We have curated for you this collection of carefully vetted apps to use with your kids, students and anyone else keen on learning and improving their spelling skills. The apps provide guided practice, interactive games, lessons, quizzes, puzzles, and several other materials to make learning spelling a fun and engaging task. We invite you to check them out and share with us if you have other suggestions to add to the list.
From DSC: If you or someone you know is having significant issues with spelling, you/they may want to do some investigative work around:
Designing Accessible IoT Experiences — from inclusionhub.com by Be My Eyes While not every IoT product is designed with accessibility in mind, it has the potential to enable people with disabilities to communicate with and through technologies in ways that were previously unavailable
Excerpt:
As we have seen, the proliferation of both devices and tools to make devices smarter can have major benefits for people with disabilities. However, when these users are not considered during the creation of products and apps, these technologies can end up widening the accessibility gap, rather than closing it.
The key to providing accessible experiences for as wide a range of users as possible is to include a variety of stakeholders in the design and testing phases of any device. By inviting people with disabilities–including visual, hearing, cognitive and other–into the process, designers can ensure that their needs are met up front, rather than having to backfill or find work-around solutions post-launch.
When you ask adults to recall their most memorable and enjoyable learning experiences it nearly always comes back to relationships – a fun teacher, an inspiring lecturer, a lively community. Such human interactions neatly illustrate the difference between maturity and compliance.
A “mature relationship” sounds a lot more attractive than a “compliant” one. Yet many institutions are offering compliance to disabled learners rather than mature relationships.
The lenses we use are:
Main driver – Where is energy being expended and what is measured as success?
Responsibility – Who are the actors. Do they have sufficient authority?
Model of disability – Is the perception “users with issues” or “systems and content with barriers”?
Focus of effort – Is accessibility a “task and finish” project or a long-term quality improvement?
Skills and expertise – What is the focus of training? Who gets it? Is it considered important?
Digital accessibility in policies – Digital accessibility is a vital equality issue. Is it visible in policies?
Culture – Is the focus on minimising risk? Or maximising user experience? Does accessibility straitjacket online learning? Or encourage innovation and experimentation?
User’s digital experience – How consistent is the user experience? How well designed?
In this article we explore the “Drivers” lens. What is driving your change? The need to be compliant and tick off the boxes? Or a desire to be digitally inclusive, ensuring every student can be as confident, independent and productive as possible?
At the upper levels of maturity, the confidence and competence of a wide body of staff will mean the organisation moves beyond micromanagement of accessibility. Accessibility may be mandatory but a wide range of templates will be available. Even better, many staff will have enough understanding to create their own accessible content and courses without needing a template. At this level, the following lines of evidence will be available:
A senior sponsor will be responsible for digital accessibility across the organisation.
Any cross-organisation steering group will be hosted by senior staff, meeting regularly and evidencing positive outcomes.
Digital accessibility will be a standing item in self-assessment reviews or quality assurance processes, and appropriate training will be in place to make this meaningful (see the later lens in the final blog coming soon in the series, on skills and expertise!).
Students will be actively involved in accessibility developments.
Part IV: Coming soon.
Learn about the Accessibility Maturity Model for Higher and Further Education that AbilityNet and McNaught Consultancy have developed based on Alistair McNaught’s existing model. See here and here.
That’s why today we’re announcing the next phase of our accessibility journey, a new technology-led five-year commitment to create and open doors to bigger opportunities for people with disabilities. This new initiative will bring together every corner of Microsoft’s business with a focus on three priorities: Spurring the development of more accessible technology across our industry and the economy; using this technology to create opportunities for more people with disabilities to enter the workforce; and building a workplace that is more inclusive for people with disabilities.
Challenges faced as a result of the condition can be physically and psychologically crippling. Let’s make a difference together this Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month, May 15 – June 15, as we create a more universal understanding of the condition, as well as to share successes to inspire our community and beyond. There are various ways you can get involved and make a lasting difference on a global scale.
