Running head: DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AND PERSONAL DEVICES 1

Students with Developmental Disabilities and the use of Personal Devices

Kenny Jamieson

December 5, 2016

University of British Columbia

ETEC 511
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 2

Abstract

In today’s academic environment, students with developmental disabilities face many unique and

difficult challenges. The Developmental Disabilities Association (2016) defines a

developmental disability as one that impacts the individual with a life-long impairment that is

attributable to a mental and/or physical disability. This essay will focus on the use of personal

digital devices, defined as devices such as iPads, smartphones, or tablets, and the effects that the

use of such devices have on the learning outcomes for students with developmental disabilities.

The essay will be supported with research from various peer-reviewed articles and information

from governmental agencies, that have studied the impact that digital technologies can have on

these students. The articles will support the arguments being made, that students with

developmental disabilities see positive changes to their progress as learners and in reaching their

specific learning outcomes when they are given the opportunity to utilize a personal digital

device as a learning tool. Students using these tools have a greater chance of successfully

integrating into a traditional classroom setting, are able to benefit from controlling the pace of

their learning, utilize the tools to provide visual adaptations to course material, and see an

increase in independence and self-esteem. Conclusions will be drawn that are supported by the

aforementioned research and supported by the peer-reviewed articles.

Keywords: Developmental disability; personal devices; iPad; technology; integration; secondary

schools.
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 3

Students with Developmental Disabilities and the use of Personal Devices

Students with developmental disabilities face unique challenges in the classroom. In

addition to the challenges these students face academically, many have difficulties with social,

emotional, and behavioural development (Katz and Mirenda, 2002). These students may also be

non-verbal or have limited verbal communication skills (National Institute of Deafness and Other

Communication Disorders, 2012). These challenges can pose a large barrier to successfully

integrating those students into the classroom. This can present many different challenges for the

schools that those students attend. Students are often placed in segregated classrooms and

expected to meet modified learning objectives. In other situations, classroom teachers lack

support and can struggle to meet the needs of these students while still managing to effectively

teach their class. However, students with developmental disabilities, who have access to using a

personal device in the classroom, benefit from greater access to visuals, experience more

individualized learning and grow in self-autonomy. In these instances, personal devices such as

iPads or other tablets and smart phones, can provide opportunities for the students to learn in a

way that is best suited to their learning needs (Mozaffar, 2012). These devices offer features

such as voice control, easy to use calendar and reminder tools, location-based services and a

wide range of apps that can be selected to support an individual student. The various services

offered on these devices, as well as their ability to combine visual and auditory senses, opens up

plenty of opportunities for use with students with developmental disabilities. Furthermore, with

the support of a personal device, a learning plan can be designed that is individualized to the

student’s needs. As the student begins to see improvements in their learning due to these

adaptations and use of devices, they can gain more self-confidence and autonomy. As students

begin to become more independent, their chances for successfully integrating into the classroom
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 4

improve, and the benefits of this can reach beyond just improvements for that student, but for all

members of the class (Katz et al, 2002).

Engaging Visual Learners

In today’s typical secondary school classroom, students come into the environment with

diverse needs and unique learning styles. What may work for one student, is not always the best

approach for another. In addition, many students benefit from being exposed to a variety of

different learning styles, including auditory, visual, physical, or verbal. For a classroom teacher,

it can be difficult to know and understand each student’s individual preference for learning a

certain skill or developing a competency in a particular area. For students with developmental

disabilities, this challenge can be amplified, as they may have difficulty switching from one

learning style to the next (Quill, 1997). For many of these students with developmental

disabilities, a visual approach to learning has shown to have the best outcome as many are visual

learners (Shane et al., 2011; Hart & Whalon, 2012). Tools such as iPads or tablets are able to

provide this visual learning environment, as they make it easy to engage students in a visual

activity by easily showing pictures or videos. Through the use of personal devices, teachers and

support staff can work to make a learning environment that is visually appealing to students.

The students with developmental disabilities can then engage with these materials in a way that

they find to be interesting and beneficial to their specific needs. As many of these devices have

various accessibility features, they can be modified to fit each individual students learning needs.

Students with developmental disabilities, who may struggle with verbal instruction, can benefit

from visual instructions that can either help demonstrate how to complete a task or guide

students through a particular lesson. In a study completed by Quill (1997), the use of visual

prompts or cues were able to help students focus their attention on the material being presented,
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complete tasks more consistently, and improve memory recall. In situations where auditory

instructions were the main form of directions being given to students, the use of visual

adaptations can have positive impacts on a student’s overall learning. Hart & Whalon (2012)

found that the use of visuals in the classroom for student with developmental disabilities, in this

particular case students with Autism Spectrum Disorder, led to increases in active engagement

and participation in classroom discussions. For classroom teachers, personal devices can make it

easier for teachers to provide differentiated instruction to individual students (O’Malley, Lewis

& Donehower, 2013). Through the use of videos or images on a personal device, student with

developmental disabilities can replay the instructions as many times as necessary to learn a given

skill or can easily refer to the information when needed at various times through their activity.

