Computer program built for success

The sawdust on Stacy Martinez's wheelchair is from her own work, and it drenches the air around her with the spicy pungence of creation.

A few years ago, the best the 13-year-old with cerebral palsy could have hoped for was second-hand sawdust, the vaguely patronizing detritus from a teacher covering her hand and guiding every move of her spastic arms.

Instead, she is using decades-old computer technology that has been integrated into her classroom, allowing her to participate directly in the kinds of hands-on activities that special-education students were often forced to watch from across the room. The trend of developing similar programs, experts said, boosts the students' spirits and job prospects.

''I could see in their eyes that they wanted to do it, but before it would take days and weeks and a lot of help,'' said Jeff Lintz, who teaches Stacy and other special-education students at Hialeah Middle School. ``Now they're able to complete and do what they want to do.''

Stacy finished building her second race car last month, a sleek, foot-long dragster she designed in detail on her laptop. Each of her specifications, from the wheel wells to the tail's clean lines, was downloaded to a computerized table-top machine, which cut and drilled the slab of balsa wood with an engineer's precision.

CAREER ACADEMY

In another program, the Miami-Dade district launched seven sailboats designed for disabled students as part of a high school career academy that focuses on marine studies -- a program that may expand to other South Florida districts.

''It's about being able to participate in a meaningful way that matches the products of your peers,'' said Jane Browning, executive director of the Pittsburgh-based Learning Disabilities Association of America, a nonprofit group that advocates for special education.

The key to Lintz's program is computerized numerical control, or CNC, a technology that updates generations-old shop machines such as drill presses and jigsaws to operate with computer commands.

The technology itself dates to World War II, when it was devised for mass production of military equipment, especially aircraft. It has trickled into schools since the late 1970s and is now common in industry but rarely used by special education students, said George Klein, president of New York-based Techno Inc., which manufactures the machines.

''I think [Lintz] is probably very leading-edge on that,'' Klein said.

The Techno-made DaVinci machines in Lintz's classroom cost $6,000 to $8,000, he said. Many other Miami-Dade schools have similar models, but none has special-education classes built around one.

Other schools have technology-based programs, such as the special education computer lab at Norland Senior High in Northwest Miami-Dade. Students use data-duplication machines to make high-volume copies of computer compact discs -- filling a district need and teaching them a marketable skill.

The new marine program at North Miami Beach Senior High -- the first career academy in Miami-Dade to fully integrate special education students -- is designed to prepare graduates for anything from advanced education in marine biology or meteorology to jobs with marinas or cruise ships.

ANOTHER APPROACH

The Broward district does not have any such programs, and instead focuses on using adaptive technology to help individual students participate in mainstream classes, said Denise Rusnak, director of the district's ESE programs.

Two quadriplegic high school students, for example, use a device that allows them to use word processing and other software by sipping and puffing through an electronic straw. Another, whose condition leaves him unable to type, uses voice-recognition software.

''Everyone needs a range of choices for career options,'' Browning said. ``It's very important to have real, practical avenues open for you in the manufacturing sector or vocational options.''

Nearly all of Lintz's students can use the DaVinci machines, most of them with little direct supervision.

Lintz can match a task's complexity to a student's ability. Younger students may use a simple computer program to insert text and graphics, picking fonts and layout styles to engrave on a wooden plaque or a wooden jewelry box lid.

''It was exciting and good,'' recalled Ray Andujar, a deaf 14-year-old who spoke in sign language about bringing his mother that first project. 'She said, `Wow, that's good.' ''

Ray, who also is mildly developmentally impaired, has developed into a leader among his classmates, helping them on the software and the machines. Like Stacy, he has become adept with the intricate drafting program they use to design the race cars.

She lacks Ray's fine motor skills but tinkers with her design using a small trackball that she manipulates with her thumb and wears on her right hand like an oversize ring.

Lintz has equipped the software with prototype cars that meet the 25 design criteria for the race, but the students have broad discretion to experiment with fins, wheels and other elements. They do far more than just pick shapes from a menu, making minute adjustments to the lines and curves, and reviewing two-dimensional printouts.

The machine takes more than an hour to carve the cars, during which Stacy watches intently. After a little sanding and a coat of blue spray paint, her dragster will be ready to load with a carbon-dioxide cartridge and race against other cars on 66-foot track.

ENTER TECHNOLOGY

Five years ago, before Hialeah Middle received the machines, hands-on work was severely limited for students such as Stacy and Ray. Even Lintz's most creative and intelligent students had few tools to help compensate for their physical limitations.

He thought back to one student who proudly built every piece of a grandfather clock, until reaching the crown. Cutting the straight lines of wood was no problem, but he simply did not have enough muscle control to negotiate the curved piece for the top. It was a small defeat, perhaps, but one that mattered.

''Prior to this equipment, they could never reach their potential,'' Lintz said. ``Technology is a godsend for these kids.''

Ray is now contemplating a career designing and building furniture or working in construction, and Stacy is looking at vocational programs in computers for high school. Both will enter their dragsters in local races, with chances to compete against both special education and mainstream students in state and national competitions.

For many of the students, it is the first time they have been able to work independently on craft projects.

When Stacy brought home her first project, her mother could not stop crying. It was a wooden jewelry box, a Christmas gift, engraved with the words, ``My Mom.''

'She said, `Mommy, I did it by myself for you, like other kids,' '' said Zuny Martinez. ``For a mom, that's the best.''