But do you want to know a secret of what it really is?
It’s the determination from the 7-year-old to focus on an assignment at school even though his hand won’t stop ticcing.
It’s the bravery of the 16-year-old with a shoulder-shrugging tic who’s taking her driving test for the first time.
It’s the strength of a mother who is confused and scared as her child has just been diagnosed.
It’s the candor of a 45-year-old who has just been overlooked for his dream job, or worse – recently let go, because of TS.
But above all-it’s the perseverance of every child, teen, and adult who lives with TS on a daily basis.
So the next time Tourette Syndrome is used as a punchline, a quip, or a slur, please don’t laugh. Don’t share it. But instead, remember that there are real people behind the joke who may set them back. (source)
Accessibility by design Today, we are announcing a variety of new “accessible by design” features and advances in Microsoft 365, enabling more than 200 million people to build, edit and share documents. Using artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced technologies, we aim to make more content accessible and as simple and automatic as spell check is today. For example:
A new background accessibility checker will provide a prompt to fix accessibility issues in content across the core Office apps and Outlook will nudge users to correct accessibility issues.
AI in Microsoft Word will detect and convert to heading styles crucial for blind and low-vision readers.
A new Excel navigation pane designed for screen readers will help people easily discover and navigate objects in a spreadsheet.
We’re expanding Immersive Reader, used by 35 million people every month, to help with the comprehension of PowerPoint slides and notes.
In Teams, high-contrast mode can be used to access shared content using PowerPoint Live which will reduce eye strain and accommodate light sensitivity with Dark Mode in Word.
New LinkedIn features that include auto-captioning for LinkedIn Live broadcasts, captions for enterprise content and dark mode later this year.
More than1 billionpeople around the world live with a disability, and at some point, most of us likely will face some type of temporary, situational or permanent disability. The practical impacts are huge.
When the pandemic hit last spring, schools across the country shifted out of sheer necessity to virtual meetings to discuss students’ Individual Education Plans (IEP). But the move has had some unanticipated benefits, with some educators and parents praising them for their convenience and for empowering family members to be more active participants in discussing their educational needs.
The virtual IEP meetings should stay—at least as an option—even after the pandemic abates.
Virtual IEP meetings can make scheduling and attendance easier for parents and teachers alike. One parent noted the benefits to her as a busy working mom:
“I think one thing [my family] is seeing is there’s a lot of things we could just do that didn’t require us to have to go in [the school building]. . . . I don’t mind coming in, but [virtual is] easier.”
Improving Digital Inclusion & Accessibility for Those With Learning Disabilities — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa
Learning disabilities must be taken into account during the digital design process to ensure digital inclusion and accessibility for the community. This comprehensive guide outlines common learning disabilities, associated difficulties, accessibility barriers and best practices, and more.
“Learning shouldn’t be something only those without disabilities get to do,” explains Seren Davies, a full stack software engineer and accessibility advocate who is dyslexic. “It should be for everyone. By thinking about digital accessibility, we are making sure that everyone who wants to learn can.”
…
“Learning disability” is a broad term used to describe several specific diagnoses. Dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, nonverbal learning disorder, and oral/written language disorder and specific reading comprehension deficit are among the most prevalent.
DC: Yet another reason for Universal Design for Learning’s multiple means of presentation/media:
Encourage faculty to presume students are under-connected. Asynchronous, low-bandwidth approaches help give students more flexibility in accessing course content in the face of connectivity challenges.
How to Mitigate Accessibility & Digital Inclusion Obstacles for the d/Deaf Community — from inclusionhub.com by Christina Claus
To mitigate accessibility and digital inclusion obstacles for the d/Deaf and hard of hearing, developers must conduct critical research to understand these ongoing hurdles. This guide outlines the many challenges facing this community, shares useful insights, and provides meaningful inclusion solutions.
