Scothoser's Corner

Parental Training for Autism

January 27th, 2012 | by Jeremy | autism, learning

Jan
27

Article first published as Parental Training for Autism on Technorati.

Child with Autism and his teaching support group. The state of Autism support is daunting. More children are being diagnosed with Autism then ever before, schools are running low on funds and are unable to provide necessary services. Parents are running low on funds to provide services for their children personally. Insurance companies are reluctant to pay for services at the risk of raising premiums for their customers. The government is already running in the red in most States and at the Federal level. The financial situation is daunting when it comes to paying for specialists and therapists to work with children on the Spectrum.

But there is one group of people who are wiling to do the job for free, if they could only find out how: parents and caregivers. They consult with websites, books, and their children’s therapists and teachers. They do their research in trying to understand what they need to do. But we as parents are, quite frankly, not prepared. It’s not because we don’t care, it’s because we just don’t know. We need training, we need consultation, and we need help.

Luckily, at least in the Granite School District, the school system has had the insight to set up a parental training class on how to help their children with Autism. They have specialists come and talk to each parent about each part of Autism. Last night was the first night my wife and I attended, and we loved it. From what we learned, we are better able to understand the behaviors of both our children, and therefore better understand what they are trying to communicate.

It was also a good opportunity to get to know other parents who have children on the Spectrum. We can talk about shared experiences, goals, and get ideas from each other. It’s a social relationship that we can’t get any other way, as few others seem to understand our experiences. They don’t understand that when your child is yelling “No!” at you and trying to get you to say what they want, even if they are wrong, it’s progress.

This type of program is definitely something we need to continue for our schools. In the end, with the help of a few specialists, they are training a legion of special needs aides that will all work for free. That, in my mind, makes for a sustainable way forward in teaching children with Autism.

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Badges: Motivating Education

January 26th, 2012 | by Jeremy | assessment, distance learning, learning, technology, training

Jan
26

For many years Education has had a big problem: It’s been seen as being boring, tiring, and a chore. Since the days of “No more Teachers, no more books” to the “Hey Teacher, Leave them Kids Alone”, people have been complaining about education. Everyone from parents to teachers have been looking for some way to make education fun again. And it seems something has grown from the video game world that can help: badges.

Badges are, essentially, minor accomplishment trophies, showing a mastery of a skill. Unlike the old “Gold Star on Forehead” methods used by teachers to reward correct answers, badges can be linked directly to a single skill (or series of skills). Video games use them as a way to modivate the player to continue to play the game by giving them something to work toward that takes perhaps less than 15 to 30 minutes. Before long, you have a player that has spent hours playing a game just to get a virtual award and feel accomplished. While many parents have seen these accomplishments as hollow, educators have seen them as a way to keep students interested in learning.

I have to admit, I was skeptical at first when I saw a number of institutions that apply them. How can you be sure they show a level of accomplishment? What is the standard of measurement? How is the badge a sign of a quality of education, and show a quantative, measured result? Well, the only way to know for sure would be to test it out. I found a website, TeamTreeHouse.com, that provided training videos that built the student up with a number of badges. The rates were reasonable for registration, so I signed up to see what it was like.

They (currently) have three main badges: Web Design, Web Development, and iOS 4 Programming. Looking at the number of videos, the length of each video, I figured if I booked through them I might be able to finish the whole training regime within a month, so I selected every badge path they had. Then I started on the first badge, which was an Introduction to HTML. As a learner, you watch a series of short videos (the longest was almost 20 minutes, the shortest was less then 2), and then at the end take a quiz to see how much you learned. After answering five consecutive questions correctly, you are awarded the “minor” badge, and move on to the next. After accomplishing all the minor badges in the HTML badge set, you are awarded the HTML badge, and so move on to the next set. After completing all the Web Design badges, you are awarded the Web Design “super” badge.

