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303336
Classroom and Worksite Technology Needs Assessment for Secondary School Teachers Working with Students with Special Health Care Needs
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
: 4:50 PM - 5:10 PM
Thomas P. Cordon, BS, MPH (c)
,
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, and Center for School and Community Based Research and Education, Rutgers School of Public Health, Piscataway, NJ
Derek G. Shendell, DEnv, MPH
,
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Rutgers SPH (and EOHSI), Piscataway, NJ
Sarah W. Kelly, MPH
,
Center for School and Community-Based Research and Education (CSCBRE) /NJ Safe Schools Program, Rutgers School of Public Health, New Brunswick, NJ
Amy Lewis, MPH
,
Center for School and Community-Based Research and Education (CSCBRE) /NJ Safe Schools Program, Rutgers School of Public Health, New Brunswick, NJ
The New Jersey Safe Schools Program (NJ SS) is dedicated to assisting secondary schools in reducing occupational safety and health hazards (S&H) in classrooms and worksites. In 2013, NJ SS built upon an existing half-day training on S&H topics for secondary school career-vocational-technical teachers of students with special health care needs (SHCN). In collaboration with multiple stakeholders, NJ SS expanded and conducted full-day trainings for teachers and other school professionals. The overall goal was to expand knowledge and awareness of specific S&H issues for this population as well as providing relevant resources and information on securing work placement opportunities and workplace modifications and strategies. At the conclusion of the training, a needs assessment survey was conducted. Data analysis of post-training evaluations showed technology needs of teachers who work with students with SHCN. Teachers acknowledged barriers to the access and use of technology in classrooms and worksites. Results suggested for modified computers with touch screen monitors, smart phones with special applications, and technology for students with visual impairment, participants knew about the technology but had neither access to it nor used it in their classroom or at worksites. Furthermore, financial barriers were the leading identified limitations to the access and use of technology; training/learning barriers were second highest. Overall, this training enhanced the preparation of students/young adults with SHCN entering community workplaces by broadening teaching professional knowledge of S&H hazards. Financial and knowledge barriers to technology were key findings in determining what S&H improvements should be made in classrooms and worksites.
Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Occupational health and safety
Learning Objectives:
Describe available learning tools for increasing knowledge and awareness of safety and health (S&H) for students with special health care needs (SHCN).
Identify resources available to support workplace S&H for students with SHCN and their teachers.
Demonstrate barriers to the use and access of technology through technology needs assessment.
Keyword(s): Vulnerable Populations, Children With Special Needs
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Thomas P. Cordon, BS, MPH (c) is a graduate student research assistant with NJ Safe Schools Program, Center for School and Community-Based Research and Education, School of Public Health, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. He has also completed field experiences during the first year of his MPH program with the Dominican Republic Outreach Project (in Haiti and Dominican Republic) and with the "Bridging the Gaps" Program in Trenton, NJ.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.