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Appendix M: Assistive Technology District Profile, Round 1 Text Description

Brief Description:

The title of this document is "Assistive Technology District Profile, Round 1" and is the ATIP District Profile Application.

Summary Description:

The "Assistive Technology District Profile, Round 1" application is broken down into two parts. The sections begin on page two of the document. Part 1 is the "Assistive Technology Services - Self-assessment Scale". Scoring criteria are listed and the user is to go through each category and rate each on a scale from one to six. Part 2 is the "Assistive Technology Devices Inventory". The user is asked to estimate the number of students in the user's district using each item listed.

Detailed Description:

Part I: Assistive Technology Services - Self-assessment Scale.

Part 1 spans across pages two and three of the "Assistive Technology District Profile, Round 1". At the top of the page is the title of the document, "Assistive Technology District Profile Round 1". Below this and left justified is written "District IRN" with a blank for the user to fill in their district IRN. Below this is the heading "Part I: Assistive Technology Services - Self-assessment Scale". Instructions are listed below and read "Instructions: Please indicate current status of the district on the items below. The rating scale ranges from implementation of best practice (6) to the need for improvement (1). Districts should use the evaluation criteria listed to help guide discussion when determining their ability to deliver assistive technology services according to the items included on the scale below. Data will only be reported in the aggregate form to protect the identity of the individual districts and to encourage districts to be candid in their responses." Below the instructions is a table listing the scoring criteria and the rating scale.

The table has eight columns and eight rows. The first column heading is "Best Practice". In the corresponding rows below this heading, each of the criteria is listed. The second through seventh column headings are blank, however the corresponding rows below list the rating scale from six (on the left) to one (on the right). The eighth column heading is "Needs Improvement".

The categories under the first column "Best Practice" will now be listed along with their corresponding "Needs Improvement" description, found in the last column. In columns two through seven, between the "Best Practice" column and the "Needs Improvement" column are always the same and have the numbers "6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1" in each column. Beneath each number is a small circle that acts as a checkbox. Rows two through eight represent each category.

The best practice description for category one is "Procedural Guidelines: All district personnel, in both special education and general education, are familiar with Ohio's model policies and procedures for the delivery of assistive technology devices and services". The needs improvement guidelines for category one are "Ohio's model policies and procedures for the delivery of assistive technology devices and services are not known widely enough to assure equitable application by all IEP teams."

The best practice guidelines for category two are "Planning and Budgeting: A comprehensive technology plan provides for the educational and assistive technology needs of all students." The needs improvement guidelines for category two are "The assistive technology needs of students in the district have either been separated or omitted from the planning and budget process."

The best practice guidelines for category three are "Student Need: Assistive technology determinations are based on unique educational needs of each individual student. A variety of assistive technology devices and services are explored. "The needs improvement guidelines for category three are "Consideration of assistive technology is limited to those items that are familiar to team members or are available in the district."

The best practice guidelines for category four are "Quality Evaluations: Assistive technology assessments are conducted by a multi-disciplinary district team, which actively involves the student and family. "The needs improvement guidelines for category four are "A team approach to assessment is not utilized. The district is over-reliant on vendors for meeting evaluation demands"

The best practice guidelines for category five are "Planning: The assistive technology implementation plan facilitates the use of assistive technology when and where needed to support active participation in educational activities and routines" The needs improvement guidelines for category five are "The team focuses on device acquisition and does not discuss implementation or limits use to specific times or environments"

The best practice guidelines for category six are "Training: Training for student, family and staff are an integral part of the district implementation plan" The needs improvement guidelines for category six are "There is a lack of systemic planning to address training needs for students, staff, and family."

The best practice guidelines for category seven are "Management and Repair: The assistive technology implementation plan includes management, maintenance and repair of devices." The needs improvement guidelines for category seven are "Responsibility for management, repair, and maintenance of assistive technology devices has not been addressed in district plans."

Part II: Assistive Technology Devices Inventory

Part two of this document spans across pages four through six of the Assistive Technology District Profile, Round 1 document. At the top of page four is the heading for part II of the application "Part II: Assistive Technology Devices Inventory". The instructions are listed below "Instructions: Please estimate the number of students in your district using the items listed below, prior to your participation in the Assistive Technology Infusion Project. The goal is to establish a baseline prior to receipt of the ATIP award. Please Note! If your district does not have any students using the items listed below, denote that with a ‘0'". Below the instructions is the chart for the user.

This table consists of two columns. The column on the left is "Estimate number of students using AT" while the column on the right is "Type of Equipment". There are thirty five rows with six main categories. Each category heading comprises its own bolded row. The subcategories are listed below in separate rows. The category heading and the corresponding subcategories will be listed next.

Under the first category "Devices to Assist Vision" are the subcategories "Print enlargement devices (e.g. large print books, CCTV, magnifiers, screen magnification software)", "Tactile graphic enhancement", "Screen readers", and "Braille production (e.g. Braille keyboard and notetakers, translation software, Braille printers)".

Under the second category "Devices to Assist Hearing" are the subcategories "Personal FM system" and "Classroom amplification system".

The third category is "Devices to Assist Speech" and has the subcategories "Low tech aides (e.g. communication board/book, eye gaze frame, etc.)", "Simple voice output system", "Voice output systems with levels", "Voice output systems with icon sequencing", and "Voice output system with dynamic display".

Under the fourth category "Devices to Assist Movement/Positioning/Access" are the subcategories "Low tech aides (foot blocks, mouthsticks, and adapted utensils)", "Positioning devices (corner chairs and standers)", "Manual mobility aides (walkers and manual wheelchairs)", "Power wheelchairs", "Switches", "Alternate keyboards, touch windows", and "Specialized computer access software (voice recognition and on-screen keyboard)".

The fifth and final category is "Devices to Assist Learning" and has the subcategories "Low tech aides (adapted or recorded books and adapted toys)", "Dedicated electronics (spellers, single word scanners, calculators, coin-u-7lators, word processors and organizers)", "Specialized software (electronic books, symbol writers, word prediction, outliners and art programs)", and "Personal computers".

The next page has an additional set of instructions that read, "Instructions: Please estimate the number of students in your district for whom you have used the following resources. Please note! If your district does not use funding from the resources listed below to acquire devices, denote that with a ‘0'". There is only one main category titled "Resources Used to Acquire Devices" and has six subcategories "District funds", "SchoolNet", "Medicaid", "Other agencies (BVR, MR/DD, and BCMH)", "Private insurance", and "Civic or community organizations".

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