Once I saw how it worked, I was impressed. Evaluation of student knowledge is critical to learning, both before they start to learn, and after. By using this method of taking a quiz at any time during the badge sessions, the student can evaluate how much they already know about a given topic, and how much more they need to know. For online learning, this is great, because students have a way to self-evaluate when they need more instruction, how much instruction, and get instruction on targeted skills they seek. Also, as an added bonus, badges show everyone involved in the person’s education from the teacher, to the parent, to the student, and even to a potential employer, what skills they truly have beyond having “taken a class”. They may be minor accomplishments, but they represent real skills that have been acquired.

There is a caveat to this though: with the automated testing on TeamTreeHouse.com it is possible to continue to try answering questions until you get them right, as the questions repeat from a relatively small subset of questions. Of course that can be easily remedied by having either a larger question set, a limited amount of time to take the quiz, or both. Personally I don’t think it’s too terrible, as even by answering a question wrong it forces you to rethink the answer, and that in and of itself is learning.

So what about our guilded halls of learning in education, both K-12 and Higher Ed? How can this be implemented? Well, it would be both very easy (at least in concept), and extremely complex (in execution). Most educators have already built a well-ordered lesson plan that breaks down into topics, skills, knowledge, etc. that would directly relate to badges, both minor and regular badges. Continue to collect them, and you get a certificate with all your accomplishment badges, detailing the skills you have learned while studying. The real problem would be keeping track of these badges. An easy way would be to offer quizzes and assign them as each quiz is passed. But someone would need to manage the badge accomplishments, and provide a way to make them “puiblic”, either by having physical badges or digital badges.

The logistics of the badge question can be worked out, but it will take time to apply it to traditional education. In the mean time, to illustrate just how addicting learning by badges can be, I started the task of completing all 66 available badges on the site (as of this writing) on Monday and I have just 10 more to go. It is definitely taking less than the month I thought it would take, and that for me is reason enough to take education with badges seriously. If you would like to see what these badges look like, you can view my profile. This is just one very exciting thing I can see coming up for educating a connected generation. What do you think?

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iBooks 2 and iBooks Author: A Quick Review

January 19th, 2012 | by Jeremy | apple, ipad, review, technology

Jan
19

Apple announced today at their by invitation only event in New York a new initiative for the iPad: iBooks 2. It’s to allow interactive textbooks to be sold through the iBooks store to create a more effective way to carry your textbooks with you to school. In addition to this method, they also created an ebook authoring tool: iBooks Author.

iBooks 2 is essentially the same as iBooks 1, but allows for interactive elements like video media, testing, etc. that have not been available in previous ebook readers. Prior to iBooks 2, these types of interactive books had to be separate apps, though the Yellow Submarine book released by the Beatles and Subfilms, Limited offered a glimpse at what could happen. But other than a significant backend update, the interface and general feel of iBooks 2 is pretty much the same.

The real news, at least in my mind, is iBooks Author. Prior to this app, creating any kind of ebook could be a tedious process. It required a lot of skills that many authors would not have, such as HTML or XML experience, layout skills, etc. And while those skills are still very important for most publishing works, iBooks Author takes a lot of that guesswork out.

The Mac App, free from the Mac App Store, looks a lot like any of the iWork apps. As mentioned in Gadgetbox’s review, it’s like a hybrid between Keynote and Pages, though I would probably take it a step further and say that it looks a lot like Apple’s now retired iWeb app, both in organization and interface.

You are presented with several pre-made templates from which you can select, and add your elements as drag and drop tools. You can add new pages, chapters, prefaces, etc. from the Add Pages tool (top left-hand corner). You can change the view and orientation of the book to see what it would look like in portrait or landscape mode on the iPad, and even preview the book on your iPad when you are done (either with the book or the section.

Once done, you will then be able to publish your book. To publish to the iBookstore, you need to first create an iBookstore seller account. Once you have your account created, you can then download iTunes Producer to submit your packaged book as provided by the Publish tool in iBooks Author.