Students who use these personal devices are also able to benefit from the use of video modeling,

in which they can observe a teacher, peer or themselves correctly completing a task (Burton,

Anderson, Prater & Dyches, 2013). The ability to observe the correct way to complete a given

task, can be greatly beneficial to those students who need to learn in a visual manner. In a

setting where students are unable to have access to these personal devices, this benefit can be

lost.

Using Applications. Integrating personal devices into the classroom to increase learning

for students with developmental disabilities can be supported or improved through the careful

selection of different applications or simple modifications to a device. As these devices are

designed to be user-friendly, or can be modified to include various forms of assistive technology,

personal devices can be individualized so that they can be used effectively by a wide range of

students (Quill, 1997). In addition to this, various apps can be used as tools to help students

learn specific tasks. Different apps can either help to increase a student’s responsiveness while
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working on a specific task, or allow the student to better communicate with those supporting

their learning (Mozaffar, 2012; Kagohara et al., 2013). When selecting apps to use, careful

consideration needs to be given to the individual student needs as there is not going to be one

solution that will fit every student. It is important for educators and support staff to be aware of

each student’s educational goals. As stated by Newton & Dell (2011), “supporting attainment of

these goals is the very reason for incorporating AT [assistive technology] into educational

programs in the first place”. A poorly selected application can hinder a student’s progress or

lead to unintended outcomes. However, along with the benefits discussed above, a carefully

selected application can help lead to increased task completion, progress towards previously

unattainable learning goals, and decreased need for prompting or direct support (O’Malley et al.,

2013). These various applications can be used to engage students in learning material in a visual

environment that is user-friendly and well suited to their unique needs.

Adapting for Self-Paced Learners

Students with developmental disabilities can face a variety of challenges in their

educational experiences, including learning at a different pace or requiring repeated opportunities

to learn a given task. As the prevalence of learning or developmental disabilities in children

begins to grow – according to the US Center for Disease Control (2012), “about 1in 68 children

have been identified with autism spectrum disorder” - it is important that methods are identified

that allow for differentiated learning for students based on their needs (Mozaffar, 2012).

Through the use of adapted digital material or a learning management system, students can have

opportunities to work in an environment more suited to their learning style and progress

individually through a curriculum (O’Malley et al., 2013). In addition, adapting material that

students are learning can help provide alternative tasks to students that are better suited to their
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learning style. This can lead to more engaged behaviour and also assist with students being

included in more activities (Katz & Mirenda, 2002). Personal devices can provide further

assistance for teachers working towards this goal, by providing more options for activities that

meet the students learning style and are engaging (Rossing, Miller, Cecil & Stamper, 2012). For

students with developmental disabilities, this becomes even more important as tasks that may

seem standard to other students can appear overwhelming to them. If students with

developmental disabilities are overloaded with instructions at the start of a task, they could have

difficulty recalling specific instructions at times throughout their activity (Quill, 1997).

According to Newton & Dell (2011), this ability to self-pace is one of the main ingredients to

consider when selecting an application and device for students with developmental disabilities to

work with. Unlike a traditional classroom, that will progress at the pace of the teacher, a digital

platform will allow the student to go at their pace and focus on the specifics that they need to

(Rossing et al., 2012). Having the ability to progress through a task at a pace that they control,

as well as controlling when instructions for each step are received can help keep students

motivated to learn and result in higher level performances (Mintz, 2013; Fernández-López,

Rodríguez-Fórtiz, Rodríguez-Almendros & Martínez-Segura, 2013).

Along with the ability to self-pace, the use of a personal device and well-chosen

applications provides opportunities for students to receive immediate feedback on what they are

doing. While students work through a task or activity, their personal device can be used to help

them self-assess their learning and track their progress (Mozaffar, 2012). For students with a

developmental disability who are learning a new skill, feedback is a critical part of their learning

process. In order for a skill to be properly learned and used in the future with minimal

prompting, a student must know whether or not they have done the skill correctly and receive
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positive reinforcement if they have done the skill as required (O’Malley et al., 2013). This is

where a digital device can play a positive role in helping students reach their desired learning

outcomes. Whereas with a teacher or support worker, a student may be caught waiting for

feedback, with a personal device the feedback can be instantaneous. In addition, as the device

can help to control the pace of learning, the student will not progress on to the next set of tasks

without correctly completing the previous steps (Mechling, Gast & Seid, 2010). As many

personal devices now have the ability to take pictures or record video, students with

developmental disabilities can benefit from these features as they allow for the student to record

themselves correctly doing a task, which they can refer back to in the future as a means of

feedback and self-assessment (Roth, 2013; Shane et al., 2011). There are many meaningful

opportunities available for students with developmental disabilities to increase their learning,

motivation and task completion. As these students begin to see improvements in their learning

and ability to complete tasks, the foundation is set for those students to see increases in feelings

of self-worth and independence.

