Utilization of technology in everyday life has become a process which, by most of us who have access to technology is considered mundane. We use computers to organize our daily tasks, communicate with people (be they our friends and family or business
partners), and entertain ourselves without paying too much attention to how different our lives were only decades ago.
It seems, however, that the use of technology for educational purposes still has not reached the level in which it would seem ordinary to us. This is due to the fact that educational institutions are traditionally conservative and slow to change. A reason for that probably lies in the fact that not everything which is considered an advance in technology is smart in the long run, which is why it needs to satisfy certain standards and stand the test of time.
Nevertheless, technology in education is undoubtedly extremely useful, particularly in the areas which are considered a bit of a niche, such as distance learning, and distance learning for children and people with special needs. Teachers and parents of children with special needs know it is crucial to be up to date with the current problems and the solutions which help deal with those problems.
A number of apps for online learning exist in the market today and they can be easily found on the internet. Moodle, for example, is a learning management system (LMS), a free online app for creating online learning websites. The focus of this LMS is to offer teachers the most optimized, up to date tools for creating learning communities or present additional learning opportunities for face-to-face courses. Moodle even has a native iPad app, mTouch+, which is created with students in mind and does not require any additional setup to start working. Moodle is a complete solution for online education and it is also free (mTouch+ is not, though), which makes it widely accessible.
LMS websites tailored for those with special needs are great because they satisfy the needs for flexibility the special needs students most often require and make it possible for students in the rural environments to reach trained, qualified professionals who will be able to rise up to the challenge and offer them the education they deserve. AttenGo, for instance, is a website for neurocognitive training which helps children and grown-ups deal with their Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Apart from ADHD, which is probably the most common of all the learning disorders, there are specialized websites and blogs which deal with other disorders as well, such as autism, Asperger syndrome, dyslexia, etc.
Online education is a field of education with great perspective, since its usefulness is out of question – it provides people who have particular needs with the ability to choose their own studying environment which suits their own requirements (stress free, bully free). The significance of this is also obvious – it creates a society with more equality and makes education reachable for the people who would otherwise be unable to receive it.
