Success with Technology

Events

Success With Technology

Assistive technology (AT) is any device, piece of equipment or technology which either removes barriers to or helps any individual in learning. AT is not a cure for dyslexia or other specific learning differences, but does provide alternative strategies for students and adults that can increase skills and maximise an individual’s potential.

AT includes a variety of devices that help provide access to learning through technology, such as text to speech, speech to text, audio books, talking pens, talking spell checkers and computer programs. These devices can be high to low tech, and free to costly. These tools compensate rather than remedy, allowing a person with learning differences to demonstrate their intelligence and knowledge.

AT can increase a child's self-reliance and sense of independence. Children who struggle in school are often overly dependent on parents, siblings, friends and teachers for help with assignments. By using AT, kids can experience success with working independently. The DAS is proud to present the various Assistive Technology that can help anyone, from children in school to working adults to compensate their deficits and demonstrate their knowledge.

One can achieve Success withTechnology.

Download seminar brochure here.

Seminar Progamme	Topics & Abstracts
Speakers' Profiles	Seminar Details
Registration

Seminar Highlights

Types of Assistive Technology that facilitates learning and their benefits.
Bringing technology into the classroom.
How AT helps in improving the self-esteem of children with ADHD.
Using apps for iPads & iPhones to help with reading and creativity.
Hands-on workstations with AT products.
Purchase AT products at special price only for Seminar attendees.

Who Should Attend

Teachers who wish to learn about Assistive Technology devices which can be introduced to students who struggle in school to motivate them.
Parents who are seeking for alternative strategies to remediate their children.
Young and working adults who wish to discover tools to compensate their areas of weakness and capitalise on their strongest talents.

6 Reasons to Attend

FIRST such event in Asia with technology solutions for students and adults who have learning difficulties.
LEARN from worldwide experienced specialists on how technology can help one alleviate their deficits.
LISTEN to specialists in Singapore who use these tools to help students maximise their potential.
DISCOVER the numerous applications available on iPad and iPhone that can help you compensate your areas of weaknesses.
SAVE up to 20% when you purchase these AT products at the seminar (for participants only). Click here to view the products.
ENRICH yourself by attending the 'Essential Literacy Approach' course from 21 - 23 & 28 - 30 November 2011 by the DAS as part of the AT Seminar. All seminar participants get a discount of S$200 off the course fee.

Bonuses for the first 60 sign-ups!

Bonus 1 - A voucher for a further 10% discount on all purchases of Assistive Technology products on sale at the seminar.

Bonus 2 - A FREE computerised adult dyslexia screening test worth S$25!

Don't Miss the Early Bird price of S$78.00 - Valid till 20 Oct 2011.

Seminar Programme

Time		Speakers
9:00am	Welcome
9:10am	Assistive Technology facilitates literacy	E.A. Draffan
10:00am	Harnessing ICT, Transforming Learners	Dr Wong Meng EE
10:45am	COFFEE BREAK
11:10am	Screening for dyslexia Using Assistive Technology	Ashraf Samsudin & Lim Boon Hong
11:45am	Hypersmart Kids: Motivating ADHD students with Technology	Jeanne Tan & Nicole Chua
12:20pm	Assistive Technologies from the Students' Perspectives	Lee Albert
1:00pm	LUNCH BREAK
2:15pm	Take advantage of AT to facilitate your learning: My experience as a dyslexic	Neil Cottrell
3:00pm	The iPad and iPhone for reading and creativity	E.A. Draffan
3:35pm	Questions & Answers
4:00pm	Closing

Topics & Abstracts

Assistive Technology facilitates literacy by E.A. Draffan

This session will give a brief overview of the many assistive technologies available to help with literacy skills; those that can be used for encouraging new skills; those that support and those that are portable and freely available. The use of mainstream and specialist items will be discussed as well as some Web 2.0 technologies that offer collaboration and interaction at all levels.

Harnessing ICT, Transforming Learners by Dr Wong Meng Ee

Assistive technologies are enabling hardware and software to help students with disabilities to compensate their disabilities by emphasizing their functional abilities. The role of the family is one critical part of the ecology of support in equipping the child to gain knowledge and confidence in the use of assistive technology. This presentation will explore family-centered practices in the face of family demands in considering assistive technologies for their child.

Assistive Technologies from the Students' Perspectives by Lee Albert

The presentation is based on the Assistive Technologies (AT) used during the 10-week Effective Computer-Assisted Learning (ECAL) course delivered to students over the past three years. It may be reflected upon by educators for good classroom practice. It is important that students are aware of their learning difficulties to make better choices about the Assistive Technology that fits their learning. The strengths and weaknesses of the various AT will be discussed to recognise how they fit into the profile of the learners.

Take advantage of AT to facilitate your learning: My experience as a dyslexic by Neil Cottrell

Neil talks about the Assistive Technology that he used since the age of 10 in school. Neil will discuss how these AT helped him in some ways but did not in other ways. Neil will also reveal how he started developing assistive software at school, for his own use and later made it available for people like him.

Screening for dyslexia using Assistive Technology by Ashraf Samsudin & Lim Boon Hong

This presentation will share the DAS experience in bringing this crucial process closer to the people who need it most. It will present findings from the DAS 2010 exploratory study on the sensitivity of the Lucis Rapis in the screening of children at risk of literacy difficulties or dyslexia in the Singapore context as well as a glimpse into the DAS' most recent efforts in bringing technology into the classroom.

