Computer assisted instruction in special education: Three case studies

The purpose of this study is to investigate the computer use of three students attending special education. Students have mental retardation, hearing problem and physical handicap respectively. The maximum variation sampling is used to select the type of handicap while the convenience sampling is used to select the participants. Three widely encountered handicap types in special education are chosen to select the study participants. The multiple holistic case study design is used in the study. Each student with different handicap is individually investigated and based on the findings a comparison was made among participants. Qualitative data were gathered using observations, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Results of the study indicate that teachers in special education prefer to use educational games and drill and practice type of computers programs. Also it is found that over use of the animation, text and symbols cause cognitive overload on the student with mental retardation. Additionally, it is also discovered that the student with hearing problem learn words better when the computers are used in education as compared to the traditional method. Furthermore the student with physical handicap improved his fine muscle control abilities besides planned course objectives when computers are used in special education. Finally the use of computer in special education contributes the development of all participants? fundamental computer skills.