assistive technologies

“Vastly improving the life quality of the visually impaired” — a couple from Barcelona creates a solution that leverages AI and AR

On 03/02/2022, in 5G, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, assistive technologies, Augmented Reality (AR), emerging technologies, engineering, entrepreneurship, Europe, experimentation, future, health, ideas, innovation, neurodivergent/special needs, society, youth, by Daniel Christian

A couple from Barcelona built A.I. smart glasses to help their son see — from interestingengineering.com by Chris Young
Showing visually impaired people the way with their A.I. smart glasses.

Excerpt:

He and his wife, Constanza Lucero designed a pair of smart glasses that use artificial intelligence and augmented reality to indicate oncoming obstacles to wearers.
…
The couple drew from their respective fields — Puig is an electrical engineer and Lucero a doctor — to build smart glasses that overlay text and graphics over the real-time video feed of their users’ surroundings. They use A.I. algorithms that detect obstacles, signaling them to the wearer as they approach. Users gain added independence, and parents’ and loved ones’ peace of mind.

What Do We Mean by Accessibility, Inclusion & Belonging? [Howard]

On 02/27/2022, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), collaboration, communities of practice, Emotion, neurodivergent/special needs, participation, by Daniel Christian

What Do We Mean by Accessibility, Inclusion & Belonging? — from inclusionhub.com by Jeffrey Howard
Accessibility, also referred to as a11y, is about ensuring systems are designed so everyone can fully participate in public or professional life, while inclusion means everyone has the resources and opportunities they need to realize that. Belonging goes one step further, fostering a culture where everyone feels accepted and supported.

Excerpts:

In this spirit, “a11y” has become a globally recognized rallying cry for greater accessibility—the 11 referring to the software engineering convention of shortening long words to the number of letters they use. A11y has transformed into a symbol for increased accessibility, inclusion, and belonging.

So, if accessibility ensures everybody has the means or tools to reach the table, and inclusion guarantees a seat and relevant opportunities, belonging encourages an emotionally and socially supportive space where each person feels welcome and valued.

It’s easy to tell the difference between when you feel merely tolerated and when you belong.

Telehealth…then telelegal.

On 02/26/2022, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Access to Justice (A2J), accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), colleges, communications, community colleges, experimentation, future, health, higher education, ideas, IT in HE, K-12 related, Legal operations, legal reform, legal technologies, legislatures / government / legal, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, new business models, participation, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, society, student-related, surviving, technologies for your home, telelegal, telemedicine / telehealth / virtual health, telepresence, tools, trends, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, youth, by Daniel Christian

The doctor is in—the video call — from mckinsey.com

Excerpt:

More patients than ever were willing to try virtual health services after COVID-19 emerged. Last year, the use of telehealth care was 38 times higher than prepandemic levels, as appointments such as follow-ups could easily be delivered remotely. A recent McKinsey survey shows that up to $265 billion in Medicare spending could shift to patients’ homes by 2025, with greater physician participation in the transition from telehealth to at-home care.

From facility to home: How healthcare could shift by 2025 — from mckinsey.com by Oleg Bestsennyy, Michelle Chmielewski, Anne Koffel, and Amit Shah

Also see the other charts via their daily chart feature:

Using Telehealth to Expand Student Access to Care — from techlearning.com by Erik Ofgang
Renee Kotsopoulo, director of health services for the Garland ISD in Texas, helped bring telehealth to her students and believes technology can help keep kids healthy and in school.

Can Teletherapy Companies Ease the Campus Mental-Health Crisis? — from chronicle.com by Kate Hidalgo Bellows

From DSC:
Telehealth has been booming during the pandemic. I think telelegal will ride on the coattails of telehealth.

Can A New Online Learning Platform Improve Employment For Those With Visual Impairment? [Mollenkamp]

On 01/19/2022, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), business, career development, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, education technology, elearning, neurodivergent/special needs, online learning, platforms, training / L&D, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Can A New Online Learning Platform Improve Employment For Those With Visual Impairment? — from edsurge.com by Daniel Mollenkamp

Excerpt:

A workplace technology report from the American Foundation for the Blind, published this month, notes that many people who are blind, have low vision or are deafblind say that they experience difficulties with accessibility for workplace training.

According to researchers from the foundation, the participants in the study described problems with online trainings that were incompatible with screen-reading software or visual adjustments like changing the font size, with quizzes that didn’t work with a keyboard and with educational images and videos that weren’t verbally described.

Many of the participants say they needed to get help from a manager or coworker to complete mandatory training, the report notes, causing delays and feelings of exclusion.

