From the movie Josh’s Story we can see technology used effectively in teaching. His teacher used a program called Book Worm to help Josh learn to talk and communicate; she even helped him learn to read. She decided to work with him with books because he expressed interest in them. This is very important to find what a will hold a child’s interest. The Book Worm keeps the student and teacher involved in the activity together. This activity focused on the task of learning to communicate. This type of technology is not advanced, it is simple; but this task would not have been as interesting to Josh if it did not include the technology involved. It was incredible to see the changes made in his life because of this teacher and the technique available to her to help increase Josh’s self-esteem and social skills with his classmates.

In "Josh's Story" the teacher not only used technology to help Josh, but she looked for how he would enjoy to learn from it. She took the thing that he seemed to be most interested in and made it into something he could learn from. This Book Worm machine made it fun and easy for Josh to learn and he didn't have to do much work, but turn the pages. He wasn't forced to use it, but eventually he realized he could say the words too and it built his self-esteem which aloud him to progress even further. The teacher did excellent in taking something he enjoyed and turning into something that could help him improve in lots of different ways.

"Josh's Story" is a great example of teaching with the technology we have available for students with disabilities. The teacher not only focused on what would be most effective for Josh but also what an instrument that he would like using. He gradually seemed to become more comfortable with the Book Worm machine and seemed to work very well for him. I found it most interesting how elementary the technology was, but what a difference it really made. I really liked seeing the progress possible when a teacher reaches out to other possible solutions than the typical teaching methods.

Principle 1, effective technology integration involves students using technology, is demonstrated by Josh’s use of the Ablenet supertalker and the bookworm. With both devices Josh was able to use them in effective communication and learning reading skills.
Principle 2, effective technology integration is integral to learning, was demonstrated by Josh’s use of the Bookworm in learning to read. The task of learning to read was assisted by using the Bookworm making reading more interactive and appealing to Josh, leading to his improved reading skills.
Principle 3, effective integration focuses in the learning task not the technology, is depicted by Josh’s use of the Bookworm. It allowed him to learn the task of reading, not how to use the device, giving him the freedom to eventually read independent of the technology.
Principle 4, effective integration facilitates learning activities that would be more difficult or impossible without the technology, is shown with Josh’s use of the Ablenet Supertalker. When Josh first entered school he found the task of speaking overwhelming. By using the supertalker he was able to communicate more effectively, a task that was extremely difficult before using the device.

This was such a great story! I love how the technology helped Josh, but I especially love that the technology did not allow him to continue not talking, but helped him gain confidence and learn how to communicate with people. Principle 1 was used because Josh was actively using the book worm. Principle 2 and also Principle 3 were used because without the technology, the reading would never have worked, so the technology was in fact integral to the teaching. The teacher implemented Principle 3 through the fact that the lesson was not focused on the technology, but on getting Josh to read.

The bookworm was able to involve Josh in the technology through his ability to press the buttons and follow along on the pages. He was then able to turn the pages himself and complete the entire story. Josh began using the bookworm with an enjoyment of books already established. Reading, the learning activity, was integral of the bookworm because it used the bookworm to motivate Josh in an area that he was already interested in. It was motivation to become more verbal and interactive through reading aloud. The focus stayed easily on Josh overcoming his shyness as the teacher sat with him and asked questions corresponding to the books he read. This is evident through his improvement in eye contact and verbal expression. He would answer his teacher’s questions and began enjoying interaction through reading aloud without the aid of the technology. It would have been more difficult for Josh to have learned to enjoy verbal expression and interaction with others without the bookworm because the bookworm aloud Josh to develop his interest in books while slowly expanding his comfort zone. It was able to facilitate learning in a way that was not possible without technology.

I t was amazing to me how the teacher integrated each principle of effective technology integration with Josh. The teacher first had the goal of helping Josh communicate and interacting with others through communication and then found the motivation that was needed to get started with that goal - cause and effect toys and books. Josh never spoken nor communicated at all with either his peers or teachers so the integration of the supertalker allowed communication for Josh (Principle 4).The new goal for the teacher was to teach Josh reading skills, for which the teacher used the bookworm. The bookworm were used together to help Josh learn to read books (Principle 2). The technology was not the focus for Josh. This can be shown by Josh taking what he had learned through the bookworm and apply those things at home also. For instance, his mother says that Josh would barely say anything, but after the bookworm would actually communicate with her on a regular basis (Principle 3). Both with the supertalker and the ablenet bookworm, the teacher first taught Josh how to use the device, then Josh used the device after being taught with little or no help from the teacher (Principle 1). Then when the bookworm was no longer necessary to Josh's learning, the device was taken away from him while he read to his peers (Principle 4).

