SLES Assistive Technology Unlocking new skills with technology David Manczak, our Vocational Services Manager, is proud to show off the teams new tools to empower clients learning new skills in Sunnyfield’s School Leaver Employment Supports program. Each of these tools are instrumental in helping learners develop essential skills they need to reach their full potential and approach the job market with confidence. For learners with reading challenges, C-Pens work like a personal mini scanner, with the ability to read text on a page and translate it into perfect audio connected directly to personal headphones. With C-Pens, we can help learners with conditions like dyslexia read with ease and vastly improve access to information and independent self-guided learning. Laptops have proven essential in teaching important computer literacy skills. They are powerful educational tools not just in developing typing skills, program knowledge and literacy, but in also promoting self-directed learning and exploration. One innovative addition to the system is our use of SMARTboards to develop handwriting skills in both group and individual activities. Learners can write on these digital SMARTboards and have their own handwriting automatically sent to their laptops. And in a setting where COVID is still a concern, we provide personal accessories like headphones and keyboards to use. iPads, and tablets in general, are vital for many learners as their touchscreens are directly interactive. We have our own bespoke apps to use with learners, helping to teach dozens of life skills from hygiene, personal presentation and interpersonal communication to work skills, teamwork, and occupational health and safety. David is clearly excited about the future, specifically the possibilities for virtual reality tools. He sees opportunities to safely expose clients to workplace situations in a more immersive environment where they have an opportunity to learn, try, and try again. It’s an inspiring new world for us too; as we use these tools to help develop clients’ skills every day, we learn more about the endless possibilities to better support them in reaching independence and their employment pathways. 6
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