This report presents a synthesis of information about assistive technology (AT) characteristics, for the purpose of identifying design characteristics that contribute to the quality of AT devices used by school children with disabilities. The first section provides a brief overview of AT, including a definition. The second section describes educational goals for using AT and barriers that inhibit the use of AT, such as lack of awareness of AT, lack of training, and insufficient funding. The third section presents information on the most popular AT devices organized into groups based on their level of technology. Several databases which can provide more information are identified. The fourth section focuses on the area of augmentative communication as an example of assessing the need for AT. The fifth section synthesizes information about effective characteristics of AT devices and describes the limitations of the synthesis. An extensive table allows comparison of conclusions of 32 evaluative studies. The last section presents recommendations and guidelines to help consumers select quality AT and to help developers design quality AT for school children. An appendix offers definitions of design characteristics. (Contains 49 references.) (DB)