Hypersmart Kids: Motivating ADHD students with Technnology by Jeanne Tan & Nicole Chua

A disclosure of the qualitative research DAS conducted on primary school aged students with ADHD using computer games in teaching. The research measured reading, spelling, writing as well as self-esteem in the students before and after the use of assistive technology software. A variety of software was used, including Nessy Learning Programme, Clicker 5 and Wordshark. The positive results which showed that the ADHD students demonstrated a greater interest in learning with their increased self-motivation will be discussed.

The iPad and iPhone for reading and creativity by E.A. Draffan

This session will try to pick out from the 425,000 apps available for the iPhone and iPad some that might support literacy skills and creativity. From the basic drawing apps to the innovative file download systems that can help students read documents away from their computers and with text to speech. From mind-mapping to speech activated searches, dictation to dictionaries; there is something for everyone.

Speaker's Profile

	E.A. Draffan E.A. Draffan trained as a Speech and Language Therapist working with those who have communication difficulties whilst specialising in assistive technology. She has also worked with disabled students in Further and Higher Education, set up an Assistive Technology Centre and trained assessors and auditors for this sector. E.A. now provides staff development and consultancy in the use of assistive technologies, accessibility to e-learning and maintains an online database of assistive technologies. One of her current roles is working for the Learning Societies Lab in the School of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton.
	Dr Wong Meng Ee - BA (Hons), PhD, Specialising in Special Needs, NIE Dr Wong Meng Ee currently teaches courses in special education in the Master of Education programme as well as in the Diploma in Special Education programme. He also coordinates programmes for Special Needs Officers. Asst Prof Wong's research interests include the transition and post-school outcomes of students with disabilities; teachers and their relationships with families, schools and communities; issues relating to persons with visual impairments and their developments; education of teachers of children with special needs; support groups and their place in supporting vulnerable groups; assistive technology for the visually impaired.
	Neil Cottrell - Director of LexAble Neil is severely dyslexic. Since the age of 10 he relied on a laptop with assistive software to cope with reading and writing at school and university. Despite his difficulties, he graduated from Cardiff University with a first class honours degree in psychology. Although assistive software was vital for Neil, he knew that it wasn't enabling him to reach his full potential. He started developing assistive software at school, for his own use, but realised that what he was doing would be beneficial to so many other people. Neil's passion for enabling people to achieve, and his experience of dyslexia and assistive software led him to found LexAble in 2007. His goal is to help other people like him to achieve their full potential in everything they do. Through his work with charities such as Action for Children and International Children's Care, and with the Cardiff University Widening Access team, Neil has experienced a wide range of additional needs. He has raised both money and awareness for charities working with children with additional needs through his role as president of Cardiff University RAG (raise and give).
	Lim Boon Hong - Specialist Psychologist, Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) Specialist psychologist, Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS), Ms Lim Boon Hong is a specialist psychologist with the Dyslexia Association of Singapore and a Full Member of the Singapore Psychological Society. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree (Applied Psychology), a Postgraduate Diploma (Psychology) and a Master of Social Science (Counselling). Prior to joining the DAS, she worked as a psychologist in a special school for children with intellectual disability. She has also taught in the local polytechnic.
	Ashraf Samsudin - Assistant Director of Education, Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) Ashraf joined DAS in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science in Life Sciences from the National University of Singapore. He was trained in the Orton-Gillingham approach at the DAS and holds a Double Diploma in Dyslexia Studies. He currently is involved in the development of the DAS Curriculum and is spearheading the outreach efforts in schools. Part of that involves the conduct of the computerised screenings to help schools identify students who may be dyslexic.
	Lee Albert - Senior Educational Therapist, Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) Albert is a Senior Educational Therapist trained in the Orton-Gillingham Approach and is also a Lecturer with the Dyslexia Academy. He holds a specialised Double Diploma in Dyslexia Studies and a Post-Graduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education with London Metropolitan University (LMU). He is currently pursuing his Master of Arts in Specific Learning Differences with LMU and has developed the module Information Technology to Facilitate Learning for the same course. He hopes to be able to share with the audience about his research into this growing field.
	Nicole Chua - Senior Educational Therapist, Dyslexia Assocation of Singapore (DAS) Nicole is a Senior Educational Therapist with Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS). She holds a degree in Communications and is currently pursuing a Masters degree in Specific Learning Differences (SpLD). She worked briefly at the Centre for Leadership & Cultural Intelligence, Nanyang Business School, as a research assistant. Her current research interest includes morphology, learners’ responsiveness to intervention methods, and co-mobidities affecting dyslexic children. At present, Nicole is also part of the team coordinating the implementation of assistive technology into DAS classrooms.
	Jeanne Tan - Senior Educational Therapist, Dyslexia Association of Singapore Jeanne is a Senior Educational Therapist with Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS). She holds an honours degree in Industrial Design from the National University of Singapore and has recently completed her Postgraduate Diploma in Specific Learning Differences. Her research is interested in the relationship of visual arts and writing in students with learning differences. At present, Jeanne is involved in the coordination and implementation of assistive technology across DAS. Her work at the DAS also includes providing educational therapy to students with learning difficulties at both DAS centres and MOE School-Based Remediation centres. As part of the Numeracy Team, she also provides support for students with maths difficulties.