The document discusses strategies for deploying universal design for learning (UDL) through text-to-speech (TTS) technology in educational settings. It details the principles of UDL, the benefits of TTS for diverse learners, and the integration of ReadSpeaker's TTS solutions within D2L learning platforms. The document emphasizes the importance of accessibility and inclusive learning to support students with various needs, particularly in post-secondary education.

1. Michael Hughes
ReadSpeaker
Toronto, ON
@ServeLeadChange
2 Dec, 2016
Le Collège La Cité, Ottawa
How to Deploy & Support a
Universal Design for Learning Strategy
w/ TTS Technology
within D2L’s Learning Environment

2.  What is Universal Design for Learning?
 How does text-to-speech fit into UDL?
 Does TTS really help students learn?
Which ones…who benefits?
 A word about User Experience (UX) and
Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
 Who is ReadSpeaker?
 What does ReadSpeaker’s toolset range
offer educators and students?
 How does ReadSpeaker text-to-speech
software work within D2L? Let’s see it!
 What does it take to implement?
 How does pricing work?
 Questions and discussion
Key Questions

3. But first a demonstration (ou trois!)
 From the Canadian Mental Health Association, Ottawa Branch:
http://ottawa.cmha.ca/mental-health/your-mental-health/
 Jeunesse, J’écoute / Kids Help Phone’s CoinDesGars.ca
http://www.coindesgars.ca/Sujets-abordes/Lecole
 Global News: Global News’ text-to-speech converter aims to help
Canadians access the Internet - National | Globalnews.ca

4. What is Universal Design for Learning?
4

5. What is Universal Design for Learning (UDL)?
From the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Learning for All (2013)
“The core concepts of UDL can be summarized as follows:
• Universality and equity;
• Flexibility and inclusiveness;
• An appropriately designed space;
• Simplicity;
• Safety.”
“In a diverse classroom, no single method can reach all learners. Multiple pathways to achieving goals are needed.”
(Hitchcock, Meyer, Rose, & Jackson, 2002, p. 18)

6. What about UDL in Post-Secondary Education?
“Definition of UDL
• Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is the design of instructional materials
and activities that allow learning goals to be achieved by individuals with wide
differences in their abilities to see, hear, speak, move, read, write, understand
English, attend, organize, engage, and remember (Ivy Access Initiative, Brown
University)
• The essential qualities of UDL include valuing each learner’s unique perspectives
and accommodating individual differences in learners’ backgrounds, interests,
abilities, and experiences.
• The cardinal rule of UDL is that there is no single method for representing
information that will provide equal access for all students; no single method
of expression that will provide equal opportunity for all students; no single way to
ensure that all students are engaged in learning because any method that works
for some students may present barriers to learning for others (ERIC/ OSEP,
1998;as cited by Mino, 2004). Accordingly Universal Instructional Design
emphasize flexibility in curriculum and instruction.”
http://www.ryerson.ca/content/dam/lt/resources/instructionaldesign/UDLRecommendations.pdf

7. Universal Design for Learning in Higher Education:
“Myth of the Average Learner”
 The most consistent finding to emerge from the interdisciplinary
study of learning is that when it comes to learning, natural
variability is the rule, not the exception.
 What is perhaps most important to understand about learner
variability is not that it exists, but that not all of it is random.
 Because some variability is systematic, you can design for it in
advance.
 This approach is called Universal Design for Learning (UDL).
Source: udloncampus.CAST.org

8. DisabilityIssues.ca – Ontario Colleges’ CCDI-CCBP
Medical Model vs Social Model
Medical Model
 Being disabled is a negative
 Doctors/professionals know best
 Remedy is a cure
 Disability resides in the individual
Social Model
 Individual with the disability
knows best
 Disability is a difference
 •Disability arises from interaction of the
individual and society
Accommodation Model
 Access is a problem and should be addressed
by the individual
 Access is achieved through special
accommodations
 Access is reactive
≈
Accessible Model
 Access issues stem from poorly designed
environments
 Access is proactive
 Access is inclusive
 Access is part of the design and is sustainable

9. Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
& the Social Model of Disability
 Key Idea: “environments and practices can equally enable or disable
individuals.
 “UDL moves the focus away from individual characteristics to the
environment’s own ability to widen or restrict access”.*
 “UDL then should be “seen as the procedural translation and application
of the social model of disability, and not as a
stand-alone technique of access”.*
* Fovet, Jarrett, Mole and Syncox,
McGill University, 2014

10. UDL: one way to think of it
UDL flips the model of
assistive technologies by
offering benefits of
digital technologies to all
users, allowing them to
choose the digital tools
that fit them best.
10

11. 11
How does Text-to-Speech Fit into UDL?

