For people with disabilities, assistive technologies can be extremely beneficial. Assistive technologies offer solution for disabled people by making them independent, productive and enable their participation in the social world. So, what does assistive technology exactly mean? Assistive technology is a broad term which includes assistive and adaptive devices to help disable people.
People having intellectual disabilities can leverage assistive technology for wide range of tasks such as communication, routine activities such as cooking or walking, accessing media with excellent mobility and security. Other hardware solutions such as keyboards, computer mouse are also available for disabled people. Furthermore, voice recognition enables people with disability and vision impairment to manage and access their computer.
Assistive technology is essential for people with disabilities as it enables them to engage and perform multiple tasks. Nowadays, lot of disabled people are utilizing assistive technologies and unlocking their potential with the use of technology. By having access to assistive technology, disabled individuals can
- Remain independent and can control their own life
- Participate in all social activities and contribute to social world such as school, society, work etc.
- Majorly interact with other disabled people
- Benefit similar opportunities offered to normal individuals
There are several assistive technology products designed to provide accessibility to disabled people.
Assistive technology is also an important factor to make education process of disabled process easier. However, many of the educators are utilizing assistive technology for education and training purposes. Still many of them lack knowledge on how to use assistive technology for the betterment of disabled people. Technology and inclusion are directly proportional to each other. If technology is not supported or accommodated effectively, many significant disabled people will not be able to leverage assistive technology.
