Technology in education has changed since the first computers were placed into schools. No one knows this better than Tammi Miller, the Speech Language Pathologist at the Hurley Middle School in Seekonk, MA. Over the past 24 years, Tammi has worked with students with varying needs to make a difference in their education and lives. Technology has been a game-changer for Tammi’s students. “Learning is so much more engaging. There is less drill and kill and more creativity and higher level thinking”, says Miller. Tammi is able to tie various tools to curriculum, making it easier for her to provide feedback to students as well as collaborate with colleagues. An avid integrator of technology, Miller utilizes a variety of tools for student/teacher and peer collaboration, mindmapping, games, cartooning, and even Calm.com for mindfulness and grounding before some lessons. She also uses Google Classroom to connect core class content for students in her sessions.

Google docs is one of her many go-to tools for working with special needs students.  “I can see what my students are doing and give feedback using the comment feature.” The readback and speech to text features are also helpful for her students. “I may have a student who is able to verbalize their thoughts, but is not yet ready to type what they are thinking.” The speech to text feature in Google docs is a great way for her students to see their words materialize in text before their eyes. Miller’s students also benefit from Google’s readback features for articulation sound practice.

While Tammi sees the direct impact technology has had with her own students, she also sees it as a motivator for all students throughout her school. “Our students are digital natives and are more engaged when learning with technology,” states Miller. The competitive nature of apps such as Kahoot and Quizlet make learning fun. Tammi has played a key role in the expansion of technology integration for her school. She has presented to her peers during professional development days and shares her experience with others on a regular basis. She has shared the many possibilities of Google docs, Read/Write, and Flippity as a tool for students to create their own educational games.   

Tammi is looking forward to the 1:1 environment that is on the horizon for her school. “Once we are 1:1, the use of technology will become a natural tool for students to use in the classroom,” says Tammi.  She looks forward to her students having choice in their learning as they start to understand more about themselves and their individual learning styles.

MassCUE is pleased to recognize Tammi Miller as April’s Featured Educator. Congratulations on a job well-done!

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Tammi Miller is a Speech Language Pathologist at the Dr. Kevin M. Hurley Middle School in Seekonk, Massachusetts. She has presented at the the MassCUE Fall Conference and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Conference on the use of technology to improve student learning.

Follow her on Twitter @1tlcslp