Scenario 4 - Access to printed materials
As well as needing to record information,
students with a visual impairment need to access material printed on paper or
available in electronic format.
Reading systems
Reading systems allow students who are blind or
visually impaired to gain access to printed material. Reading systems are often
referred to as scanning systems, optical character recognition systems (OCR) or
electronic reading aids, which adds to the confusion.
They are available in two basic forms – a
stand-alone system in a self-contained unit or as an add on to a PC. The
information to be scanned is placed face down on a glass surface where a light
then passes under and takes an electronic picture of the item. The OCR software
examines this image and matches the pattern to form text characters. This can
then be displayed on screen as recognizable text or read out using synthesized
speech.
Example 4a
Jade is fifteen and has no useful vision. Due
to an increase in workload she has found it progressively more difficult,
time-consuming and stressful to adapt her traditional methods of studying,
which involve reading text from Braille and taking notes. She also faces
difficulty accessing periodicals, books, newspapers, and conference papers, as
there is only a small selection of Braille material available in the library.
Within the library, to aid independent access
to print, a scanner and optical character reader software have been added to a
PC, to provide full print reading facilities. Using this with a word processor
and a screen reader, Jade is able to search, use and manipulate text the same
way as her sighted peers, without over dependence on teaching staff. The system
allows Jade full control over speed, intonation, punctuation and even accent
specification when listening to the text. She is able to scan text, listen and
then save portions of the text to use as notes for her studies.
Key skills and equipment
The key skills for the above example are the
ability to:
- understand the commands necessary to activate the scanner
and OCR software
- use the OCR software to import text to a word processor
and edit
The key equipment is:
- scanner
- OCR software with speech output
- screen reader and word processor
Photocopier
Many partially sighted students find accessing
standard print in study materials and books difficult. The use of a CCTV may
not always be an appropriate means of enlargement, especially in classroom
discussions where it is important that the student is able to participate
fully. Another practical way of producing large text on paper is to use the
enlarging facility on a photocopier. Many textbooks are A5 in size and an
enlargement to A4 may provide enough assistance for the learner with partial
sight to read the text.
Most handouts within the classroom environment
are probably A4 size and enlargement to A3 would be necessary. A3 paper sets
the child with a visual impairment out from the remainder of the class and is
very bulky to manage and store, some may even feel so self conscious about
using oversized paper that they prefer to use non-adapted reading materials
instead.
Printing in large print
Not all children with low vision need print
presented in the same format. However all word processors allow text to be
printed onto paper in a range of sizes, sans serif fonts and formats including
enlarged, double-line spaced and emboldened. This versatility allows resources
to be tailor-made to the needs of the individual.
 Example 4b
Peter is fourteen and is registered partially
sighted. He has nystagmus, which gives him difficulty in focusing, and
bilateral congenital cataracts, giving him, reduced visual acuity in both eyes.
He wears soft contact lenses, making objects smaller but clearer. He is able to
make good use of his residual vision. With support and adaptation of learning
materials, Peter is able to participate fully in a varied curriculum, alongside
his sighted peers.
All learning materials are enlarged and
enhanced by reconstructing class books, providing photocopied enlargements,
enhancing diagrams, worksheets and maps. This is carried out through the use of
technology sited within the resource base at his school. His teacher is able to
use a sans serif font at 28 point size, with double-line spacing to reduce
confusion and aid navigation around the page. When large amounts of text are
necessary, it is presented in columns rather than in landscape format. This
minimizes the need to move his head and focus point.
Key skills and equipment
The key skills for the above example are the
ability to:
- reformat text with a word processor using a variety of
fonts and formats
- use the enlargement facilities of a photocopier
The key equipment is:
- standard PC and laser printer
- photocopier
Colour printer and scanner
Often, an increase in the quality of accessible
print can lead to a decrease in the use of images and illustration, and
therefore in interest to the child.
Where images are photocopied with a monochrome
copier, all colour and often line quality is lost. An increase in font size
using a word processor may also lead to the removal of interesting images.