The really cool thing is that this doesn’t have to be limited to just textbook publishers, or even instructors who create their own textbooks. Anyone can use these same tools to create and distribute their own works for self-publication. That means professional-looking ebooks are now easier to create for the iBookstore at least, and all with free tools. This will have a huge impact on the self-publication industry that is starting to grow.

As an educator, I think this is a great tool. I look forward to creating some sample textbooks to see how the process works, and whether or not it will be something I will be using in the future for my training courses. As a potential author, even of fiction, I think it’s brilliant! The idea that I can take my current work and publish it without the stress of trying to get it noticed by the right agent and going through the publisher’s timeline. Of course there is an argument of quality that would come into play as has been with the self publication market as a whole, but the ease of the process as introduced by iBooks Author takes a lot of the fear out of it.

What do you think of Apple’s announcement?

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Having A Good School System: Funding for Autism

January 13th, 2012 | by Jeremy | autism

Jan
13

Previously posted on Technorati as Having A Good School System: Funding for Autism.

Child with Autism on the pier at San Francisco. I’m very lucky. I live in the boundaries of one of the largest school districts (if not the largest) in the State of Utah. That means this school district is well funded as it covers the more affluent East side of the valley, as well as the less affluent West side. And because it is well funded, the school district has been able to build a special school for special needs students, like my son. He has an occupational therapist that works with him and his sensory needs, a speech therapist that is assisting him in learning to talk, a fabulous teacher that coordinates the effort, and a supportive environment that helps all the students that are in need.

And there are quite a few. As Autism becomes more recognized, more children are entering our public school system with needs that many schools across the country are finding difficult to meet due to funding issues. Many districts do not offer special programs for Autism, because they just can’t offer any special programs. Having spoken with many other parents in Utah, I’ve found that our school district tends to be an exception, rather than the rule. This is a problem, as in the State of Utah, Autism is not recognized as a diagnosis by insurance companies, and therefore they do not cover the cost of doctors visits, therapies, etc. But my school district has psychologists on staff that are trained to identify Autism, and cover it as part of the school experience. Once your child is signed up for pre-school, if you or the teacher has a concern about Autism, they are tested for free.

There has been a lot of talk about who should bear the brunt of the costs of Autism therapy. Currently, it is generally the parents of the children, registering their children for expensive therapy sessions that tend to cost between $30,000 to $50,000 a year. But for many less wealthy families, that can be more than they bring in for a year, so their children go untreated or are left to an ill-equipped public school system to try an manage. Insurance companies are concerned, because ABA therapy is a long-term committment, meaning regular pay-outs and a lot less money to build up their companies and pay their investors. If they are stuck with the bill, they say they will have to raise insurance rates for everyone, and as only 1% of the child population is diagnosed with Autism, the families of the other 99% feel like they are having to pay money for someone else. Another call is for the government to step up and increase their spending for Autism support services, as is done in the United Kingdom, among other countries. But with the current global economic state, many countries are calling on more austerity measures that tend to cut benefits like Autism therapy. And with many States seriously in the red on their budgets, spending for Autism services isn’t very appealing.

The bottom line is if no solution is found, then ultimately we all will pay country-wide, as these children with Autism start to move into the Welfare State because they were not given the proper intervention needed to help them contribute to society. And that can be a very long period of public funds paying for someone who would otherwise have been successful. It’s a problem that has no easy answer, to tell you the truth.

Personally, I’m grateful for the benefits I get through my school district. The Granite School District is one that I well respect, having been part of it my whole life (or at least K-12). The fact that they have services for my son, and soon my other son, is a comfort. But even as well funded as they are, they can’t be expected to keep up the pace they have for long without another answer. Classrooms are filling in quickly, and even my son was moved at last minute to a new class with a new teacher that was hired a week before school started. That tells you at which pace that the school district has had to move to keep up with all the new students on the Spectrum. If I had my way, I would like to see a conglomeration of funding come in to our public school systems, with proper and rigorous oversight, and build up programs for Autism across the State (or nation), and as part of that program, have lessons for parents with children on the Spectrum, so they know what they can and need to do to help their children. Because we as parents represent the largest unpaid teaching force in America.. I think it’s about time we were taught how to do it.

