DAISY Textbook Pilot Accessible multimedia for school students

DAISY Textbook Pilot Supported by the Community Partnership Fund Partners with the Blind and Low Vision Education Network of New Zealand (BLENNZ) and the Manurewa High School Visual Resource Centre Research and ethics input from University of Auckland

Supported by the Community Partnership Fund

Partners with the Blind and Low Vision Education Network of New Zealand (BLENNZ) and the Manurewa High School Visual Resource Centre

Research and ethics input from University of Auckland

DAISY Open standard for structured, accessible digital books Synchronised text, audio and image files Equitable access to content Navigable and feature-rich

Open standard for structured, accessible digital books

Synchronised text, audio and image files

Equitable access to content

Navigable and feature-rich

What’s the problem? Print-based curriculum disadvantages print-disabled students Usability of traditional accessible formats Limited availability of accessible formats

Print-based curriculum disadvantages print-disabled students

Usability of traditional accessible formats

Limited availability of accessible formats

Is DAISY a solution? Provides information in multiple accessible media Facilitates production of other formats Highly portable, navigable and usable Well-received in classroom settings internationally

Provides information in multiple accessible media

Facilitates production of other formats

Highly portable, navigable and usable

Well-received in classroom settings internationally

Research questions How do students, Resource Teachers Vision, teachers and teacher aides find DAISY textbooks compared with other formats? How viable is it to produce DAISY textbooks? What support is needed in the education sector to include DAISY textbooks as a special format?

How do students, Resource Teachers Vision, teachers and teacher aides find DAISY textbooks compared with other formats?

How viable is it to produce DAISY textbooks?

What support is needed in the education sector to include DAISY textbooks as a special format?

Student selection 12 students Half growing confidence with ICT, half confident with ICT Half Years 7-8, Half Years 9-10 3 from each of 4 areas 8 large print, 4 braille

12 students

Half growing confidence with ICT, half confident with ICT

Half Years 7-8, Half Years 9-10

3 from each of 4 areas

8 large print, 4 braille

Nothing so simple… Students use a range of formats and access strategies Small population – hard to match individuals with requirements Not statistical – qualitative research and production pilot

Students use a range of formats and access strategies

Small population – hard to match individuals with requirements

Not statistical – qualitative research and production pilot

The study Provided software and training Provided books in DAISY and “usual” format for the 2008 school year Questioned students and support people before and after school year Final evaluation report due July

Provided software and training

Provided books in DAISY and “usual” format for the 2008 school year

Questioned students and support people before and after school year

Final evaluation report due July

DAISY vs other formats Mostly positive feedback. Students liked: Accessing two formats at once Ability to switch between formats Skipping and searching Portability Ability to check spelling as well as pronunciation

Mostly positive feedback. Students liked:

Accessing two formats at once

Ability to switch between formats

Skipping and searching

Portability

Ability to check spelling as well as pronunciation

Braille reader: I guess DAISY's quite good, … since they have the narrator, … if you've got a book that's got M ā ori or something in it, and I don't want to read it, I just want to have the speech or narrator read it, it's quite good because the narrator knows how to speak M ā ori, and the BrailleNote doesn't.

I guess DAISY's quite good, … since they have the narrator, … if you've got a book that's got M ā ori or something in it, and I don't want to read it, I just want to have the speech or narrator read it, it's quite good because the narrator knows how to speak M ā ori, and the BrailleNote doesn't.

Large print reader: It meant I could keep up with the class when we were studying our novel, our English novel. And it’s actually quite good, because it combines the ways I like to do pleasure reading, because it reads and it shows you the words. I think I read my English novel about 4 times.

It meant I could keep up with the class when we were studying our novel, our English novel. And it’s actually quite good, because it combines the ways I like to do pleasure reading, because it reads and it shows you the words. I think I read my English novel about 4 times.

Large print reader: It’s easy to use, coz you only have to do some commands to get to where you want in the book. There are heaps of useful things. Its easy to get around the DAISY books and not take ages.

It’s easy to use, coz you only have to do some commands to get to where you want in the book. There are heaps of useful things. Its easy to get around the DAISY books and not take ages.

DAISY vs other formats Some drawbacks: No access to tactile images DAISY files too big compared to other e-text formats Can be difficult to read text on screen Computer issues

Some drawbacks:

No access to tactile images

DAISY files too big compared to other e-text formats

Can be difficult to read text on screen

Computer issues

Braille reader: You have to log onto your computer, but you can just pull the braille straight out and read it.

You have to log onto your computer, but you can just pull the braille straight out and read it.

Production Synthetic speech e asy and quick to produce Te reo M āori pronunciation imperfect Used some existing audio, including analogue recordings Production efficiencies for multiple formats

Synthetic speech e asy and quick to produce

Te reo M āori pronunciation imperfect

Used some existing audio, including analogue recordings

Production efficiencies for multiple formats

Production Timeframes a challenge Interviewer: Can you tell me about any times when your classmates had books and you had to wait for your books to arrive? Student: Yeah. When we had The Silver Sword . I had to wait quite a long time – about 2 weeks.

Timeframes a challenge

Interviewer: Can you tell me about any times when your classmates had books and you had to wait for your books to arrive?

Student: Yeah. When we had The Silver Sword . I had to wait quite a long time – about 2 weeks.

Production timeframes Better classroom planning Communication of lead times Collection development International sharing Text-only DAISY will sometimes be appropriate

Better classroom planning

Communication of lead times

Collection development

International sharing

Text-only DAISY will sometimes be appropriate

Support needed Generally, students needed very little training RTVs wanted training before students and access to software Group training may be helpful Training documentation for advanced features

Generally, students needed very little training

RTVs wanted training before students and access to software

Group training may be helpful

Training documentation for advanced features

What next? Full evaluation report due July Exploring funding options Maths in DAISY RNZFB digital library transition

Full evaluation report due July

Exploring funding options

Maths in DAISY

RNZFB digital library transition

Braille reader: The BrailleNote is slow on the Internet. I don't have access to the school library, to just browse through. Like, say, we had a project on medieval Japan and we had to find an aspect of life and research it, and well, the Internet doesn't have all that much on medieval Japan. So, it would have been rather nice if I could just have browsed through all the textbooks they've got at school. But I don't really have that ability.

The BrailleNote is slow on the Internet. I don't have access to the school library, to just browse through. Like, say, we had a project on medieval Japan and we had to find an aspect of life and research it, and well, the Internet doesn't have all that much on medieval Japan. So, it would have been rather nice if I could just have browsed through all the textbooks they've got at school. But I don't really have that ability.

Questions? Moira Clunie [email_address]