It is important to present visually interesting
and stimulating handouts to learners with a visual impairment, to ensure
motivation is maintained. One way of achieving this is to use a colour printer
and scanner. The original image or illustration may be too small for the child
to recognize or features may be hard to discriminate. If the image is scanned
with standard OCR software, the whole image or selected areas can then be
enlarged and printed using a colour printer.
Scenario 5 -
Alternative devices for access
 Some students who have physical disabilities as
well as visual impairments, may need to modify the way they use a keyboard or
mouse, or may even need to seek alternatives.
Special key functions available through the operating
system, such as StickyKeys, FilterKeys and ToggleKeys (Windows Accessibility
Options), allow users with limited mobility access to the keyboard.
See Unit B –
Organizing your resources for more information about setting up
accessibility options in the operating system.
There are many interchangeable alternatives such as
rollerballs, joysticks, touchpads, enlarged keyboards and overlay keyboards to
afford greater independence and access. See
Unit 7 –
Accessing Technology for more information about alternative devices to
replace or enhance use of the keyboard or mouse.
The use of hot key and keyboard short cuts is also a good
approach where navigation around the screen is difficult.
Example 5a
Jenny is twelve years old and has Marfan’s Syndrome.
This means she is very short-sighted, and has a squint and glaucoma. She also
has difficulty with motor control as she has disproportionately long limbs. For
computer usage this has raised accessibility issues, which were initially
resolved by using a rollerball. As she has developed an awareness of technology
and its uses, it has been possible to rely less on positional mouse clicks and
more on key strokes. Where she uses a word processor, the toolbars are removed
to encourage her to use key strokes rather than clicking on icons. She is
developing keyboard skills and although quite slow she is very accurate. To
prevent errors in key presses, FilterKeys is activated, which prevents repeated
key presses producing strings of letters by accident.
 Where she does use the mouse to reposition
images, she often finds it difficult to locate the pointer on screen; so she
uses a mouse enlargement utility and turns on Trails in the Pointer Options of
the Mouse Control Panel.
Key skills and equipment
The key skills for the above example are the ability to:
- have a good understanding of the position of keys on the
keyboard
- know short cut keys as alternatives for positional mouse
clicks
- understand the options and enhancements available via
the Control Panel
The key equipment is:
- standard computer and word processor
Example 5b
For some partially sighted students with functional vision
the use of a touch screen (e.g. Touch Monitor) may also be appropriate.
It is often difficult to establish how much a student is
able to see and the mechanics of eye-hand coordination may pose a barrier to
developing visual skills. Touch screens allow the student to focus on both
their hand and the screen contents at the same time, without the need for
exaggerated hand movements. Many ‘off-the-shelf’ simple touch screen
applications exist and simple authoring tools allow design and creation of
tailor-made screens to better match the individual interests and abilities of
the child.
The touch screen is not a suitable input method for a child
who is totally blind. Although it can be used as an input method to develop
causation skills, unlike switches, it provides no potential for progression or
more complex usage based on tactile discrimination. It should therefore be
avoided and a more appropriate method explored.
Key skills and equipment
The key skill for the above example is the ability to:
- use a touch screen to activate applications
The key equipment is:
- touch screen
- suitable ‘point and click’ software
Where there is further reduced mobility, access to
applications may be through switches. These are available in many designs to
suit the needs and abilities of the user. See Units 7 and 8 for more
information on using switches.
Voice activated software (VAS)
Perhaps the area under greatest debate at the moment is that
of voice activated software (VAS). Sometimes considered to be the ultimate
alternative access device, it has certainly captured the imagination of
society, with great expectations being placed upon it.
Voice input can be used to type words and sentences into a
word processor or similar program or to command and control menus and buttons.
It does, however, need a great deal of training to perform with acceptable
accuracy. If the student can see the screen, they will be able to dictate text
and visually monitor recognition and errors. These errors may then be
corrected, either by further voice control or by keyboard / mouse actions.
Where the student has no useful vision, the process is more
complicated because of the need for a screen reader or a read-back facility to
obtain voice output of text entered and errors made. The technology available
now is able to knit together voice output and voice input well, and to provide
the opportunity for accurate dictation.
It does, however, place high demands on both the student and
support staff. It should not be considered unless the student is a very
competent screen reader user, and even then it may still be more appropriate to
develop good keyboard skills.
   
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