Perhaps that’s the answer, and perhaps not. I don’t claim to be an expert, but I do know what has worked for my child. What solution would you propose?

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SEO’s next move: Badges?

January 11th, 2012 | by Jeremy | seo

Jan
11

Today I read an article about the potential next step in education: badges. It seems that education is slowly moving away from the traditional degree, and adding badges of accomplishment when you learn something. In an educational setting, this is essentially recognizing every task or sub-task level skill that is learned on the way to the degree. And for those who are anxious to see progress in their studies, it gives them incremental feelings of accomplishment that can continue to motivate them to complete their degree. It also shows potential employers the level of understanding and skills accomplished both during and when the degree has been received. A granular view of skills is great for employers, as well as all other students.

But how does that work into Search engine optimization? It seems that Mozilla is working on a way to provide any website with the ability to display badges earned for resume pages. But taking it a bit further, suppose badges are awarded experts and content for their helpfulness? Enter the Google +1 and Facebook Like buttons, but that is not very telling beyond it being liked. Why was the content of the page liked? That is where badges come in.

If a badge system were developed for websites, it would allow visitors (i.e., consumers) to communicate what about the page that they liked. Was it informative, funny, designed well, or helpful? Do they like the services, the company, or just the picture? This information can then translate back to the company’s design team to find out what works on their site, and therefore they can increase their focus on better badges.

So is this system likely? I think so. Google already provides badges for articles read in the Google News site based on content. It would just be another logical step to provide badges for sites based on what the user likes about the article/web page/site. Perhaps it would be too much work for the user to add a reason, though by clicking on a +1 they would just need to tick a prefilled reason why. Or, should eye tracking software mature enough to see what someone is reading, perhaps it could be automatically assigned.

The concept is there, the proof has been established. It just comes down to the wide-spread implementation. Though if Academia is moving in that direction, I don’t imagine Google will be far behind. After all, the whole Page Rank system was based on academic reviews of papers.

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Life Milestones and Autism: Testing Abstract Concepts

January 10th, 2012 | by Jeremy | autism

Jan
10

Previously posted on Technorati as Life Milestones and Autism: Testing Abstract Concepts.

Child with autism sitting on his great-uncle's lap Autism has an impact in many different parts of a family’s life. Families will battle with the condition in order to teach basic self-care skills such as hygiene, dressing one’s self, cooking (or at least getting cereal), and so on to be sure their children will have those skills that are necessary to take care of themselves. During these long sessions, other children are reaching milestones such as riding a bike, walking to school with friends, participating in important religious and social events, etc.

Of course parents are concerned that their children are missing out on these important childhood milestones, and look for ways to have their children enjoy as much as their peers. But some milestones require a level of understanding that is demonstrable that may not be possible for a child on the Spectrum. This becomes a problem.

Testing understanding has been pretty basic for most children throughout the years. You ask them questions, and see if they respond properly. Whether testing a belief or knowledge, it all comes down to how and what they respond. With children with Autism that may not be an effective method of testing their knowledge. Creative methods of examination need to be developed in order to understand what they know.

The basic question one needs to ask is, how can my child with Autism show his knowledge? Some can respond using a tablet and software, others using picture exchange. This works great for basic nouns and active verbs, but how does a child demonstrate an abstract thought with pictures and symbols in a way that makes sense?

I’m reminded of an episode of Seaquest DSV, where the dolphin, Darwin, was trying to convey his need to join his pod for a cure to his illness. The crew didn’t understand what he was saying, because the concept was so abstract that it didn’t translate well. Similar to children who are non-verbal, they may not be able to make sense of an abstract thought based on what they hear, or even if they do understand that thought, they may not be able to translate it with their given tools.

