AEM for Inclusion with OTAP

Oregon is one of seven states chosen to partner with the National AEM Center to participate in a technical assistance grant. Accessible Educational Materials are print- and technology-based educational materials that are enhanced to make them usable across the range of learner variability. This includes providing options for learners who have challenges with vision, fine motor or comprehension, across the lifespan.

The goal of the Oregon Accessible Educational Materials Cohort is to develop a coordinated system for providing AEM and accessible technologies across the continuum of state educational services.

This 8-part monthly webinar series begins with an overview of AEM vocabulary, state and national legislation to develop a foundation for understanding across all stakeholder groups. Subsequent sessions focus on making AEM decisions, consideration and documentation in student plans, sources to acquire AEM, making teacher-created materials accessible, classroom implementation and where to go for AEM support to make classrooms more inclusive for ALL learners.

Georgeann Harty

Low Incidence Disabilities Specialist

Oregon Department of Education

Office of Enhancing Student Opportunities

Debra Fitzgibbons

Coordinator, Oregon Technology Access Program

and Regional and Statewide Services for Students with Orthopedic Impairment

Douglas ESD

Session Description: This introductory AEM session builds a foundation for understanding the meaning of Accessible Educational Materials and how they support inclusion of all learners, across the lifespan.

Timely provision of AEM, Accessible Educational Materials ensures learners with disabilities can get the same information, engage in meaningful participation, and enjoy the same services as non-disabled students, with the same ease of use. This session will establish common vocabulary, discuss the POUR Principles and reference relevant state and national legislation that pertains to AEM.

It is never too early to help learners explore and discover what works for them. They will grow to advocate for these tools that lead to independence. When we make these choices available to all learners, no one stands out. Intentional planning, conversations and collaborations ensure we ask ourselves “Who am I leaving out?”

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Jennifer South OTR/L, ATP

Occupational Therapy

Assistive Technology

NW Regional ESD

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Session Description: This AEM session will review the meaning of accessibility, and look at why standard formats can create barriers for certain learners. In contrast, we will outline and explore the basic accessible formats. Ideally, educators would provide materials that their students can access, but when that doesn’t happen, learners need a solution. Additionally, some accessible formats may require the use of an assistive technology tool to allow the student to fully interact with the materials being presented. This session will focus on free or low-cost accessible technology tools available on a variety of devices and platforms. Having the right tool for the task can mean the difference in a student’s meaningful and successful participation in their education!

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Michelle Soriano, M.Ed.

Technical Assistance Specialist

National Center on Accessible Educational Materials

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Kelli Suding, M.Ed.

Technical Assistance Specialist

National Center on Accessible Educational Materials

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Session Description: Are you looking for a systematic way to ensure that all students have access to high-quality accessible educational materials (AEM) that meet their individual needs? Do you want to learn how to apply the four-step AEM decision-making process from the National AEM Center in your state or district? If so, join us for this interactive session where we will share practical tools and strategies to help you make effective AEM decisions.

Gayl Bowser, M.Ed

Independent Consultant

Assistive Technology Collaborations

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Session Description: There are four main activities involved in IEP team consideration of a student's need for AEM. 1.)Determine the student’s need for AEM; 2.)Select the Accessible format(s) the student needs; 3.)Plan to acquire the Materials; 4.) Determine services and support that the student will need. In this AEM for Inclusion webinar, we will use the Oregon Standard IEP form to identify the ways that team decisions can be recorded in meaningful ways so that everyone on a student's educational team understands the plan for AEM.

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Wendy Burkhardt, MS ATACP

High Desert ESD

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Session Description:

Once your team has determined and documented that a student requires Accessible Educational Materials, it is time to search for and acquire the materials in the format(s) the student needs to meet their goals. This session reviews the types of accessible formats and the technologies they are compatible with. We will discuss best practices to provide alternative formats in a timely manner, including resources at a district, state and national level. Best practice incorporates accessibility into curriculum purchasing for universal access to all students. We will share AEM repositories such as the well-known Bookshare and Learning Ally to acquire accessible materials not currently available at the district level.

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Bruce Alter, PT and AT Consultant

Woodburn/Tigard-Tualatin

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Kelli Suding, M.Ed.

Technical Assistance Specialist

National Center on Accessible Educational Materials

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Session Description:

Join this session to gain insight on easy-to-implement techniques to create educational materials and vet technology tools for accessibility. Participants will learn how to create accessible Google and Word docs and how to quickly decide which tools should be used and which ones should be left on the curb!

While it is important to ensure ed tech tools meet accessibility requirements, we recognize that educators and practitioners have many demands already placed on them. Our goal for this session is to have simple ways to create accessible educational materials with immediate implementation and to demystify vetting for accessibility. That way, we can direct our limited resources to those tools that will better meet the needs of all of our learners.

Learning Objectives:

1. Define what it means for an educational tool to be “accessible”

2. Perform a simple test of keyboard (or switch) accessibility to identify any significant barriers on an educator selected tool that might keep groups of learners from using the app for learning.

3. Use a built-in accessibility features on devices to quickly test how well an educational app meets basic accessibility requirements before it can be considered for use with learners

4. Create accessible materials using Google and Word docs

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Gayl Bowser, M.Ed

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Session Description:

When the team has assessed a student's need for AEM, chosen formats and acquired them, it is only the beginning of the effective use of AEM. In this session we will explore ideas about how teachers and students use AEM in real classroom settings. We will share ideas about questions like "How do students develop skills to use AEM independently?" and "What do teachers need to know about teaching in classroom groups where some students require accessible formats?" When you join this session you will have the opportunity to explore basic concepts of classroom management for AEM and apply them to real students and educators in your own practice.

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Toni Nickell, OTR/L-OT

Baker School District

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Debra Fitzgibbons, Coordinator

Oregon Technology Access Program

and Regional and Statewide Services for Students with Orthopedic Impairment

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Session Description:

The eighth and final session of the AEM for Inclusion with OTAP webinar series takes a look at the materials developed by the Oregon AEM Cohort. We will dive into the archived resources in the cohort OER Commons communications page. Join us as we explore the IEP Teams’ Guide to Accessible Educational Materials in Oregon and Advocating for My Accessible Educational Materials: An AEM Guide for Students. You too can be an AEM evangelist as we partner to dismantle barriers and empower learners across the lifespan through access to their education and their dreams.

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OTAP/RSOI

1409 NE Diamond Lake Blvd, Suite 110

Roseburg, OR 97470