Low Tech
One example of a low tech device for a student with an intellectual disability is a checklist. This can be used to practice functional living skills or to keep track of work that needs to be done during the day. This will help remind students what needs to be done in small steps rather than a set of directions that they may forget. Students may not always know what is on the checklist if they cannot understand the words or they may not be motivated enough to follow the checklist. Another example is color coding in order to organize subjects, folders, or materials for the different days of the week. This can make it easier for the students to work on becoming independent and practicing skills that can be used throughout their lives. If the reasoning behind the colors isn't explained then students may fail to understand what the colors mean and the organization will mean nothing. A final example of a low tech device is highlighters. These can be used to mark important dates, information while reading a text, or assignments that need to be completed. Highlighters can help a student with an intellectual disability improve his/her organization skills. Teachers should model how to use the highlighters, otherwise the students may use them in excess and they will be ineffective.
Mid Tech
Simple buttons can be used as a communication device for students with an intellectual disability. Each of the different colors used can mean something different or pictures can be placed on the buttons to represent different options. These buttons can be used to help a student complete a multiple choice test or choose an assignment. They can also be used in expressing wants and needs. These buttons are typically battery-operated so spare batteries should always be kept available in the classroom, otherwise the buttons will be less effective because they won't be able to express anything unless someone watches every button pressed. Another device that could be used is a digital recorder. Whether it looks like the one pictured above, or is a voice memo recorded on a tablet or mobile phone, it can be used to help a student capture all the information from a lesson. If a PowerPoint is being shown in class while a teacher talks and it is too fast-paced for a student with an intellectual disability, he/she can record the lecture and listen to it later. These are also battery-operated and if they die the student may miss a lot of important information that they couldn't write down during a lesson. If there is a lot of background noise during a lesson it may interfere with the student's ability to hear the teacher when listening to the recorded lecture again.
High Tech
A high tech device for students with intellectual disabilities is a word predictor on the computer. This can help students type easily and spell correctly. They typically only have to type 1-3 letters before a list of words pop up and they can click on whatever word they are trying to type. If a word is misspelled or isn't close to the actual spelling then they won't find the word they are looking for. They may not know how to spell a word they are looking for and choose a different word from the list that makes the meaning unclear. Another device is a screen reader. This would be helpful for any online work. The screen reader will simply read any text on a computer screen aloud for the student either through the speakers in the computer or through headphones if they are plugged in. Screen readers often sound monotone and can be boring for students which causes them to ignore what is being read. It can also be hard to follow along with a screen reader if the words being read aren't highlighted or underlined.