Measuring Effectiveness: Technology to Support Writing

Website: donjohnston.com

The author presents an excellent summary of research and practice regarding three kinds of supported writing interventions: spell checkers, word processors with speech synthesizers and word prediction programs.

The article is based on studies which demonstrate that students with learning disabilities often have difficulties with writing. Successful assessment of the value of a given type of assistive technology is based upon individual student needs and must be accompanied by instruction.

The value of word prediction programs is discussed in target students. The pros and cons of both speech synthesizers and spell checkers is well-presented.
The article concludes with specific options to measure the efficacy of each of these technologies. Multiple sources and a sound bibliography are included.