What I have Learned about Switches

Throughout the duration of my course on Assistive Technology, I have learned a great deal of information. I learned about the various types of switches, and how they can be used. I then attended a webinar that was an Introduction to Switches. The presenter discussed the following, Personalizing and Observing, Which Switch, Breadth of Experience, Cause and Effect, and Assessing Progress.

When personalizing and observing the student, it's important to make the purpose of the switch meaningful. Also, when first using the switch with each student it is important to first model the behavior, like you would in any task, and don't simply say "press the button". With regards to personalizing, there are multiple types of switches that can be used, some work better for some students. Size, and color is very important. One has to consider if the target area is big enough. It is important to have an appropriate target area so that the student does not have to make large movements. These large movements, could make the student become tired. When teaching a student to use the switch for cause and effect relationships, one must teach the student that they have control. The presenter discussed a variety of methods to begin teaching. There was the press and hold where you hold it down, and when you let go something will happen. Then there is the, press and let go, which is the most common method. Also, press it again, or ‘switch building’, which builds a bigger picture. Finally, there is the turn it on and off, also called latching-switch. Child turns it on, and you turn it off. The same method might not work for every student. When teaching it students to use switches, it is important to give students enough time to respond. 

The final aspect that he addressed that I wanted to share was regarding assessing the students progress. The presenter suggested assessing students in a plethora of environments. He also stated that the students skills need to be generalized, and they have to be assessed using the switch in all environments. Also, while mentioning that students needed to be assessed in multiple environments, he began talking about how long you should give a student to activate the switch. First off, observing the student and making the switch activation meaningful for the student is important. But after observing, and choosing the switch, how long do you give the student to activate it after a prompt? The presenter said that he and fellow colleagues observed teachers who were teaching their students to use switches with regards to cause and effect relationships. He said that before assessing most of the teachers were barely giving their students 15 seconds to activate the switch. I found this to be very interesting. From my experiences with switches, I felt that its solely dependent on each individual students. Some students it might only take five seconds, and others much longer. You would learn this through observing in the very first step of beginning to use switches. Overall, this webinar taught me valuable information about switches, about assessing, and different methods to use when teaching to use switches.