28 Website Accessibility Terms to Know in 2022 [Juviler]

On 12/29/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, business, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, higher education, instructional design, K-12 related, law schools, legislatures / government / legal, Metaverse, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, multimedia, neurodivergent/special needs, online learning, online media, online tutoring, society, student-related, teaching & learning, United States, universities, usability, user experience (UX), vendors, web design and production, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

28 Website Accessibility Terms to Know in 2022 — from blog.hubspot.com by Jamie Juviler

Excerpt:

No matter the type of website you run or the industry that you’re in, prioritizing web accessibility is key to your success.
…
To ensure your website meets today’s standards for web accessibility, you’ll first need to understand the terminology. Accessibility is a big, dense area with a lot of jargon, acronyms, and codes — enough to steer a new website owner away from the topic altogether.

That’s why we’ve put together this glossary of 28 essential web accessibility terms any website owners should be aware of. By knowing the language, you’ll find it much easier to adopt accessibility principles on your own site and better serve visitors with disabilities.

Addendum on 12/31/21:

Accessibility awareness is on the rise, but is it turning into action? — from techcrunch.com by Joe Devon

Excerpts:

A Harris Poll reveals that more than half of American adults increased their online activities because of the pandemic. That number grows to 60% for people with disabilities.

The increase in online activities does not mean that everyone is able to achieve their goals. So, what kind of impact is the crisis having on accessibility? Are organizations finally getting the message on the importance of accessibility?
…

With that, here are the key results from the Alexa top 100 website testing:

- Out of the websites tested, 62% were accessible to screen readers, up from 40% in 2020.
- Every single page passed for having the valid document “lang” attribute.
- Only 11% of websites tested had errors in input field labels.
- The most common error was the use of ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications specification)
- The second most common error was color contrast.

From DSC:
That last article linked to:

The 2021 State of Accessibility Report (SOAR) report

Cisco and Google join forces to transform the future of hybrid work [Ganta]

On 12/09/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, assistive technologies, Augmented Reality (AR), corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, creativity, digital audio, digital video, education technology, emerging technologies, engineering, experimentation, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, immersion, innovation, interface design, telelegal, telemedicine / telehealth / virtual health, telepresence, ubiquitous learning, United States, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, Virtual courts and law firms, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, visualizing information, vocational / trades, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, wearables, web-based collaboration, XR - extended reality, by Daniel Christian

Cisco and Google join forces to transform the future of hybrid work — from blog.webex.com by Kedar Ganta

Excerpts:

Webex [on 12/7/21] announced the public preview of its native meeting experience for Glass Enterprise Edition 2 (Glass), a lightweight eye wearable device with a transparent display developed by Google. Webex Expert on Demand on Glass provides an immersive collaboration experience that supports natural voice commands, gestures on touchpad, and head movements to accomplish routine tasks.

Following the WCAG for learning disabilities can make your content more accessible to the millions of individuals with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other conditions

On 12/01/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, elearning, instructional design, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, neurodivergent/special needs, by Daniel Christian

Understanding the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for Learning Disabilities — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa
Following the WCAG for learning disabilities can make your content more accessible to the millions of individuals with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other conditions

Excerpt:

Advancements in digital technology have made disseminating information to the masses quick and easy. Unfortunately, your audience might not be as big as you think. For millions of people with learning disabilities, some content may be prohibitively challenging to read. This effectively renders information that many take for granted inaccessible to others.

Luckily, by using simple, common-sense methods, your content can be more approachable for those with learning and other types of disabilities. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) maintains Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to provide guidance on supportive techniques.

How Does WCAG Apply to Learning Disabilities?
While cognitive and learning disabilities are distinct conditions, they can lead to similar accessibility issues. Therefore, WCAG groups them together. WCAG’s cognitive and learning disability guidelines fall into eight main objectives:

All you need to know about Microsoft Immersive Reader [Khan]

On 11/24/2021, in 24x7x365 access, accessibility / UDL, adjunct faculty, assistive technologies, Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, CMS/LMS, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, digital audio, digital learning, education technology, faculty/staff, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), instructional design, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Microsoft, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), neurodivergent/special needs, online learning, online media, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, reading, remote teaching and learning, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, vendors, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, writing, by Daniel Christian

All you need to know about Microsoft Immersive Reader — from edtechreview.in by Saniya Khan

Excerpt:

Microsoft Immersive Reader is a highly interactive reading tool specifically designed to help students improve their reading, understanding and grammar skills. It also makes the texts more accessible to students of all levels.