12. Ontario Ministry of Education: What Works, 2011
“The Voice of Text-to-Speech Technology”
“Research Tells Us
• Children who fall behind as readers read
less; this, in turn, can increase the skills
gap between struggling readers and their
peers.
• Self-efficacy – belief in oneself as a
reader – is half the battle in helping
students learn to read.
• Choice – in what to read, when to read
and how to read – acts as a powerful
motivator for all students and especially
for those who struggle with reading.
• Text-to-speech technology facilitates
student choice, differentiation and self-
advocacy.”
Dr. Michelann Parr, Schulich School of Education

13. 2014 Canadian study recommends enhancing
course self-efficacy to increase student success
 “Findings on the Course Self-Efficacy Scale suggest that enhancing one’s belief that one
can effectively research a term paper, do well on exams, manage time effectively, take
good class notes, keep up-to-date with school work, and understand the material in
textbooks may improve academic performance and increase the likelihood of
graduation….
 “Findings on the CEQ School Environment measure suggest that campus
IT departments can help by ensuring that information on campus web sites is
accessible and by providing adequate assistive technologies in the diverse computer labs
on campus. Training on computer technologies both on and off campus, and ensuring the
availability of course materials (alternate formats) can also facilitate success.”
Fichten, CS et al, 2014. College and university students with disabilities:
“Modifiable”…factors related to grades and graduation
Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 27 (3), p. 286

14. ReadSpeaker Actively Supports
Universal Design for Learning

15. User experience (U/X): Why simplicity matters, or
Taking charge of making it better for your students
 Universal design principles point to
design that makes it easy to choose
to listen “in the moment of need”
 This also supports user autonomy
and self-efficacy
 Over the years, best practices have
improved, and
we know more about how to drive
higher engagement

16. 16
Does TTS really help students learn?
Which ones…who benefits?

17. Literacy Levels in Canada: Surprising?
Source: Government of Canada,
http://www4.hrsdc.gc.ca/.3ndic.1t.4r@-eng.jsp?iid=31
Perhaps surprisingly, some
47% of adults with some post-
secondary education were
below adequate levels in 2012,
and even 27% of adults with
degrees

18. Canada & Ontario: Educational Attainment & Disabilities
 Canadian sources suggest proportions of the
student population with disabilities range
from 5% to 15%, with universities and
college proportions significantly different
 McCloy and DeClou’s 2013 report provides a
quite comprehensive view to the Ontario
situationand to a lesser extent, that of
Canada as a whole.
 As can be seen in the chart here, while a
higher share of people have postsecondary
credentials, the gap between those with
disabilities and those without has not closed
over time.
McCloy, U. and DeClou, L. (2013).
Disability in Ontario: Postsecondary education participation rates, student experience and
labour market outcomes. Toronto: Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario.

19. For example: a rising wave -- the numbers in Ontario
 In 2013-14, some 54,300 students
were registered with Disabilities Offices
at publicly-funded Ontario
postsecondary institutions:
2X the number in 2002-03
 “In 2013-14, $48 million in funding was
provided to assist students with
disabilities succeed in postsecondary
studies — up more than 45% since
2002-03”
 Nearly 40% of 21,000 Ontario community
college students who registered with college
disability offices in 2008-09 self-identified as
having a learning disability.
 How many students don’t register or
self-identify but DO have learning
disabilities?

20. Who benefits when your VLE is speech-enabled?
 Busy learners who like to multitask or listen on the go.
 Learners with reading impairments, including dyslexia.
 Learners with concentration difficulties.
 Learns with cognitive impairments.
 Learners who are non-native speakers of the language in
which they are studying (e.g. ELL students).
 Learners with visual impairments.
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21. 21
Who is ReadSpeaker?

22. Premier Provider of Text-to-Speech Technology
ReadSpeakerdevelops
text-to-speech technologies and
services to interpret and audibly read
text in a synthetic yet naturalized,
human sounding voice, entirely
managed on its own proprietary
technology infrastructure
5,000+
Websites and
Mobile Apps
40+
Languages
150+
Voices

23. Technology Advantage: Our End-to-End Platform
Means You Get the Best Quality Voices
ReadSpeaker’s end-to-end platform control
allows for real-time adjustments, which leads
to better quality voices & user experience
ReadSpeaker
Enterprise
Platform
Enterprise
Highlighting
docReader
TextAid
Web API’s
Production
services
Third-Party
Providers
rSpeak
ReadSpeaker’s
Proprietary
Voice Engine
TTS Packaging
Speech Server
SDK’s
SAPI OEM
Product
Offerings
Web Reading
Learning
Licensing/
Applications
Platform
Technology
Markets
Served
Suppliers
(Voices)

24. ReadSpeaker Presence 2016
ReadSpeaker is now present in over 60 countries
offices
clients

25. A sample of Education customers

26. Let’s try it out:
ReadSpeaker in Brightspace
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27. ReadSpeaker for Brightspace:
Overviews and Video Tours
Video Overview: ReadSpeaker for Brightspace
Video overview: ReadSpeaker docReader in Brightspace

28. Integrated into Brightspace by D2L
Please visit appfinder.Brightspace.com

29. Course content is speech-enabled within
Brightspace by D2L automatically

30. How do we do this?
In practical terms?
30

31. What do I have to do to turn this on in our D2L?
How do we get started?
Here’s the 1 page guide from D2L:
 1. Get a ReadSpeaker customer ID
 2. Enter this ID in Config Variable
Browser in Admin Tools in Brightspace
 3. In Organization Tools, switch
ReadSpeaker to “ON”.
You’re done!

