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=Welcome to Integrating Technology: Text to Speech=

Course Details
Dates: July 13 - 17 Monday through Friday 8:30am-4pm September 26 8:30am-4pm (or date to be determined by group)

Description: Text-to-speech technology turns written text into spoken word. This is a hands-ons course that will give you the opportunity to learn how to access text-to-speech technology, practice it, and use it to enhance literacy opportunities for your students. This class will be ideal for high school content area teachers, special educators, elementary school teachers with any level of computer skill.

Text-to-speech technology is frequently used in the business world, in colleges, and at conferences both in real time and on the web. This technology, that used to be referred to as “assistive technology” in the education world, is now known as “Literacy technology” in classrooms across the country.

In education this technology can be an important literacy link for students. Text-to-speech technology is for many a stepping-stone into the wider world of computers and technology. It can help students access information on the World Wide Web, books on line, homework assignments, blogs and email, bank accounts, online employment applications, electronic documents, any scanned file, even their cell phone text messages. Everyone and anyone may find this modality helpful in their learning, and teaching, whether used to access written work above one's reading level, to reinforce fluency at or near one's reading level, or to add the aural modality to reinforce learning.

Goals: Students will have a deeper understanding of the role technology can play in their classroom. Each student will leave this course with a general understanding of literacy and its importance in their classroom (whether you teach general elementary or a middle/highschool content area). Participants will receive hands on experience and be able to plan lessons using text to speech technology.

Learning Outcomes: Participants will:
 * Demonstrate an understanding of how text to speech technology can support their reading and writing programs and/or support their students’ fluency in any content area.
 * Become familiar with a variety of free and inexpensive text to speech tools and know how to use them with word documents, .pdf files, websites, etc.
 * Will have sufficient practice to achieve a thorough facility with the technology.
 * Be exposed to other technologies that will work with text to speech software.
 * Plan activities that incorporate text to speech and which will allign to the Vermont GEs in their subject area.
 * Develop and implement a template for lesson plans that incorporate text to speech in 3 or more ways alligned to the VT GEs for math, science, social studies, language arts, or other curricula.
 * Recognize that consistent practice using this technology is necessary to meet 21 Century Skills.
 * Be able to troubleshoot potential student problems with the software.



Resources

 * [[file:T2S software for helping.txt]]
 * [[file:asst. tech. article.doc]]
 * [[file:fluency techniques.doc]]
 * [[file:plugin-6_benchmark_6th_ed-1.txt]]
 * http://www.paec.org/itrk3/accommodations.htm
 * http://www.edutopia.org/ikid-digital-learner
 * http://www.readingonline.org/articles/art_index.asp?HREF=balajthy2/index.html
 * http://www.edutopia.org/teaching-module-technology-integration-what