Making Informed Assistive Technology Decisions for Students with High Incidence Disabilities

Special education teachers and individualized education program (IEP) team members throughout the country are struggling to make appropriate decisions regarding assistive technology (AT) for students with high incidence disabilities. Although numerous authors and organizations have developed tools to assist IEP teams when considering AT, the task can be overwhelming. Successful AT programs utilize preassessment, collaborative problem-solving, effective implementation, and systemic evaluation. Each of these issues present different challenges to special education teachers. This article is designed to simplify AT consideration for students with high incidence disabilities by highlighting several comprehensive resources that IEP teams can use to inform their decision-making process. Prior to the discussion of each resource, the authors identify barriers the IEP team may face when making AT decisions. It is the authors' intention that the tools and resources presented herein should be used collectively by IEP teams to ensure that the AT needs of students with high incidence disabilities are addressed. (Contains 2 tables, 3 resources, and 9 online resources.)