DENVER – If your child learns differently and is struggling in school, there may be an app for that. Students with learning disabilities attended a workshop at the Denver Public Library recently where they discovered how tools such as audio books can help people with dyslexia.
Sally Pistilli, parent support specialist with Learning Ally, says assistive technologies boost confidence and remove barriers in the classroom.
“So you no longer feel like you’re the one that’s left out, you’re the only one not getting it,” she said. “Their self esteem goes up because they’re able to prove they are smart, they do have a lot of gifts and a lot of things to add to the conversation.”
The workshop was designed to help students develop self-advocacy skills and achieve academic success. Nearly 33,000 students in Colorado have learning disabilities, according to a 2014 National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) report.
The NCLD report shows a higher incidence of learning disabilities among people living in poverty. The most common types impact reading, math and writing. Pistilli says we all use assistive technologies, such as Global Positioning Systems mapping in smart phones, and when students use tools such as dictation apps, it can help them keep up on assignments.
“So it takes so much of the stress off of the difficulties they have, they might be very verbal and very creative with their ideas for a paper, but just getting those down on paper, so much easier for them when they have this technology,” Pistilli said.
In addition to workshops, a Denver Foundation grant will help support assistive technology training for parents and teachers and give students access to 80-thousand audio books online.
The Durango Herald brings you this report in partnership with Rocky Mountain PBS I-News.