“Josh’s Story” was very inspirational and opened my eyes to how much technology can help in the learning process. The super talker allowed Josh to simply push a button and then the machine would say the word of whatever it was he wanted. This gave him the confidence to say the word after because it’s a back up that tells people what he wants if his words are not clear enough to understand. This applies to the first principle of effective technology- involving students (and not just the teacher) in actively using the technology. Another technology used was the book worm. Through the book worm Josh learned to follow the words in a book and turn the pages. I think that this can applies best to two of the principles: effective technology integration is integral not peripheral to the learning activity and effective technology integration facilitates learning activities that would be more difficult or impossible without the technology. The first one because the book worm is just a facilitator in understanding the book and the second because without the book worm Josh may not have ever read a complete book. Finally, the book worm could be used with almost any book and this made it so Josh did not have to stay fixated on one book. He was comfortable moving to a new book he did not know because he knew the book worm could teach him the words. This goes along with the principle that effective technology integration focuses on the learning task and not the technology, Josh was learning new words.

I think that the teacher did an excellent job in applying the four steps to effective technology integration. I think she followed all of them. It was obvious that Josh was the one in control over the book worm system and it was not the teacher. this created an enviornment where he was able to learn at his comfort level. Josh had some social anxieties that made it difficult for him to communicate and if the teacher was doing all of the work on the book worm it completely would have defeated the purpose for him to even use it. the teacher did an excellent job of allowing Josh to figure it all out on his own on his own time frame. I think that it was good also that Josh used the book worm for all of the books that he was reading. this made it an integral part of his learning process. It would not have helped him if he only used it once and never saw the thing again. I also really enjoyed the part of the movie where it showed Josh actually reading the story without the book worm. this showed that the technology was not only something that was fun it was something that actually helped him learn. It was clear that it was the teachers intent not only to teach him how to use the book worm but also to help him improve his communication and reading skills. I think that the best thing that the teacher did was that she found something that was of intrest to Josh. I don't think that she would have been as successful if it was something that Josh was not interested in. We are all different people and we all learn in different ways. This is why as teachers it is important to try to find out what ways our students learn and to do our best to accomodate to their needs.

This story is great. It's one you hope for any child with a disability.. The first principle of effective technology was applied by giving Josh the liberty to choose which command he wanted on the Ablenet Super Talker. The device fostered active learning by allowing him to communicate with the teacher, and helping him feel confident in making his own decisions. The second principle was implemented with the Bookworm in helping Josh to read. In Josh's case, the bookworm was essential in his reading development. It created a non- threatening environment with the voice talking to him, which was a major factor in his difficulties before. Principle three is shown by Josh's teacher recognizing Josh's love for books and providing a technology around that interest. Eventually, once his reading skills improved, the Bookworm became a secondary device and he was able to read on his own. The Bookworm truly did fascilitate his reading skills. The last principle is shown by just that. Teaching Josh to read would have been a very difficult task without the Bookworm. The Bookworm boosted his confidence, and improved his recognizing skills, while also improving his interpersonal skills. The technology helped him make progress in all areas of his development.

Josh’s teacher used a technology called super talker that allowed him to communicate and make choices in a way that was safe and predictable for him. This shows an effective principle of technology integration because the learning is made easier, not harder, by utilizing the technology. Although the technologies were used as motivators, that was not their sole purpose, they also contributed greatly to the learning process. When the teacher used “Bookworm,” it helped Josh to slow down, focus on the pictures and look at the book page by page. This not only helped him academically, but it increased his confidence. Slowly, Josh stopped relying on the book and started saying the word himself. The technology thoroughly involved Josh as he was the one to push the buttons and turn the pages. Furthermore, the technology is integral to the learning, not peripheral. If it was just the teacher reading to Josh, he would not pay as much attention or be able to focus but with the Bookworm, he is definitely engaged and paying attention.

Principle 1, effective technology integration involves students using technology -Josh used the Ablenet supertalker and the bookworm. Josh used them to help his communication skills.


Principle 2, effective technology integration is integral to learning- Josh using the Bookworm in learning to read. This helped to improved Josh’s reading skills but making the task of learning to read interesting and fun.


Principle 3, effective integration focuses in the learning task not the technology, is depicted by Josh’s use of the Bookworm. It helped him learn to read and not about using the decive.


Principle 4, effective integration facilitates learning activities that would be more difficult or impossible without the technology- Josh’s use of the Ablenet Supertalker. At first Josh found it extremely hard to communicate. With the device he was able to overcome the difficult task of communicatting