Discuss Your Perspective on Why These Challenges Remain – Why Isnt at Better Incorporated into All Learning and Workplace Settings?
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Discuss your perspective on why these challenges remain. Why isnt AT better incorporated into all learning and workplace settings?
Assistive technology has seen an increased usage over the past couple of years. The ever increasing number of disabled people has significantly increased the demand for AT in America. Although, AT has seen increased use over the past two decades; challenges of making AT available to every disabled person remains a challenge. The research conducted by the National Council of Disability did yield positive results; which showed that around 76% of the children could continue taking classes whereas a further 45% could also reduce the school related activities. Apart from this 80% of older people were also able to reduce dependency on others.
Challenges associated with the implementation of Assistive technology can be attributed to the high costs involved in switching to AT. Although, AT can assist the disabled person do a lot of activities, similar to a non-disabled one; the availability of AT is often a barrier to the disabled people. According to Carlson, Ehrlich, Berland, and Bailey, approximately 60% of the people have no access or are oblivious to presence of Assistive Technology as an aid for day-to-day activities.
Apart from high costs; the fact that a major proportion of the disabled people are unaware of the benefits of AT in postsecondary studies is also a matter of concern. The National Organization of Disability also found that 25% of the non-disabled people actually finish college whereas the amount significantly drops to 13% and 2% respectively for mildly and severely disabled people. The minimal percentage indicates problems in the educational infrastructure as well as the fellow non-disabled peers who study in the same college.
AT has also seen its fair share of challenges in the workplace. According to the research carried out by NOD only 35% of the working age disabled people are actually working. Even though researchers see AT as a prime way for the disabled people to earn money and limit poverty; they mainly succeed well only in information based jobs. According to Pell et al. the disabled people must have a minimal level of computer skill in order to succeed in the workplace. Some of the people who were unemployed were also oblivious to what AT can do for them and were not too sure about its successful implementation.
Assistive Technology has some challenged when it comes to proper utilization of it in the educational institutions as well as workplaces. In some cases, unavailability of proper agreement was deemed as a barrier; in others it was attitude and the knowledge of the people for whom it is intended. Educating