Increasing Independence

For any student, creating positives feelings around their educational progress, self-esteem

and confidence to do tasks individually is important. With respect to students with

developmental disabilities, increased self-esteem and independent task completion can be critical

to their life outside of school (O’Malley et al., 2013; Hourcade et al., 2013). Burton & Anderson

(2013), state that “there exists a greater focus on individual strengths and fostering independence

in the presence of high expectations for students with disabilities. Important outcomes include

the acquisition of functional, adaptive, daily living, and social skills, and to gain the

competencies necessary to achieve the highest level of independence possible.” Many of these
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 9

students will receive individual or group support from a teacher or support staff member

throughout their educational experiences. Through the use of personal devices and various forms

of educational technology, students with developmental disabilities can learn new skills and

abilities and work towards doing those skills independently (Quill, 1997). Students with

developmental disabilities will originally start learning a new skill or how to complete a task by

receiving prompts or guidance. This can be done digitally or through individual instruction. As

they begin to progress through a task, the end goal will be for the students to complete the task

independently (Mechling et al., 2010). When students successfully complete a task, they will

gain confidence in their ability to complete that task and be more willing to take on new

challenges. Personal devices are able to support students through this progression by providing

easy to use video, picture or other graphic prompts that students can access when needed without

the direct input of a teacher or other adult (Quill, 1997; O’Malley et al., 2013). Developing these

feelings of confidence and increased self-esteem is an important part of the process for students

with developmental disabilities gaining increased independence. When students are able to

complete more tasks independently, they will be more comfortable and competent when working

in a traditional classroom setting.

The use of personal devices for students with developmental disabilities can also open up

new opportunities to work in an inclusive classroom, that may not have been available to them

otherwise. Working in an inclusive setting has shown to have positive implications for both

general students and those with disabilities (Katz & Mirenda, 2002). With the increased

popularity of personal devices, it has also helped to alleviate feelings of being different that may

have existed for some students previously when using a device to support their learning

(Mechling et al., 2010). As noted by Newton & Dell (2011), students who previously were
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 10

“refusing to use or abandoning AT [assistive technology] because of their desire not to look

‘different’ from their typical peers…are embracing the use of mobile devices because they easily

blend into the mass of other students.” Students who were previously non-verbal or had

difficulties communicating with their peers and teachers, are now able to use their personal

devices to support their communication (Mozaffar, 2012). Personal devices can be used in a

variety of different ways to help increase the communication skills for these students. By using

these devices, students can freely express their individual needs, better understand their peer’s

communication, and become more confident in social situations (Mozaffar, 2012; Shane et al.,

2011). Personal devices offer an opportunity to develop a positive learning environment, which

alleviates the significant challenge of creating communicative and inclusive classroom settings

for all.

Key Findings

As it has been acknowledged that students with developmental disabilities face many

unique and difficult challenges in their educational experiences, attempts should be made to

lessen those stressors and create a more positive overall feeling. Personal devices offer up such

an opportunity. Through their use, students have shown an increased ability to complete tasks

and maintain their long-term performance of completing the aforementioned tasks (Mechling,

Gast & Seid, 2010; Hart & Whalon, 2012). These students are able to benefit from the prospects

of learning material in a visual manner, and use their personal devices as a tool to demonstrate or

prompt the proper method of completing a task independently. Students who are able to develop

new skills or demonstrate previously learned skills independently, can become more confident in

themselves (O’Malley et al., 2013). This ability to complete tasks successfully can help lead to

the willingness to attempt and develop new skills and create further positive learning outcomes.
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 11

When working towards these positive outcomes, identifying the individual students needs and

matching the device and applications installed on the device to the student, can also help to

create a positive learning atmosphere (Dell, 2011). As the student gains confidence in working

with their personal device, they will be able to self-pace. This will help to prevent a sensory

overload and keep students calmer and more focused on their task at hand (Mozaffar, 2012). The

end result is a more confident and less anxious student. In addition to these benefits, the use of

personal devices can help remove previous communication barriers and allow for students to

successfully integrate into a standard classroom (Hourcade et al., 2013; Katz & Mirenda, 2002;

Mozaffar, 2012). As this has shown to have positive long-term outcomes for all students, this is

a goal that should be worth pursuing, and the use of personal devices for students with

developmental disabilities can be a positive step in the direction of achieving that goal.
DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 12

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