Microsoft has recently published a guide for educators and teachers who work with students with learning challenges to help them leverage technology to improve the learning process:
Purpose of This Guide
In the era of personalized learning where we shift the focus from what is being taught, to what is being learned, the student’s needs and style become more central. Personalized learning requires attention to the unique needs of all students—particularly students with learning difficulties or physical disabilities. As students are encouraged to take greater responsibility for their learning, and for using technology to acquire new skills, schools have a responsibility to provide accessible technology that can be personalized for each student’s needs.
This guide from Microsoft provides information about accessibility and accessible technology to help educators worldwide ensure that all students have equal access to learning with technology. For educators new to accessibility and working with students with disabilities, accessibility can seem overwhelming. To help educators teach students with all types of abilities, you will find specific information about each type of impairment and accessible technology solutions.
The guide is broken down into three main chapters:
Chapter 1 provides an overview of accessibility, defines accessible technology, and discusses the importance of providing students with accessible technology in the era of personalized learning.
Chapter 2 is organized by the types of disabilities and the accessibility solutions available to help students who have such a disability. Each type of impairment is defined, and examples of accessibility features and assistive technology products helpful for those impairments are addressed. In many cases, specific product names are provided as examples.
Chapter 3 provides more in-depth information including an overview of accessibility features in the most recent versions of Microsoft® Windows®, Internet Explorer®, and Microsoft® Office. Chapter 3 also includes more details about assistive technology products and resources for selecting and finding assistive technology products for your students.
If you want to read more about this and see other resources Microsoft has available to enable education then visit their site at http://www.microsoft.com/enable/education/
You can download the Accessibility Guide for Educators from the Microsoft Download Center. The files are in Word document format.
