Impacts of Assistive Technology Applications in Higher Education for Students With and Without Disabilities Continued
Location
Online - Session 4A
Start Date
4-21-2021 2:50 PM
Major Field of Study
Occupational Therapy
Student Type
Graduate
Faculty Mentor(s)
Laura Greiss Hess, PhD, OTR/L
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Assistive technology (AT) research has historically focused on skills that AT features can support (e.g. increased spelling, increased typing speed, etc.). In contrast, new research has examined the impact of AT on occupational engagement for individuals with disabilities (Gameuda et al., 2018; Malcolm & Roll, 2017). A recent study further examined AT in higher education for students with and without disabilities and focused on the importance of AT support beyond just accessing AT alone (Camarena et al., 2020).
Due to the COVID pandemic, distance teaching/learning technology has become central to higher education. Distance learning has caused uncertainties for students including creating an effective study routine (Peloso, et al., 2020). Further research is required for examining AT that can support self-regulation, time management, and academic skills. This research is a continued collaboration with Brain Education Strategies Technology (BEST), to empirically examine the use of AT including the BEST Suite© of apps (self-regulation, to-do lists, and time management strategies) and Notability© (a dynamic note-taking app), for higher education students with and without disabilities. This research will emphasize an occupation-centered lens examining the use of AT with an emphasis on distance learning due to COVID-19. This research employs mixed methods, (1) custom-designed pre/post measures (quantitative descriptive data) and (2) structured interviews (qualitative analysis, constant comparison method, Corbin & Strauss, 2008) to examine the lived experiences and occupational impact from those using the AT. Participants in the 2021 research arm are 17 undergraduate students from the Dominican University of California (N=14 women, N=3 men, N=3 self-identify with a disability). This research has been funded by Dominican University, School of Health and Natural Sciences, Summer 2018 and 2019 Competitive Research Grants. This funding provides free software for all enrolled participants (N=17).
Impacts of Assistive Technology Applications in Higher Education for Students With and Without Disabilities Continued
Online - Session 4A
Assistive technology (AT) research has historically focused on skills that AT features can support (e.g. increased spelling, increased typing speed, etc.). In contrast, new research has examined the impact of AT on occupational engagement for individuals with disabilities (Gameuda et al., 2018; Malcolm & Roll, 2017). A recent study further examined AT in higher education for students with and without disabilities and focused on the importance of AT support beyond just accessing AT alone (Camarena et al., 2020).
Due to the COVID pandemic, distance teaching/learning technology has become central to higher education. Distance learning has caused uncertainties for students including creating an effective study routine (Peloso, et al., 2020). Further research is required for examining AT that can support self-regulation, time management, and academic skills. This research is a continued collaboration with Brain Education Strategies Technology (BEST), to empirically examine the use of AT including the BEST Suite© of apps (self-regulation, to-do lists, and time management strategies) and Notability© (a dynamic note-taking app), for higher education students with and without disabilities. This research will emphasize an occupation-centered lens examining the use of AT with an emphasis on distance learning due to COVID-19. This research employs mixed methods, (1) custom-designed pre/post measures (quantitative descriptive data) and (2) structured interviews (qualitative analysis, constant comparison method, Corbin & Strauss, 2008) to examine the lived experiences and occupational impact from those using the AT. Participants in the 2021 research arm are 17 undergraduate students from the Dominican University of California (N=14 women, N=3 men, N=3 self-identify with a disability). This research has been funded by Dominican University, School of Health and Natural Sciences, Summer 2018 and 2019 Competitive Research Grants. This funding provides free software for all enrolled participants (N=17).