32. In a word, YES!
ReadSpeaker offers a wide variety of solutions & toolsets
 Generally our streaming solutions (like the integrated
ReadSpeaker for Brightspace) come with a one-
time setup fee and an annual service fee that includes
all upgrades and maintenance.
 For educational institutions, ReadSpeaker’s pricing
brackets are structured by the number of students
ReadSpeaker TextAid is priced separately and can be
individual or institutional/managed in Brightspace.
Our Production and TTS Licensing offerings are generally
based on consumption and a wide range of use case
models
Is it affordable?
How do ReadSpeaker Pricing Models Work?
ReadSpeaker
for Learning Management Systems Standard Pricing
Tiers*
1 -500
501-1000
1001-2000
2001-5,000
5,001-8,999
9,000-15,999
16,000-31,999
32,000-54,999
55,000-72,000
72000 +
* Typically full-time equivalent (FTE) students

33. STRATEGY
UBIQUITOUS ANY Where ANY Time ANY Content
Compatible with all
browsers and devices
Device-independent
45 plug-ins for CMS/LMS
Expert development team
Any Device
99.92+% uptime
Scalable for 10,000+
customers
Customers can and do
have millions of listens
per day
Online & offline
Web pages, online
documents and forms,
apps, digital books,
eLearning materials,
devices, and more

34. STRATEGY
VOICESPECIALISTS
Powerful TTS The Best Voices Linguists
 More than 40 languages and
150 of the best voices on
the market
 We build our own voices
 Pronunciation fine-tuning
and corrections based on
feedback (names, acronyms,
special words…)
 Multi-layer pronunciation
correction per language,
voice, client
 Customizable dictionaries
 Web-based services have no
capacity limit compromises
 Our linguists are experienced
scientists with global
experience
 Improvements at various
levels from engine to
dictionaries and library
 25% of the team’s time is
spend on R&D

35. 
And ReadSpeaker goes that extra
mile….

36. 
…we provide implementation, deployment
and statistics....to support students and
educators with sustainable on-line UDL.

37. Thank You!
Michael Hughes, Business Director, Canada
ReadSpeaker
Toronto, ON
Canada
M: +1 416 455 7658
E: Michael.Hughes@ReadSpeaker.com
T: @ServeLeadChange
Questions & Discussion

38. BACKGROUND SLIDES

39. Who would benefit if educators were to speech-enable
their websites?
Mobility/Convenience/Efficiency
Multi-taskers
Mobile users
Accessibility
Learning disabilities of many kinds
Low literacy: 42% of Canadian adults*
Foreign-born (~20% per 2011census)
Seniors: a fast-growing group
Low vision: ~1million in Canada*
Education
Those with diverse learning preferences
Universal Design for Learning
39
Standard
settings
include
“download as
mp3”
A wide range of people! It’s about UX and Universal Design

40. Blended Learning & UDL: The Opportunity
 In Ontario’s post-secondary, roughly 40% of the 55,000 registered with campus disabilities
offices (OSD’s) identify as people with learning disabilities
 As blended learning (on-site+on-line) continues to grow, there is a tremendous opportunity to
invest in Universal Design for Learning approaches to realize better results AND better value
 For example, Ontario’s educators could deliver more widely-accessible learning content tools
to all students and faculty and free up some precious resources within OSD’s as demand for
their services continues to grow
 A case in point is ReadSpeaker text-to-speech within LMS platforms, by leveraging TTS’s
cost-effectiveness (Blackboard, D2L, Moodle, Canvas by Instructure, and other LMS and CMS
platforms). So no matter what LMS plans Humber may develop in the future, you can be
confident that ReadSpeaker will be there to support your student, staff, and faculty needs for
delivering multiple ways to learn and support UDL.

41. From Australia: About Australia page, Government of Australia landing page
http://www.australia.gov.au/about-australia
From the United States: WebMD:
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/news/20161129/tennis-anyone-it-may-
prolong-your-life
From Canada: Hospital for Sick Children
http://www.sickkids.ca/AboutSickKids/Newsroom/index.html
From Tokyo, Japan:
From Chile:
From Canada and the World: Other sector examples

42. Ontario –International Students enrollment growth
Universities:
>42,000
international
students
Colleges:
>27,000
international
students
Source: HEQCO.ca (“Quick Stats”) 2016)

43. A few other statistics
 Half the students exiting special education into PSE in the US indicate
they no longer believe they have a disability, while a further 14% choose
not to disclose their disability (Getzel, 2014)
 This suggests a real need for widely-available tools within PSE generally for those
who learn early enough in their PSE career that they may have been mistaken but
still don’t register with accessibility offices on campus
 Statistics Canada reports that International student enrolments
accounted for almost 10% of the total post-secondary student
enrollment rose in 2013/14,
 The majority of these students were from Asia, with China as the main country of
citizenship.
 International student enrolments have been steadily increasing for almost two
decades, and rose 2.5% in 2013/14
43