Blind? Deaf? Impaired? Then in most of the developing world, this means you’re also dumb. You’re excluded from formal educational opportunities at an early age and possibly even shunned by your family and community. But this doesn’t have to be the fate of physically or mentally challenged children anywhere.<\/p>\n
Assistive information and communication technologies can allow those with disabilities to learn and grow, indistinguishable from any other child. But we have to ask three questions about them in our context:<\/p>\n
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- Which assistive technologies are appropriate for the developing world?<\/li>\n
- How might they be implemented in resource constrained environments?<\/li>\n
- And what would their impact be on the children that use them?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Especially since you could even argue that educational systems are often impaired themselves – lacking budget, expertise, and will power to recognize that assistive technologies exist and should be employed for the betterment of all.<\/p>\n
For February’s conversation, the Educational Technology Debate will explore low-cost assistive information and communication technologies, and how they might be utilized to increase the learning outcomes of children in the developing world.<\/p>\n
We’ll dive into the issues and concerns with the help of several thought leaders on the subject; Cliff Schmidt<\/a>, Fernando Botelho<\/a>, Mike Dawson<\/a>, and Paul Lamb<\/a>. Your thoughts and opinions are always welcomed in the comments below. In addition, if you have deep knowledge on the subject, please email us a Guest Post<\/a> of your thoughts.<\/p>\n