Student perspectives on assistive technology

Student Perspectives on Assistive Technology.

E.A. Draffan

Blurring of Technologies

• When does IT become AT? • Future IT Trends a help or a hindrance? • Movement in Traditional AT • Where do we go now?• Mobile phones• eReading • Supporting Students.

When does IT become AT?

• When it is accessible?

• When it has no VAT?

• When it is accepted by SLC?

• When we have the evidence it helps?

Cloud Computing, Mobile Apps, Social

Reading, Tablet Computing

Adaptive Learning Environments,

Augmented Reality, Game-Based Learning,

Learning Analytics

Digital Identity, Gesture-Based

Computing, Haptic Interfaces, Internet of

Things

Future IT Trends a help or a hindrance?

(Horizon Report HE shortlist 2012)

1 year or less

2-3 years

4-5 years

Movement in Traditional AT • TextHelp Read and Write Gold – additional web

apps for four years as a service – Read and Write web, Speech, eBook Reader and Dictionary.

• Dolphin SaySo – Bookshare, Load2Learn etc

• ClaroSoftware compressed TTS with quality from a cloud service - AccessMyStudies – speaking without installation – ATbar

• All making apps e.g. iOS ClaroSpeak (£3.99) – other languages – many uses!

“None of the organisational software was recommended on a basis that it will sync with my mobile devices which are the

only devices I would ever remember to check. My

assessor was aware of this”

Where do we go now?SmartPhone• 79.3% not recommended• 6.1% recommended smartphone of which 3.3%

found very useful• 14.3% did not respond

Tablet• 80% not recommended• 5.3% recommended, 2.7% found very useful• 14.3% did not respond(Student DSA Survey – Wilkinson,S., Viney,D., Draffan,EA 2012)

Mobile Phone survey (2011)

Accessing their websites on a mobile device (number of visits in one month):• iPhone: 1199• Android: 502• iPad: 488• iPod: 154• Other: 178

80% of those who responded had a smart phone. Of that 80% the breakdown was as follows:• Android: 42.3%• Blackberry 34.6%• iPhone: 11.5%• Windows: 3.8%• Other: 7.7%

(http://www.in-traction.com/mobile-browsing-a-student-survey/)

Comments – Aspirations“An iPad. I have since self funded for one and it really helps. I use it to take notes sketching internet and for keynote presentations. I also use the reminder facility and calendar for short term memory.”

“a smart phone/ iPad of some kind which is light and

easy to carry round with me which would help me

organise myself.”

“I was not aware that there was an option for a tablet to be provided it would be very useful to have been able to use this during lectures

and practicals to take notes and to access notes/research that I have prepared in

advance.”

eReading

“I wasn't recommended an ereader …I haven't got one yet and am not sure how many of the things I need to read are available on them, but it is something I am considering as they are smaller lighter and more convenient than my big text books and I think they might be easier to

look at.”

“An eReader would have helped me

organise my reading and

research much better.”

(2012 survey)

iPad versus Kindle study

• Reed College 2011– Legibility - size, contrast, and resolution – only

one had eyestrain and no comment on difference to e-ink of Kindle

– Touch screen – speed over joystick and keyboard– Portability, Durability and Battery life – both good

compared to laptops– Paper saving – annotations possible on iPad– Referring to texts in class v distraction of emails!http://www.reed.edu/cis/about/ipad_pilot/index.html

eReading storms brewing

• Over 150 eReader/eBook applications/software available on varying platforms

• Limited outlets for eBooks in UK esp FREE ePublications – Load2Learn Project

• Unable to determine if an eBook is accessible until after the product is purchased.

• Copyright legislation – text to speech availability. • eReader comparison

http://ereaderleader.com/ereader-comparison/

eReading accessibility

• Desktop - Adobe Digital Editions 1.8 & Kindle for PC Accessibility Plug-in (USA)

• Web based – Kindle Cloud Reader and ePub reader Firefox extension – Bookworm closed.

• Apps tied to bookstores such as Read2Go for Bookshare and Blio for Kurzweil – inDaisy reads any Daisy files also Voice of DAISY.

• Apps – iBooks with VoiceOver, Stanza, Kobo for large fonts and colour changes etc.

Supporting Students

• Training take up remains around 40-50%

• Drop in centres• More expertise to cope with the world of IT/AT

mobile, cloud as well as desktop.

Student expectations

“it wasn't training I wasn't taught anything everything that he 'taught' me I already knew

he just downloaded rubbish onto my computer and made it so slow that I can

barely use it!”

App Support

• Device specific apps – standards, variable accessibility and questionable life in the market place with flexi-updates.

• Google apps – Docs better than spread sheets, Presentation better than the Calendar – used in USA education so accessibility improving

• Web apps – HTML5 – cross platform - potential for accessibility guidelines good.

Can we help?

• http://access.ecs.soton.ac.uk • Research – evidence based – LexDis• Free and open source – ATbar – 2nd version just

released, Accessible pen drive menu for portable apps.

• Give us your new ideas on www.realisepotential.org • Testing Web 2.0 services – www.web2access.org

Thank You