Supporting Autistic Pupils Through Use of Technology

Melissa Morgenlander
Adjunct Professor at Brooklyn College

Webinar

49 min

Rated 5 stars

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This webinar will provide senior leaders, SENDCOs, safeguarding leads and teaching staff with practical guidance and insight into how young learners with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) can interact with technology in empowering, beneficial ways in both school and home environments.
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This webinar will provide senior leaders, SENDCOs, safeguarding leads and teaching staff with practical guidance and insight into how young learners with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) can interact with technology in empowering, beneficial ways in both school and home environments.

According to the World Health Organisation, 1 in every 160 children worldwide has autism. In the UK, that ratio is 1 in every 57; in the US, it’s 1 in 54. The increasing prevalence, therefore, of technology in education – and the complexities that can bring into play for young people with ASD – presents a significant challenge for schools. However, if introduced and deployed properly, it can also help ASD learners to build their confidence and skill in communicating and interacting socially.

In this webinar, Dr Melissa Morgenlander, an adjunct professor at Brooklyn College (part of the City University of New York) specialising in cognitive learning, and whose son is autistic, discusses how technology can support development and wellbeing, and how we can adapt devices for more effective safeguarding.

Outcome 1:

Deepening the understanding of autism spectrum disorders (including basic terminology) and highlighting some common behaviours in children and young people with ASD.

Outcome 2:

Recognising some of the most beneficial and effective ways that technology can be used to aid learners with ASD in their speech and communication.

Outcome 3:

Identifying which technological devices can be employed to assist children and young people with ASD in their activities of daily living.

Outcome 4:

Understanding how best to set up digital devices for ASD users, as well as additional ways to safeguard children and young people with ASD when they go online.

Outcome 5:

Appreciating how technology might be used to aid learners with ASD in developing their social interaction and their emotional regulation

Melissa Morgenlander

Melissa Morgenlander is a professor, curriculum designer, researcher, and writer who is passionate about leveraging the power of television, games, video, and mobile technology for children's intellectual and social development. She is an Adjunct Professor at Brooklyn College, where she teaches a course on Children and Media for the Children & Youth Studies program. Her son has autism, and has given her great insight into the important role that the iPad has for children with ASD. She writes about the intersection of autism spectrum disorders and technology on her blog, the iQ Journals.

With a PhD in Cognitive Studies from Teachers College, Columbia University, Melissa always takes a user’s perspective in curriculum design and research. Her specialties include special education and tablets, parent-child co-viewing, early childhood education, and math learning.

Melissa serves as an educational consultant to a variety of educational television shows, apps, after-school programs and educational start-ups. She is proud to have served as a Research Fellow at Sesame Workshop, which inspired her dissertation about co-viewing from Sesame Street.

In addition to her doctorate, Melissa holds an MA from NYU in Educational Communication and Technology and a BA from Vassar College.