Eric Is a First-Grade Student Who Struggles

Eric is a first-grade student who struggles with reading, the sounds of letters and blending words from the different sounds and it was decided at an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meeting that he should have Assistive Technology (AT) to help him since these are such basic fundamental skills and he gets so frustrated when he can't do as well as his peers in this area. The IEP team decided to try recorded books which are available in a variety of formats: audiocassettes, CDs and MP3 downloads. At the 1st grade level, Eric can be provided with very simple reading material, where he can listen to the sounds of the printed words he sees in front of him. His teacher can then supplement this with normal reading on the same subject matter as the audio books. This will help Eric connect the letters on the paper with the sounds that he is hearing. Since this technology is available in readily available formats, he can do this at school and also at home, so that he can practice multiple times.

Once Eric has mastered this technology he will move on to the more advanced technology of a speech synthesizer. This is equipment that reads the text on a computer screen out loud which will enforce his reading, but can also be utilized to read out loud words and sentences and even stories that Eric has written himself. This will reinforce his reading skills, while also enforcing his writing composition skills. His writing skills were higher than his reading skills and this is something we need to emphasize so that he feels good about what he is learning and doing.

Ultimately Eric will graduate to the paper-based computer pen which will help him in note-taking, so that he doesn't have to slow down and get behind his peers in school. This will further integrate his learning experiences by linking audio sounds and written words together. This technology should be integrated in such a way as to ensure Eric's gradual progress throughout his first year at school and ultimately throughout his school career.