May 2004 — Editorial
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Technology for All Students
www.section508.gov). In addition, the Texas State Board of Education's 2002 Proclamation (online at www.tea.state.tx.us/textbooks/proclamations) lists 16 accommodations for Web-based textbooks, as well as 12 for CD-ROM or DVD-based textbooks. The following are some excellent online resources for more information on creating electronic content for students with disabilities:- World Wide Web Consortium's Web Accessibility Initiative
(www.w3.org/WAI/Resources) - CAST's Bobby Online Free Portal
(www.cast.org/bobby) - analyzes sites for accessibility - Trace Research and Development Center's Designing More Usable Web Sites
(www.trace.wisc.edu/world/web)
While special technologies are not always necessary, the technology products used every day with students in classrooms nationwide also can be effective with special-needs students. This is well illustrated in our Applications story, "Interactive Whiteboards Enhance the Learning Experience for Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing Students" (Page 64). Likewise, approaches to testing can benefit all students as shown in our feature by Linda Clark, "Computerized Adaptive Testing: Effective Measurement for All Students" (Page 14).
For students living in disadvantaged situations, the country is making progress toward bridging the digital divide. While student-to-computer ratios are coming close to being the same among all students in schools, districts are still struggling to provide technology for all students. However, we must be mindful of research such as that done by the Maryland Business Roundtable for Education which shows students in less advantaged situations are using computers primarily for drill and practice, while advantaged students are using computers for Internet research and other less structured approaches. In all cases, we must look at the needs of individual students as we have learned from teaching kids with disabilities.
As Congress tackles the reauthorization of IDEA, President George W. Bush has requested an additional $1 billion for the act in his 2005 budget. As one would expect, neither educators nor parents think this is enough. It is estimated that it costs an average of 40% above the expense of educating an average child to educate a child with disabilities, with states and districts picking up more than 80% of the costs. IDEA is likely to get caught up in presidential election politics, and it is probable that children with disabilities will benefit as the Democrats and Republicans try to one-up each other over who cares more about education. IDEA, however, is not only about students with disabilities - it affects all of education. We need to be informed about the issues in this reauthorization and work with special education interests to be sure our voices are heard. And we need to begin that work now, not on Nov. 2. You may not be able to raise funds with your singing and guitar playing like Neil Young, but you can find other ways to get involved and make a difference for your school and for all students.
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