Accessibility features of Windows 11

On 10/06/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, computer science, Michigan, neurodivergent/special needs, platforms, society, tools, usability, user experience (UX), user interface design, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Also see:

Making Windows 11 the most inclusively designed version of Windows yet — from blogs.windows.com by Carolina Hernandez

Living With a Learning Disability: Challenges, Helpful Advice & Improvements [Kreisa]

On 09/17/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), digital audio, digital learning, digital video, education, education reform, engagement / engaging students, homeschooling/homeschoolers, learning, neurodivergent/special needs, parents/guardians, participation, society, by Daniel Christian

Living With a Learning Disability: Challenges, Helpful Advice & Improvements — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa

Excerpts:

While it is critical to remember that symptoms, comorbidities, and coping mechanisms vary, we’ll outline some of the challenges individuals with learning disabilities may face and highlight common strategies utilized by community members to address them.

Also see:

Improving Digital Inclusion & Accessibility for Those With Learning Disabilities — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa
This comprehensive guide outlines common learning disabilities, associated difficulties, accessibility barriers and best practices, and more.

The Beginner’s Guide to Web Accessibility [deque.com]

On 07/27/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, neurodivergent/special needs, by Daniel Christian

The Beginner’s Guide to Web Accessibility — from deque.com

Welcome to the Beginner’s Guide to Accessibility! We’re glad you’re here. This guide is designed to teach you enough about the ins-and-outs of accessibility to get your bearings and to serve as a springboard for deeper investigation into the areas of accessibility that are most relevant to you and your needs.

If you’re completely new to accessibility, we recommend starting at the beginning and reading the sections in order. However, if you aren’t a complete beginner, are pressed for time, or simply prefer to jump around in order of personal interest, each section was written to stand alone as it’s own little module of information.

Table of Contents

10 Best Accessibility Tools For Designers [Hongkiat Lim]

On 06/28/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, design, instructional design, interface design, neurodivergent/special needs, productivity / tips and tricks, tools, vendors, web design and production, by Daniel Christian

10 Best Accessibility Tools For Designers — from hongkiat.com by Hongkiat Lim

Excerpt:

Today is the world of inclusive technology – websites, apps, and tech gadgets that are made for people with different kinds of abilities and inabilities. So when you’re designing a website, you include features that make your design accessible to as many people as possible. And this is where accessibility tools come into play.

Instead of creating everything from scratch, here’s a list of cool accessibility tools for designers. From creating color combinations according to WCAG standards to adding different reading modes to your website, these tools are a must-haves for every designer. Take a look at the list to know about each tool in detail.

New accessibility features for students and teachers using Chromebooks [educatorstechnology.com]

On 06/26/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, digital learning, education technology, Google, K-12 related, neurodivergent/special needs, student-related, teachers, by Daniel Christian

New accessibility features for students and teachers using Chromebooks — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

After the new Google Meet updates, Google introduced new features in Chromebooks, ones that will definitely enhance the overall usability and accessibility of the device. Starting with the new PIN logins’ feature for education users, students, teachers, and educators will now be able to log in to their assigned devices using a six digit pin code. This new feature will be standard on all new Chromebooks.

Students with special needs will particularly benefit from the introduction of new accessibility features. There is the novel Live Caption functionality which allows students to caption videos. There is also the Switch Access feature which allows users to control their cursor either using the built-in keyboard or through connecting an external USB or Bluetooth.

Apple’s latest accessibility features are for those with limb and vocal differences [Coldewey]

On 06/11/2021, in accessibility / UDL, Apple, assistive technologies, by Daniel Christian

Apple’s latest accessibility features are for those with limb and vocal differences — from techcrunch.com by Devin Coldewey

Excerpt:

Apple announced a batch of accessibility features at WWDC 2021 that cover a wide variety of needs, among them a few for people who can’t touch or speak to their devices in the ordinary way. With Assistive Touch, Sound Control and other improvements, these folks have new options for interacting with an iPhone or Apple Watch.

Learning Ecosystems

What Do We Mean by Accessibility, Inclusion & Belonging? [Howard]

Can A New Online Learning Platform Improve Employment For Those With Visual Impairment? [Mollenkamp]

Cisco and Google join forces to transform the future of hybrid work [Ganta]

Following the WCAG for learning disabilities can make your content more accessible to the millions of individuals with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other conditions

Accessibility features of Windows 11

Living With a Learning Disability: Challenges, Helpful Advice & Improvements [Kreisa]

The Beginner’s Guide to Web Accessibility [deque.com]

10 Best Accessibility Tools For Designers [Hongkiat Lim]

Apple’s latest accessibility features are for those with limb and vocal differences [Coldewey]

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