Using iDevices in the Classroom
This technology has quickly made its
way into our classrooms as a highly
motivating, sleek, and portable learn-
ing tool. But as a teacher of students
with visual impairments (TVI), I
believe iOS technology has potential
for my students beyond the learning
of core academics. An iOS device can
provide timely access to curriculum,
enable productivity in a portable man-
ner, facilitate social networking and
daily living skills, support orientation
Read2Go and Bookshare
For students with low vision, iDevices can bring the world up close and into view and make reading
much less cumbersome. Typically, a
student with low vision may require
a variety of tools and adaptations to
access print. These may include globe
or handheld magnifiers, desktop video
magnifiers (also called CCTVs), and
large print. Low-vision readers typically use a combination of tools, but they
often limit efficiency and sustainability.
Read2Go, the Bookshare app, pro-
vides thousands of books, including
textbooks, in accessible formats to
students with visual impairments.
Users can control font size, color
and contrast settings, and speech
output. Bookshare was created in
response to the U.S. Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA), which mandates that
schools provide timely access
to instructional educational
materials for students with
visual impairments.
Braille Display
Within VoiceOver, a braille display—
essentially a braille keyboard—can
be paired with an iDevice using Bluetooth connectivity. Refreshable braille
displays vary in size but are typically
smaller than a standard keyboard and
include a line of mechanical braille text
that refreshes as the user moves the
VoiceOver cursor across the screen.
When using a braille display with
the six braille input keys, users can
type in contracted braille, and text ap-
pears on the screen as it would for any
user. (Braille contractions are braille
characters or letters that represent
words or parts of words.) In general,
any content that is captured and spo-
ken aloud by VoiceOver can be read
in braille on a braille display.
and mobility skills, and even bridge
the gap between braille and print.
Here are a few of the features that
bring the world into better focus
for low-vision and blind students.
open it in Mail or Pages and read it
on the braille display. The student and
teacher may also exchange documents
through shared folders in Dropbox.
There are limitations to using
VoiceOver and braille input. Not all
third-party apps are VoiceOver accessible. This is frustrating because the
i Tunes store doesn’t indicate which
are compatible and which are not.
Additionally, braille input is not always fluid. The user cannot “check”
her braille until after she has finished
typing the entire word. And, if the