Excerpt:
Several commonly accepted characterizations include:
Deaf: When using the capital D, the individual conveys they communicate with sign language and have either been deaf since birth or shortly after.
deaf: The lowercase d is often utilized by those who do not identify as part of Deaf culture and typically become deaf later in life.
Hard of Hearing (HoH): Individuals who don’t experience total hearing loss or deafness often identify as hard of hearing.
Late-Deafened: This indicates the individual became deaf later in life.
Deaf-Blind: In addition to being deaf or hard of hearing, this individual also has a degree of vision loss.
These diversities can impact the individual’s ability to experience digital and online services. To create an inclusive experience for the entire community, developers must understand the obstacles each faces.
In January, I, along with Texas State University computer science student Su Park, demonstrated screen reader interactions as part of Knowbility’s Screen Readers in the Wild webinar. Both Su and I are blind and have used screen readers since childhood. We weren’t able to answer all attendee questions during the webinar, so I’m continuing the discussion here. I hope that after reading this, you’ll better understand the roles that screen readers and accessible content play in the lives of blind people, and learn of a few easy ways you can improve the user experience. So, let’s jump right in!
Once you identify the firm goal, ask yourself, “Based on the variability in my class, what barriers may prevent learners from working toward that goal and how can I eliminate those barriers through design?”
Excerpt:
When we design the same learning pathways for all learners, we might tell ourselves we are being fair, but in fact, single pathways are exclusionary. Beverly Daniel Tatum, author of the critically acclaimed book, Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race, challenges us to focus on impact over intentions. It may not be our intent to exclude our learners, but the reality is that many students do not have opportunities to learn at high levels or to access curriculum and instruction that is accessible, engaging, culturally sustaining, and linguistically appropriate.
Luckily, there is a framework that rejects these one-size-fits-all solutions and empowers educators to proactively design learning experiences so all students can increase their brainpower and accelerate and own their learning. The framework is Universal Design for Learning (UDL).
UDL is a framework for designing learning experiences so students have options for how they learn, what materials they use, and how they demonstrate their learning.
From DSC: I put together this graphic as I’m working on a Module (for Canvas) to address the topic of accessibility:
Google is expanding its real-time caption feature, Live Captions, from Pixel phones to anyone using a Chrome browser, as first spotted by XDA Developers. Live Captions uses machine learning to spontaneously create captions for videos or audio where none existed before, and making the web that much more accessible for anyone who’s deaf or hard of hearing.
…
Chrome’s Live Captions worked on YouTube videos, Twitch streams, podcast players, and even music streaming services like SoundCloud in early tests run by a few of us here at The Verge. Google also says Live Captions will work with audio and video files stored on your hard drive if they’re opened in Chrome. However, Live Captions in Chrome only work in English, which is also the case on mobile.
45 Hand-picked Disability Scholarships for 2021 — from hyetis.com by Hicham Benali Regularly updated (listed by deadline) disability scholarships that you can apply for, to reduce your fees.
Video captions, also known as same-language subtitles, benefit everyone who watches videos (children, adolescents, college students, and adults). More than 100 empirical studies document that captioning a video improves comprehension of, attention to, and memory for the video. Captions are particularly beneficial for persons watching videos in their non-native language, for children and adults learning to read, and for persons who are D/deaf or hard of hearing. However, despite U.S. laws, which require captioning in most workplace and educational contexts, many video audiences and video creators are naïve about the legal mandate to caption, much less the empirical benefit of captions.
More than 100 empirical studies, listed in the appendix, document the benefits of captions.
…
With so many studies documenting the benefits of captions, why does everyone not always turn on the captions every time they watch a video? Regrettably, the benefits of captions are not widely known. Some researchers are unaware of the wide-ranging benefits of captions because the empirical evidence is published across separate literatures (deaf education, second-language learning, adult literacy, and reading acquisition). Bringing together these separate literatures is the primary purpose of this article.