So what is a parent to do? It’s a judgement call that parents need to make for themselves, with the help of organizational support. If it is a religious belief that is being tested, then they need to decide whether or not that belief can be properly expressed given the tools they have. If it is a relationship between safety and hunting, judgement calls, etc. from other organizational training that is required to reach a certain level of understanding, then the organization should be able to judge based on what is required to know.

Luckily for parents, this road is being blazed before them by countless Special Education teachers and administrators that need to create quality, quantifiable testing methods for children on the spectrum. It all comes down to finding a way for the child to successfully demonstrate their knowledge. It’s a challenge that can be exciting, as long as you have a way forward.

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A Merry Christmas to All

December 24th, 2011 | by Jeremy | uncategorized

Dec
24

I have two favorite traditional holidays: Hallowe’en, and Christmas. Christmas to me means spending time with family and friends, eating good food, and focusing on the fun and religious aspects of the holiday. I continually go back to the German for Christmas, as they originated many of our traditions (thanks to Prince Albert and Queen Victoria). The Christmas tree, the holiday confections (though I do occasionally make a French yule log), and the idea that it is a sacred night (Weinacht, in German). The Scots traditionally have had a rather subdued Christmas tradition that focuses on this same concept of a holy, sacred night a long time ago in Bethlehem. I’m not going to quibble about exact dates, because it doesn’t matter. What matters is the message of the Christmas season.

So this Christmas, spend time with your family in a slow, fun night. Don’t worry about presents, going all out with food or dectorating. Focus on your connection with each other, how much you love each other, and the fun you have together. Because that, to me, is the true Spirit of Christmas.

Frohe Weinacht alle!

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The Dickens Festival

December 20th, 2011 | by Jeremy | review

Dec
20

In years long past, my family would make the trek to the Salt Lake Dickens Festival at the Utah State Fairgrounds. We would pay our admission, and enter into Victorian England. The vendors were all in period costumes, street players would be out and about, and you may even run into Charles Dickens or Qween Victoria on your amblings through shops. Then, for reasons later explained but then unexplicable, it went away. There wasn’t a Dickens Festival anymore, having moved to Southern Utah, and a family tradition was gone.

Until recently! While it has now closed it’s doors for the year, the Dickens Festival, which started the first weekend in December and ran until just this last Saturday, was everything I remembered. They had live theater productions of Oliver and Scrooge (both shortened to 1 hour, but done very well), and they were fun to watch. Even my son, with his Autism, was thrilled with the performance of Oliver. Of course it helps when you know the directoress, and a couple of cast members, but he still enjoyed it with the crowds and all. It was a good experience for him.

The vendors were typical fair vendors with slightly higher priced items, but there were a couple that stuck out for me. The bread vendor had some great artisan breads that were fabulous. The gourmet popcorn vendor had an amazing assortment of interesting flavors (I really liked the coconut and curry popcorn!). There was a wooden toy vendor that had a wooden top with a string and a handle for launching that provided so much joy for my son that I had to buy one. And lastly, there was a vendor for women’s dresses that were decidedly Steampunk in nature. I don’t mean glued-on gears or that nonsense, but rather a modern take on the bodice, the length and cut of the fabric, and colors. I was impressed. And to top it all off, they had a carriage ride for those willing to brave the foggy air and cold (gee, just like London!), reindeer, and a Father Christmas for the kids.

While it has closed down for the year, it’s never too late to check out some of the great theater clips kept by the staff. They can be found at http://dickenstheaterco.blogspot.com/ for those who are interested. Also, if you would like to volunteer next year, that’s the place to look! There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes as well as on stage, and they are thrilled for any who would like to help make every year a success.

Thanks for everyone who brought this Christmas tradition back for me and my family, and many others across the valley. The Dickens Festival is a little-known holiday treasure that needs more recognition.

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The True Cost of Autism: It’s Not Just Money

December 20th, 2011 | by Jeremy | autism

Dec
20

Article first published as The True Cost of Autism: It’s Not Just Money on Technorati.

