In society, it is oftentimes a regular experience that disabled individuals can feel left out and rejected in various areas of their life. Even the most manageable of things to us, such as waking up in the daylight at a particular time or speaking on the telephone to another person, can be of utmost toughness to them. Nevertheless, with the advances in technology today and the innovations of assistive technology devices available on the market, disabled people can have a more stress-free and natural everyday life.
One of the world’s most important technological advances
In fact, technology nowadays is advancing at such a rapid pace and is helping all areas of society; from communication, to education, to medical advances. However, helping those with disabilities via the use of assistive technology devices is perhaps one of, if not the, most important technological advancements. As stated disabled people often feel excluded and isolated, they find it hard to have a normal life and this can often be upsetting and depressing. Yet with the use of these new devices individuals can have a better life, they can do more things, and thus feel more included.
This is especially important in the classroom. Children with disabilities often find it more difficult to cope as they often do not fully understand why they are different from everyone else and they can get upset that they can not do everything else that other children can. Technology has made it easier for children to be integrated with others. In fact, some children may not have been able to go to a proper school previously however now through various e-learning devices they are able to learn through the most natural means possible. Specially developed keyboards and other assistive technology devices have made life so much easier for disabled people.
What other devices are available?
There are many various types of assistive technology devices available today. In fact, some of you may not be aware of the sheer number of implements on the market. The innovative devices are quite frankly extremely impressive, it leaves a lot to be said about technological advances over the past few years; it is merely amazing what can be achieved. Thus to give you a helping hand in understanding what assistive gadgets are available here are some descriptions of just some of the different products up for grabs.
Some of the assistive technological devices available are in fact so obvious we may fail to even realize them, for example, a video phone is especially helpful to those with hearing difficulties. They can be classed as an assistive technological device as they allow those who are deaf to have a video call and use sign language as their means of communication. However, for those who do not have the luxury of a video phone a Telecommunication Device for the Deaf, also known as TTY, has been developed. The device contains a keyboard and a visual display so that those using it can type their messages and send them instead. These come equipped with a relay service in the case that one person communicating is using a TTY and the other is using a standard phone.
These are not the only assistive technology devices available to those with hearing issues. There are infrared systems which are particularly useful when watching television. They work via transmitting sound to the individual’s receiver by using infrared light waves which can be adjusted to the desired volume. This is good because it means a family home can be created and thus the person who has trouble hearing does not feel different or excluded, this is because they can listen to the TV at their required volume and the family can listen to the TV at the volume they desire. In addition to this, there are other hearing assistive technology systems such as alarms that wake an individual up via vibrations are bright lightening. There are also amplifying devices available for several things such as the telephone and an answering machine.
There are not only assistive technological devices that help to create a more natural environment in the home but there are also devices which are used in a classroom to help aid a learning process as normal as possible, and those that can be used at work. For children who are visually impaired and find it difficult to read there are magnifiers available to help them with reading textbooks and seeing the computer screen. For children who have a physical impairment or any type of physical limitations, voice recognition software can be a great option. Often a physical impairment can stop a child from being able to write or type like other children however voice recognition software can allow the student to become more self-sufficient as they can record their own responses without any aid from anyone else.
For those who have a visual impairment and so have trouble seeing there are also lots of options for them. For those who have very bad sight but are not completely blind, they could benefit from a screen magnification system, however for those who are entirely blind they would find great use from a screen reader. This can often be used in the workplace, helping the individual to see the web design in front of them. A screen reader will read everything on the PC screen aloud via a computerized voice. Similar to this digital book readers are also an option and they use a computerized voice to read books aloud to the person with visual problems.
Overall there are masses and masses of assistive technological devices available for individuals with all sorts of disabilities, whether they be physical or not. The ones mentioned in this article are just a mere taster of what is available as there are quite frankly too many to mention. However, if you know someone with a disability there are certainly lots of ways you can help them so it would be advisable to have a look on the internet and see what products are available, because even the littlest of things can help to make a disabled person feel more included and less alienated and who would not want to do that for someone?
