Volume 6, Issue #2 for Week of 1/10/05

Compiled by David Grapka (mailto:David@Trecenter.org)

Technology Resources for Education (T.R.E.) Center TRECenter.org

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Note: Some links are time-sensitive. Access to some may require registration or free subscriptions.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Good leadership consists in showing average people how to do the work of superior people.” John D. Rockefeller

UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING WEBSITES OF THE WEEK:

http://www.teach-the-brain.org/
http://www.elon.edu/predictions Did the Internet take us where we thought it would? You can view thousands of predictions at this growing online database called Imagining the Internet, developed jointly by the Pew Project and Elon University in North Carolina. The database, at, includes more than 4,000 predictive statements made by hundreds of technology specialists during the dawn of the Internet era - roughly 1990-95.
http://www.stenhouse.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=8916&r=sb050105 Do your students struggle with novels and other challenging texts? Lively and practical, the new book Deeper Reading gives teachers effective, classroom-tested strategies to move students to the deepest levels of comprehension. Includes dozens of activities & organizers. (from ascd news brief)

ACCESS SOLUTIONS:

http://store.yahoo.com/software-blowouts/mavbeacteact4.html Typing is an essential life skill. Check out this vendor selling Mavis Beacon 15 for $1.20, ground shipping on this is $6, so the total is about $7.15. since you can only buy one copy of this program at a time, this is a good time to start organizing "purchasing volunteers" in your community – people who use their credit to help get such useful items into the hands of someone who would find it difficult to make such a purchase.

ADMINISTRATIVE SOLUTIONS:

http://principalspartnership.com/ this site could become your principals’ new best online friend!
http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/chapter405/2004report.htm The Annual Report on the Implementation of Chapter 405 of the Laws of 1999, December 2004, is now available on VESID’s web site. This report is prepared to comply with Chapter 405 and provides information on technical assistance activities that occurred since the last report was submitted in December 2003. It is available in PDF format for printing. Please share as appropriate.
http://www.techlearning.com/story/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=OOXSXHEUJPFTKQSNDBCSKHSCJUMEKJVN?articleID=53200204 Here is an overview article written expressly for District Technology Coordinators about the basics of assistive technology.
http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=11046&hed=Top%20Ten%20Trends%20for%202005%20or=Briefings&subsector=Trends The Top Ten Trends for 2005

AUTISM SOLUTIONS:

http://www.mayerslaw.com/ In 2000, Gary Mayerson launched his practice dedicated to representing children and adolescents diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorders and other disabilities.

COMMUNICATION SOLUTIONS:

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/mcd/viewtrackingsheet.asp?id=143 The Medicare/Medicaid Coverage Database.
http://www.augcominc.com/socialnetworks.html Discovering a student's Circles of Communication circles is a part of the Social Networks: A Communication Inventory for Individuals with Complex Communication Needs and their Communication Partners, by Sarah W. Blackstone, Ph.D. (from Jill Rivers)

CONSULTING SOLUTIONS:

http://www.fablusi.com/requestDesignDoc.asp role play simulation worksheet v3 can be fond here. Although the worksheet aims to help authors to begin the creation of a role play simulation for eventual delivery using Fablusi v2 platform, previous versions have proved to be a useful tool for designing more general role play simulation.

DEPARTMENT SOLUTIONS:

* http://www.nationaledtechplan.org/ Rod Paige, U.S. Department of Education, has just released the National Education Technology Plan, entitled Toward a New Golden Age in American Education: How the Internet, the Law and Today’s Students are Revolutionizing Expectations. In addition, the Web site features a blog so that visitors can provide feedback about the Plan and a showcase of student-produced works in a Student Voices section. Who among you can be the first to find the references to assistive technology and universal design? How many are there?

NEW DEVELOPMENTS:

http://www.cosn.org/resources/emerging_technologies/hot.cfm In this guide, the Emerging Technologies Committee (ETC) of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) looks at the most promising technologies in store for schools.

PARENT SOLUTIONS:

http://www.copaa.net/ If you are interested in special education law and advocacy, consider joining the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA).

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SOLUTIONS:

http://www.acm.org/sigaccess/ Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Accessible Computing, SIGACCESS, promotes the interests of professionals working on research and development of computing and information technology to help persons with disabilities.

REHAB SOLUTIONS:

http://www.rercwts.pitt.edu/WC19.html At the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) on Wheelchair Transportation Safety at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) site, you will find information in easy to understand language that answers frequently asked questions, shows crash tests, and provides information about currently transit tested mobility devices. You can connect to a website where a ‘Ride Safe’ brochure (http://www.travelsafer.org/) can be viewed and downloaded for broader distribution. If you have more questions, you can also contact the RERC by e-mail at: wc19@shrs.pitt.edu. (from Mary Ellen Buning, PhD, OTR/L, ATP)

VENDOR PARTNER WEBSITES AND NEWS:

* http://www.accessiblebookcollection.org Accessible Books

* http://www.aacconnections.com AAC connections

* http://www.ablenetinc.com Ablenet

http://www.alphasmart.com Alphasmart

* http://www.closingthegap.com Closing The Gap

* http://www.colligo.us/ Reading: Access and Comprehension

* http://www.cricksoft.com Crick Software

* http://www.ea-software.com