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How can I increase student engagement with reading in special education settings?

After a couple of decades of working in the banking and finance industries I was facing a dilemma. How was I to spend the rest of my life? What would give my remaining years a sense of purpose and accomplishment? Should I continue to do work that paid reasonably well and allowed me a comfortable life in affluent Marin County, California, or should I pursue a less lucrative, but more meaningful career in education (something I had always dreamed of?)  What can I do to create a more literate, thoughtful, and compassionate society in the community in which I live? How can I help students who facing greater than average challenges?  My attempt to address these questions is the root of the my inspiration for creating the pages you are viewing. 

At the time, I was employed as a project manager a local University, which offered me the opportunity to pursue evening classes towards a teaching credential after working during the day. This was challenging, as I worked full time, had two children at home, and limited energy. After receiving my multiple subject credential, I worked full time as a middle school teacher for three years and also did substitute teaching in many schools throughout the North Bay. As I gained experience, I realized that I found special education settings the most interesting. Special Education students have fewer students and get to work with them and understand their needs in detail. I obtained a position as an intern teacher at West Contra Costa Unified School District while I earned my Education Specialist credential, and have remained there ever since as a special day class teacher of English and History to 7th and 8th graders with mild to moderate disabilities.

The school where I teach is very diverse and is classified as highest poverty and the infrastructure is crumbling. Until recently,  the technology tools available to the teachers there had been limited and often out of date. The district is now in the middle of a big push to get updated equipment and software. I enrolled the Master's program in Innovate Learning at Touro University California to gain more knowledge about how to best harness the power of 21st century technology to enhance and improve my students' educational experience.

Research

Many students with learning disabilities have struggled with reading for years and become discouraged. The students I teach are several years below grade level and find reading stressful. My research began with an exploration of whether using animation technologies such as Animoto could increase student engagement to read. As my research evolved, my focus moved towards whether using adaptive learning technologies (Moby Max, in my case) would result in an engaging way to develop my students' skills and ability to engage with the text.

Below is a link to an excellent article in Education World with ideas on how to use Animoto technology in the classroom.

Design Process

The subjects of my research are the students in my special day classes. I designed my project to explore which technology based approaches might be most effective in motivating and resulting in academic gains in my students. Below is a link to an article from EdTech Review which provides a nice overview of this topic.

Support and Next Steps

My next steps, which I have already begun, involve sharing my work with my colleagues at Juan Crespi Middle School. If we continue to see positive results at my school site, I plan to present my findings to a broader audience within the West Contra Costa Unified School and possibly beyond.