The integration of assistive technologies in the SEN EAP classroom: raising awareness

Abstract

Students with Special Educational Needs (SEN) in universities are a challenging issue of much concern. University students often need to attend English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classes to complete their studies, as it is necessary for their academic progress. According to Gathercole, Alloway, Willis, and Adams (2006), SEN students show low levels of working memory performance. Also, they are often diagnosed with poor concentration (Westwood, 2007), spelling difficulties (dysorthographia), and often have trouble understanding and applying phonic decoding principles (Westwood, 2007). When these struggling skills are not catered for properly they are often the cause for SEN EAP students falling behind in their studies as their lessons increase in their level of difficulty. Subsequently, it is important for these students, instead of being part of regular EAP classes where they may not receive the required attention, to be taught in a specialised learning environment with tools that will attend to their needs and facilitate the language learning process. Moreover, with the continuous growth of technology and the systematic training of educators in the use of technology, it has been widely acknowledged that technology can assist and benefit EAP practice in various ways. Based on students’ needs analysis conducted by the instructor at the beginning of the course, the present study investigates the different Assistive Technologies (ATs) used by an SEN EAP instructor in order to support students’ memorisation, concentration, and spelling. Furthermore, it investigates the SEN EAP students’ attitudes towards the specialised EAP process. The aim of the present chapter is to raise awareness in the type of support given to university SEN EAP students with the use of ATs in SEN EAP contexts.