Tech for Kids With Disabilities

Having been a library media specialist for three decades, I know that many children with physical disabilities don't have access to all of the information they are entitled to. While recent advances in computer hardware and software have made it much easier to serve students with disabilities, many school districts don't have the knowledge or funds to acquire special technologies, and many districts that offer assistive technologies haven't trained their staff to use them.

One of the major goals of the American Association of School Librarians is to "prepare students for lifelong learning, informed decision making, a love of reading, and the use of information technologies." That means it's also our job to help underserved students become information-literate individuals. Here are some of the latest technologies designed especially for children with physical disabilities:

The most common browsers used by those who are sight impaired are Shell Account, DOSLynx, Netscape, Internet Explorer, and Lynx for Windows. The best known of the Web browsers for those who wish to access the Internet in a nonvisual or combined auditory and visual way is pwWebSpeak. For additional information on each of these systems read Barbara Mates's book Adaptive Technology for the Internet: Making Electronic Resources Accessible to All (ALA, 1999).

Encourage your Webmaster to develop Web sites that can be used with adaptive technologies and ask him or her to include hardware that ensures the easy flow of information. A Braille display or a screen reader that's interfaced with a synthetic voice output can make a huge difference to sight-impaired students. Users can be alerted about incorrect punctuation and see messages from teachers highlighted in color or placed in a unique position on the screen. This new device helps those who used to rely on others to read become independent. A few of the popular access programs are Artic WinVision 97, ASAW (Automatic Screen Access for Windows) by MicroTalk, JAWS for Windows (Job Access With Speech), Slimware Windows Bridge, MasterTouch Voice for OPACS, and Window-Eyes; they range in price from $595 to $850.

A speech output system is most helpful for students who are blind. This kind of system has two major components: hardware that "speaks" through a voice synthesizer and screen reader software, which monitors and transmits everything through the voice synthesizer, including information being typed on a keyboard and internal computer processing messages. Today's screen readers let users choose how the information on a computer can "speak" to them. For example, users can select the voice output to hear each letter of a word or an entire word, in addition to all modifier keys, such as "Tab" or "Enter." They can also choose to hear highlighted text or an entire screen of text. Popular speech synthesizers include DecTalk, SynPhonix, Keynote Gold, and GW Micro's Sounding Board.

Be aware that challenges will arise when you experience different user requirements. A user may get accustomed to one type of interface and become frustrated when another interface is introduced.

Bookshare.org helps students save time scanning books into a PC in order to hear the text read in an electronic voice—a process that can take three hours using a flatbed scanner. Inspired by Napster, Bookshare.org allows file sharing by permitting members to share previously scanned books. This process is permissible under copyright law because literary works are distributed in special formats to be used only by those with disabilities.

Since computer use is a visual process, many think that those who are hearing impaired find accessing computer information a lot easier than those who are sight impaired. But this is not always the case. If audio data has too much background noise or a printer emits a beep, hearing-impaired students may not hear it. A teacher who works with the hearing impaired recently told me about Signing Avatar, a program that translates text into American Sign Language characters on a computer screen. Microsoft offers two sound adaptations called SoundSentry and Show Sounds, in which messages flash on a computer screen to alert users when there's a sound. Of course, there's always the more familiar communication devices, such as the Text Telephone (TTY) or Telecommunications Devices for the Hearing Impaired (TTD).

Most of the devices in Mates's book Adaptive Technology for the Internet —such as UltraTec products, CAP-Media Tools, QuickTime Video Clips, NetMeeting, Easy Listener, and Infrared Transmission—are for business use, but can be adapted for student use in libraries. It's important to note that in public places, such as school and public libraries, all visitors must be able to "hear" announcements, especially in emergency situations: so make sure to purchase signal devices, which are additions to fire alarms that flash when an emergency signal is emitted.

Help is also available for teachers and librarians to develop lesson plans and activities for students with special needs. The Education World Web site (education-world.com/a_curr/curr139.shtml) offers a special-education section, arranged by grade level, curriculum area, and theme, that highlights technology sites for students with disabilities, including a list of technology devices, services, and organizations. There's also a "Virtual Assistive Technology Center" section that provides downloads of freeware and shareware for those with disabilities.

In March 1997, President Bill Clinton received a report from his Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology on the Use of Technology to Strengthen K–12 Education in the United States (to see the report, log on to ostp.gov/PCAST/k-12ed.html). A key part of the report says "special attention should be given to the use of technology by students with special needs." The report suggests implementing sensory or mobility enhancement devices that involve the use of "single-finger devices, joysticks, mouthsticks to provide input to the computer." Although the 1998 Assistive Technology Act and the independent federal agency, the National Council on Disabilities, were created to help the disabled, there are no federal funds solely devoted to securing devices for students with disabilities or to providing technology training for educators.

The Southern Connecticut State University's (SCSU) Center for Adaptive Technology in New Haven, CT, has invested a lot in its physically challenged students. Three locations in the university's library and the laboratory center provide Kurzweill Scan and Read programs, which provide a multisensory approach to reading. These locations also have zoom text-screen magnification programs and there is an IBM home page reader, a screen reader for the blind that is specially designed to read the Web. For instance, the JAWS program has a large print keyboard with highly raised keys. These adaptive computers have a track ball or joystick in place of the mouse. The university also has voice recognition computers in the lab.

It's heartening to know that there's some help for underserved students with disabilities, yet it's still disconcerting to know that many aren't getting all the assistance they need and deserve. The Americans With Disabilities Act has done much to mandate physical access for those with disabilities, but this also should ensure that students have access to information.

As school library media specialists, we must be vigilant about those who need special assistance and provide all of our students with the ability and instruction to seek information. We should strive to provide access to information for all and help prepare our students to become productive members of our society. New technologies can level the playing field for all regardless of physical or emotional impediments that might stand in the way of achieving satisfying, enjoyable lives.