Proloquo2go: Program Evaluation Report

However, the spoken word is not the only way in which we communicate; in schools it is important

Education may be the mold of our future, but the mold behind education is teachers. Behind all intelligent students lays a common factor, teachers. This paper will be focused on the discourse community which lays within the walls of James Bowie Elementary in Richardson, Texas. From interviews and observations to external research, I have been able to find and understand the most important aspect of this chosen community, communication. Communication is a vital role in this community because not only is it the way that they communicate with their peers, but when teachers communicate with each other they are showing their students how to do it. To begin, I brainstormed about my knowledge of this community. From the time I was a child to now,

Communication is the basis of interaction and skills in speaking, writing and specially, listening are essential when working with children and adults in my setting. The interaction and communication I carry out

The English Curriculum (2014) values the position speaking, listening, reading and writing have as independent lessons. However, all four sectors combined are recognised as a positive developmental factor in the intellectual growth of students. It is expressed within the English curriculum how significant spoken language is; in relation to child development and also in terms of student’s progression throughout the wider curriculum. Researchers such as Owen and Burnett (2014) state that spoken language reinforces other key expertise such as reading and writing. Therefore, teachers must encourage continual development of student’s capabilities and confidence in relation to verbal language. This section of the assignment shall focus significantly

Teaching is highly dependent on communication. This is made clear by Simonds and Cooper (2014) suggesting that teaching and learning is impossible without communicating, communication is inevitable in an educational environment. Outstanding teachers display effective communication, it is the basis of their teaching reputation as well as the basis of their rapport with students, parents, colleagues and others (Simonds and Cooper, 2014). “3.5 Use effective classroom communication” and “7.3 Engage with the parents/carers” (Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL), 2014) the two standards listed require the effective implementation of communication, highlighting that it is impossible to be a successful teacher in and out

Children with APD have trouble processing the sounds heard into letters and words. Many children may hear fewer words which were really spoken, giving them the impression that the sounds heard are foreign and unfamiliar. On the other hand, some children with APD may actually hear the words being said however they can’t connect the words to their meaning. Children with APD develop a second nature to lip read and follow facial cues to compensate for their lack of understanding spoken language. Yet when speaking on the telephone these factors are not present, creating a difficult task for children with this disability.

An area that I could have improved upon in communication was the speed of the verbal delivery of the teaching session, especially at the beginning, because Quinn and Hughes (2007) advise that this can affect the ability to absorb information and cause loss of attention. The speed of delivery was very important for understanding because the teaching method used in this session was talking, as defined by Jarvis and Gibson (1997), with the majority of the flow of the conversation being from me to the student rather than it being more interactive and involving discussion or demonstration.

With the implementation of the Common Core Speaking and Listening Standards in 2010, classroom instruction in the facilitation of student discourse has become not only beneficial, but required. The Speaking and Listening standards require students to “participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively” (CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL1). Yet, in the majority of classrooms, this is not happening often enough. Students are still forced to sit idle listening to the teacher. This needs to change.

in these institutions, but this must be done in a way that fosters better critical thinking and prepares them to deal with life outside of the classroom. I firmly believe that the steps discussed above could lay the groundwork for better communication in college

Some of the ways are American Sign Language, Assistive Augmentative Communication (AAC) devices, gestures, and the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) to supplement the students’ communication skills. Since partnering with WCSI they have been able to introduce the iPad for communication. Two (2) of the participants in the Program have used an iPad for a means of communication the apps that they utilized were ProLoQue2 and TouchChat. Some of the students used their own form of sign language and it was very hard for them to interact with family, peers, and teachers. Most of the students using the iPad needed some sort of assistance from aids in the classroom to utilize the iPads for communication and

The authors of the article, “Co-teaching: An Illustration of the Complexity of Collaboration in Special Education”, explain how co-teaching has evolved over the years as a strategy for ensuring that students with special needs obtain access to the same curriculum as other students, while benefitting from special education. Collaboration has been characterized as special education for decades as teams of educators made decisions about the most beneficial options for students with disabilities. This idea was supported in chapter 5 pg. 126 as it mentions how teachers believe the term collaboration accurately describes the nature of their relationships, due to the fact that they actually work together to solve problems and help one another in forming

provide, or language we expose pupils to may be in the form of anything from general talk amongst

Throughout life some haven't stopped advancing and improving themselves. To continue to learn no matter their age since for some it is just a number, a number that can be overseen to learn something that will make an actual difference in their life or others. Communication has always been a necessity but over time has developed in multiple ways due to current level of technology. With this development communication needs to be taught in a controlled manner for the effective use of communication. During this professional and technical communication class over this term has assisted me in the advancement and improvement in my communication. Improvements like giving me an increased ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences as well as that I can more effectively write in

Interactions between teachers and students in regards to teacher talk is one of the most important learning tools used in the classroom. Talk moves are tools for building an environment that serves a range of productive interactional, social and intellectual learning functions in the classroom (Edwards-Groves, 2014). They are enabled and constrained by the “sayings, doings and relatings present in classrooms” and prompt responses from students (Edwards-Groves, 2014, p1). Teacher talk is a large part of how students learn, through models such as ‘Initiate, Respond, Evaluate’ (IRE). The IRE model involved the teacher asking questions and giving appropriate feedback to the student’s response to help them understand the reasons behind their response. The Scaffolding Interaction Cycle (SIC) is another important tool, which involved teachers scaffolding a students’ response to engage higher learning functions. It is important to consider Bull and Anstey’s three-style model, consisting of pedagogy of school, pedagogy of literacy lessons and pedagogy of literacy learning (Anstey and Bull, 1996). Pedagogy of school involves the teacher and the student conversing in a Q&A like manner, or a ‘guess-what’s-in-my-head’ approach taken by the teacher. The pedagogy of literacy lessons involves the students carrying out the teacher’s instructions but not making the connection to what they are learning. There is a time where these styles may be useful, but

There are many different types of Augmentative Communication Devices. Many resemble a computer with many different keys. The keys usually consists of various symbols and pictures that represent different forms of speech. Once the student is familiar with the symbols or pictures, they click on them to produce speech or to express what they are trying to say. Many devices can produce thousands of sounds, words, and phrases. (“Augmentative and alternative communication, 2012, pg 12) Not only is this useful in participating in the classroom, and responding to the teachers and classmates, but can be used in everyday life and daily tasks.