Child with a Santa hat on. A lot has been made in the debate about Autism and healthcare, because of the potential burden it will place on insurance companies, who will most likely trickle that cost down to everyone. I’m not going to get into the debate as to whether or not insurance coverage for Autism is right or justified, but rather I want to talk about the costs of Autism. Or, more specifically, the overall toll Autism plays on families.

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy is the only therapy or “treatment” that seems to work with children with Autism. It uses the Behavioralist method of teaching by encouraging correct behaviors with rewards. It also uses the Environmentalist teaching method, in that practitioners eliminate distractions from the classroom environment, making it easier for the children to learn. It’s great, when done correctly, and it can be expensive.

In order for it to work, you need to have a psychologist on staff, your therapist, an occupational therapist (manages sensory needs as well as motor skills), and a teacher. Most often your staff to student ratio comes very close to 1:1, and that’s expensive. These are all highly trained individuals that have worked hard, studied hard, and spent a lot of money to get their education customized to work with these children.

Now, many good school districts, much like the one we are currently in, have great programs that provide all this as part of the Public school system. Most do not, from what I understand. Therefore parents need to go to special private schools, often costing them between $28,000 to $50,000 a year per student. If they have two children, it’s doubled, and so on for each child on the Spectrum. It’s not the most encouraging sign.

And, of course, these schools and supportive school districts are few and far between. That means either driving long distances, or moving to locations that have support for children on the Spectrum. This limits job mobility, housing opportunities, and a feeling of control that many people have naturally. That goes to piece of mind, and is a hidden stress point on families with children on the Spectrum.

But therapy isn’t the only thing that is expensive! When the child goes home, they need to continue the same routines that they are being taught at school. Therefore parents need to modify the home environment to match, as much as possible, the school environment. For some families, that means providing a “sensory room”, where children can pull out of their fog by being provided the sensory stimulation or deprivation they need, depending on their sensory needs. So dark rooms, soft music, indoor swings, trampolines, full body massagers, and a ball pit are just some of the things that can help children. Some of those things are pretty cheap, but others can be expensive.

Then there are utilities. One interesting sensory need of our child is a need for showers, regularly. He loves the feel of the water on his whole body, and needs that feeling of being encompassed. If we lived by the ocean, he would spend all his time at the beach. But here in the Rockies, we have showers. Of course, living in a desert, all that water is not cheap, and we have resorted to planting low-water plants in order to save as much as we can for our son. Other children may need constant music or massagers working on their whole body, and that uses a lot of power.

Then, of course, there is emotional toll. Putting aside a “judging” public and their need to judge other’s parenting skills, it’s emotionally draining to chase down a child that doesn’t look you in the eye, doesn’t want to be touched, and try to get them to perform their tasks. This constant wearing down takes it’s toll emotionally on parents, and at one point it was believed that Autism in the family raises the risk of divorce by 80% (I question that personally). While I don’t believe it is a threat for marriages as much (particularly since both parents feel needed), it can cause stress with extended family. Add to that the Holidays, and you have quite a stressful situation for parents on the Spectrum.

This isn’t a cry for pity, or a call for social “justice” by making other people give money to support the few. It’s simply a call to the realities of having a child with Autism. Add to that the satisfaction of seeing your child perform feats worthy of a child twice their age mentally, those fleeting moments of having a child focus on you and smile, and the visions of a child who improves at school every day eventually becoming a successful contributor to society. All these things bring joy to the family, and I wouldn’t change it for the world.

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Apple Predictions: My Wishlist

December 15th, 2011 | by Jeremy | apple, apple tv, ipad, iphone, mac os x, technology

Dec
15

With the end of the year fast approaching, I can’t help but think what the new year will bring, particularly for Apple. With the latest OS release for iOS and OS X, the new field for Apple changes will most likely be hardware. While I have no connections with anyone that could even remotely speculate as to what Apple is going to release, here is what I would like to see happen for 2012 for all things Apple:

