Chromebooks in the Classroom: Changing the Landscape of Education

Having just returned from the Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) 2015 Conference I had a chance to connect with friends and colleagues and survey the landscape to pick up on trends and practices in the field of assistive technology. Without a doubt we are at the beginning of another trend in our field as more and more schools move to Chromebooks. Chromebooks in many ways represent a real paradigm shift for educators and students since all of the apps follow the students account as they are delivered through the Chrome browser. This is a huge shift allowing educators to customize the experience of every student who is using a Chromebook. In many ways this is what educators have longed for, for years, the ability to seamlessly give students the tools they need that automatically load into their browser any time they are signed into their Chrome browser. As I walked the hallways of the ATIA Conference and peered into the rooms that were brimming with educators, there was a good chance the topic revolved around Chromebooks.  

Chromebooks look to the naked eye just like laptops but underneath the hood it is running the Chrome OS which when launched gives you access to the Chrome browser. While the Chrome OS has many built-in accessibility tools there is a wide range of extensions and applications that can be installed to give students access to text to speech, word prediction, mind mapping, task management, and study skills. Some of the more full featured assistive technology tools have been developed by TextHelp, Don Johnston and Quillsoft Ltd.

TextHelp has developed Read&Write for Google which provides students with word prediction, text to speech, and speech recognition along with a host of study skill tools. Once

logged in, students will have access to the Read&Write for Google Toolbar when they are in Google Docs and when they are on the web. The text to speech functions is first rate and is available to students when accessing the web. Read&Write for Google Toolbar is a solid app that provides students with a comprehensive set of tools for reading and writing. Teachers can access the premium version Read&Write for Google free by filling out this form: http://rw.texthelp.com/drive/Home/RegisterTeacher


Don Johnston just released Co:Writer Universal which provides students with top of the line word prediction as we have been accustomed to for the last 25 years. If you are working in a district that is using a variety of different computer platforms then Co:Writer Universal is a great app, since you can for one price run Co:Writer Universal on iPads, Mac, and PC in

addition to Chromebooks.  The word prediction on Co:Writer Universal is second to none and provides students with text to speech support right within the Chrome browser. As you would expect students have access to Topic Dictionaries and the full set of feature that they have come to expect from Co:Writer. Don Johnston was also showing Snap & Read Universal another Chrome extension which adds text to speech for reading the web that is able to perform optical character recognition on web pages that display embedded text in graphics. Snap & Read Universal will also let students level the text to make it more understandable when they are reading text on the web.


Quillsoft Ltd was showing WordQ for the Chromebook that can provide students with excellent word prediction and text to speech supports. Students can easily select the words

using the number keys and when they hover over a word in the prediction bar WordQ will read the word. Combining WordQ with their companion app ThoughtQ can help students explore topic lists of words when writing research papers. All documents can be saved on the students Google drive for easy storage and retrieval.




As more and more developers move their apps to Chrome platform we will begin to see the need for teachers to be better trained in helping them to understand this shift and how to

maximize the power of this ecosystem. In this vein, Mike Marotta and I have developed a highly readable six page laminated resource guide that highlights how to use Chromebooks in the classroom. It covers accessibility, installing apps and extensions as well as ways to really get the most out your Chromebook investment. To purchase Chromebooks in the Classroom click here









PS; Don’t forget to sign up for  EDCampAccessNJ.org on March 7, 2015 at the College of St. Elizabeth for a great day of learning and networking!