Electronic mail can be a motivating medium and many teachers are using it successfully in their teaching, creating meaningful writing opportunities for their pupils. You will find examples of classroom and pupil use in other units within this programme.

The speed of electronic communication is attractive to some pupils – messages can be exchanged rapidly with very little time delay. Others appreciate the freedom to compose messages at their own pace, using whatever aids they need to help them. Email is essentially a text-based medium, but word banks on overlay keyboards or on-screen grids, symbol processors, screen readers, talking word processors and other supportive technology can be used to assist pupils in composing and reading messages.

Some pupils with severe and complex learning difficulties may need help in making the use of email meaningful. The booklet ‘Making communication special’ describes how some special schools have helped their pupils by placing email in the context of other forms of communication. It can be downloaded free of charge from: www.sed.kcl.ac.uk/special/makingcomm.html

Email is a text-based medium that can create barriers for those pupils who need symbols to support text. Inter-Comm from Widgit Software is an exciting new development that will facilitate the use of electronic mail by pupils with severe and complex learning difficulties. Its intention is to give independent, text-free access to email for symbol users but the simplicity of the program will probably appeal to a much wider audience.

Example 10a

In a school for pupils with Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties the pupils have accepted email with enthusiasm, but many have literacy difficulties and have trouble composing messages. The communication software has a spelling check facility, so some pupils use that. Others need more help so their classroom assistant prepares individual overlays for them to use with an overlay keyboard. The overlays combine frequently used phrases common to all pupils, and banks of words needed by individual pupils. Using the overlays, the writers can enter whole words and phrases into the email software by pressing the appropriate areas on the overlay.

Key skills and equipment

The key skills for the above example are:

• sending and receiving email messages
• spellchecking an email message
• making and sending overlay files
• using overlay files with the email software

The key equipment is:

• a computer linked to the Internet
• email software
• overlay designing software
• overlay keyboard (IntelliKeys or Concept keyboard)

Example 10b

In a school for pupils with moderate learning difficulties, frequent use is made of talking word processors to support the pupils’ literacy. The pupils would like similar support when reading their email messages, so their teacher has shown them how to copy a message into the talking word processor. When the message arrives the pupils highlight the text in the message and select the Copy command. Then they open up the talking word processor and select the Paste command. This pastes the text into the talking word processor.

With this support the messages provide motivating, relevant reading material for the pupils. Some pupils have the whole message read out to them by selecting the Read All icon. Others pupils try reading the messages themselves using contextual and phonic clues, but they click on individual words if they want to hear them spoken out by selecting the Read Word icon.

The pupils also use technology to help them compose messages in text. Their teachers prepare Clicker 4 on-screen grids with key words to help them write their messages.

The grids are configured to send the contents of the cells directly to the communications software so that when the pupils click on cells the words appear in the message box.

Key skills and equipment

The key skills for the above example are:

• copying text from communications software into a talking word processor
• making on-screen grids
• using on-screen grids with communications software

The key equipment is:

• a computer linked to the Internet
• email software
• a talking word processor, IntelliTalk
• grid-making software, Clicker 4

Example 10c

A secondary school for learners with severe and complex learning difficulties makes extensive use of symbol processors such as Inclusive Writer and Writing with Symbols 2000.

For many of their pupils unsupported text is not accessible so the teachers copy text email messages into a symbol processor as they are received.

For some pupils the teacher removes symbols from all but the key words to make the message more accessible. The pupils can then read their messages on screen or from paper printouts. Symbol processors help them compose messages too. Key words are prepared for the pupils with symbols on an overlay keyboard or an on-screen grid.

More recently they have acquired Inter_Comm whichsits alongside Writing with Symbols or Inclusive Writer and allows the students direct access to writing, sending and recieving emails from within the symbol processor with which they are familiar

Key skills and equipment

The key skills for the above example are:

• copying text from communications software into a symbol processor
• removing symbols in a symbol processor
• composing electronic messages with a symbol processor
• making on-screen grids
• using on-screen grids with communications software

The key equipment is:

• a computer linked to the Internet
• email software
• a symbol processor
• grid-making software