Apple TV for Gaming: Right now, the Apple TV does video and audio streaming, with some screen sharing when using an iPad 2 or iPhone 4S. That’s nice and all, but I would really like to see the Apple TV do more. It’s got the guts with it’s A4 processor, and with iOS, it could provide a nice gaming platform. All it needs is some sort of controller, be it built into the iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad or a new remote control that is WiFi enabled for controlling games. It would require a whole new thought process in Apple gaming development without multi-touch, but it would bring the set top out of the video/audio only and bring it into the realm of gaming. It may require a hardware upgrade, but it hasn’t been refreshed in a long time.
iPad with Retina Display: This is what is keeping me from upgrading to the iPad 2. If I’m going to invest in something that is an upgrade from what I have, it needs to be a serious upgrade. Right now, my iPad does everything I want, with the exception of having that Retina display for reading ease. This is probably a no-brainer, with reports coming in that the next iPad (iPad 3?) will have the Retina display I want. Good, because it’s on my list for this next year. ^_^
Rack-mounted Mac Pros: With the demise of the Xserve, which concerned a lot of my trainees, Apple no longer has an “enterprise” server for their Server app. While the Mac Mini has pretty much taken the spot, a really beefy server can be handy from time to time. Right now, that’s the Mac Pro, but it’s large, doesn’t fit in a rack well, and doesn’t look like a rack server. Make it rack-mountable, and server farms using Apple will be happy.
Apple Blade Servers: This one is totally coming from my wish list, but with the miniaturization that has gone into the Mac Mini, is an Apple Blade Server so far-fetched? It could be something as simple as a bunch of Mac Mini’s tied together with Thunderbolt cables, all in the same chassis (so it would look nice). The potential is definitely there, it just needs the market.
Corporate Apple Cloud: iCloud is great for providing access to your iTunes purchases and documents. But many companies would like to keep that to themselves, and setting up a cloud within their network and plugging it into network desktops (virtual desktops?) would be awesome. Cloud computing has a lot of different definitions, so this is not likely to happen by 2012. Still, a corporate cloud that will allow access to any corporate licensed software, protected by login and LDAP/Mobile Management permissions and standardized across multiple servers? I can see that as a huge bonus for corporations looking to move to Apple. It would also justify an Apple Blade Server, by the way. ^_^
Siri for iPad: I can understand Siri being removed as an app for all iOS devices and being released, integrated, exclusively for the iPhone 4S because it is in beta. But it would be nice, perhaps with the next iOS update, to give all devices access to Siri. It would depend on when the beta is over, I suppose, but that would be awesome, particularly for the iPad.
LTE Support: While I will most likely not upgrade my iPhone 4 unless the iPhone 5 is a killer product (not sure how likely that will be), I would like to see an iPhone 5 with LTE support, as well as an iPad 3 with the same LTE support. I would like fast, responsive data (preferably with a decent price tag for a lot of usage), and it looks like the best option out there is going to be LTE. I know there are a lot of problems with offering some 4G technologies (like battery life, for one), so I’m not holding my breath. But with carriers now rolling out their LTE networks, you would think it would be an easy thing to do.
Cable-Cutter Apps for Apple TV: Netflix and YouTube/Vimeo are good starts, as are the various “channels” that come with NBA, MLB, NHL, etc. for the Apple TV, but I would like to see other offerings that will, if not exclusively then combined, let me cut my cable connection for TV. Even it that means signing up with a cable company on a per channel basis for live streaming through my internet connection, so be it! With the rise of Internet streaming, a cable company has become less critical beyond providing Internet service. Perhaps with less cable TV, the Internet portion of my Cable experience will improve. It also reduces the number of set top boxes for my TV to one: the Apple TV. That way I only pay for the channels I want, not channels I will never look at ever again. Another way to accomplish this? Subscription service per show. I realize there are a lot of players in this, so it won’t be easy, but it would be great for the end user.

So that’s my list for 2012, nothing huge or ground-breaking. I’m not looking for an Apple HDTV, or an Apple car. Just some changes that would make me happy professionally and personally. So, that being said, it’s time to hunker down, and look for what the future will bring from Apple.

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