Technology Discussion List Colleagues,

Thanks to Joan Medlen for her thoughts and suggestions (see her  
posting below).

Let's continue talking about assistive technology and universal  
design products for adults who have difficulty reading -- both the  
technologies that can help adults improve their reading skills and  
technologies that can provide access  (by reading it out loud) to  
text that would otherwise be inaccessible to them.  I wonder if those  
on this discussion list have experience with using these products  
themselves or with their students. I would like to hear about those  
experiences.

What difference(s) does assistive technology or universal design for  
learning make for adult learners, and for adults who cannot read but  
can get meaning from text if it is read out loud?

I am also cross posting this on the Learning Disabilities discussion  
list to invite those who subscribe to that list to join the  
discussion here. I believe some of our colleagues in that discussion  
forum have a great deal of experience to share. [ To join the  
Technology List Discussion, go to:

http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/Technology

So, to continue the discussion, another screen reader that may be  
useful is:

The CAST Ereader (now replaced by AspireREADER for PCs). http:// 
cast.org/products/ereader/index.html

I wonder if anyone on this discussion list uses these products that  
Joan Medlen and I mentioned,  and if so, what you find as their  
strengths and weaknesses. Are there other products that you use and  
like better, and if so, why?

Another example, a  text reader,  the Reading Pen

http://www.readingpen.com/

scans, defines, and pronounces words from printed material. You just  
run the pen over the line of text and listen to the text being read  
out loud through a speaker or through tiny headphones. There is a  
version designed for adults. Its cost is under $300. Anyone here have  
experience using it? Know any adult learners who use it? What are its  
advantages and disadvantages?

David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



On Apr 6, 2008, at 1:51 PM, Joan Medlen wrote:

> HI all,

>

> It may be called a "text reader," but for computers, is often called a

> "screen reader." They all have their good points and not so great  

> points,

> but the premise of having things read to assist with learning is  

> one that

> is commonly used with kids in special education programs. There are a

> number of reading programs that highlight the words as the program  

> reads

> the text as well.

>

> Some vendors text readers include:

> Don Johnston, Inc. http://www.donjohnston.com/

> Intellitools: http://www.intellitools.com

>

> These are, of course, primarily designed for school-aged children,  

> but look

> closely for the tools that may be able to do what you want for adults.

> Write:Outloud and  Read: OutLoud are likely the programs that make  

> the most

> sense and are very versatile - they operate within or like a word

> processor. I know a lot of people who use them who have learning

> disabilities. They are also electronically based.

>

> I do know there are text readers that can read printed text, but I  

> can't,

> for the life of me, remember the name of the one I have seen or  

> find one

> quickly while writing this. They do exist - look in tools for  

> people who

> are blind and visually impaired.

>

> There are many different screen readers for computers while surving  

> the web

> and doing email.  Some of the more common are

> JAWS:

> http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_jaws.asp   

> (expensive)

>

> One that I downloaded to use for a demonstration was free and very  

> easy to

> use is:

> http://www.screenreader.net/

>

> As for the understandability of the more formal language often used in

> pamphlets and books, I would imagine it depends on the target  

> audience. I

> believe there are many people who are very comfortable with formal

> language, but cannot read as well as those who will need the less  

> formal

> approach. But being able to hear information - even if the language  

> still

> needs to be decoded - is better than not being able to access the

> information at all!

>

> If you have access to a search engine that can scour education  

> journals, I

> would recommend a lit search for use of text readers, text-to- 

> speech, and

> so on in journals for special education. This is a huge area for  

> the folks

> in assistive technology and augmentative communication. I'm sure  

> there are

> articles that can lay the groundwork or be generalized for further  

> studies

> with people who do not have "disabiltiies."

>

> Last, for the social justice piece, I submit two pieces that I like  

> a great

> deal:

>

> 1. The Literacy Bill of Rights: Yoder, D.E., Erickson, K.A. and

> Koppenhaver, D.A., Center for Literacy and DisabilityStudies, P.O. BOX

> 3888, DUMC, Durham, NC

> 27710  http://dsasdonline.org/admin/files/AT-Literacy.pdf

>

> and

>

> 2. The Communication Bill of RIghts:

> http://www.asha.org/NJC/bill_of_rights.htm from the National Joint

> Committee for the Communication needs of people with severe  

> disabilities.

>

>

> Take care,

> Joan

> -----------------------------

> Joan E Guthrie Medlen, R.D., L.D.

> Clinical Advisor, Health Literacy & Communications

> Special Olympics Healthy Athletes

> joan at DownSyndromeNutrition.com

>

> At 03:59 AM 4/6/2008, you wrote:

>> Hello Len,

>>

>> This is Glenn Young's idea, not mine, although I think it has merit

>> and should be tested. As I understand it, the idea is to help  

>> adults who

>> need it to get access to information by providing text readers, not

>> by changing the text. A text reader -- as I am using the the term --

>> is a piece of software that reads printed or digital text out loud.

>> In many versions of this kind of software the rate can easily be

>> controlled by the user; in some there are tools that allow the user

>> just to hear a difficult word here and there, or a word at a time, or

>> a sentence at a time or a paragraph at a time.

>>

>> David J. Rosen

>> djrosen at comcast.net.

>

>

> ----------------------------------------------------

> National Institute for Literacy

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> Email delivered to djrosen at comcast.net






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