook information, articles, worksheets, and tests.

“One common disability we see in the district is specific learning disability in reading,” Coltharp said.  “It has been so encouraging to see our high school students who have reading difficulties excited about going to class and taking tests.  They know they can be successful when they can read with the help of the computer.”

Teachers at New Albany Elementary School and New Albany Middle School are using their laptop computers in different ways than that of NAHS.  The computers are being used to run software such as Headsprout to assist in reading instruction.  The Macbooks are also used to improve writing and for fun projects such as creating videos.

Special Education teachers have received training on using the Macbook Pros and other Apple products.  These teachers will continue to be trained on how to effectively use different types of technology to better meet the needs of the individual learners.  In addition, the New Albany Schools Special Services Department will host the Regional Special Education Consortium in March to share information about how teachers are using Macbooks to work with students with disabilities.  Mark Williams, an Apple Education Account Executive, will present information to the Consortium.