Putting access in Access Services is the goal. The Course Reserves unit is the place. Textbooks are the focus. Electronic technologies are the future. Patron-centric services will be our standard. Access to textbooks by all patrons will be the achievement. Course Reserves located in Library West at the University of Florida George A. Smathers…

Instructors of the visually impaired need efficient braille-training methods. This study conducted a preliminary evaluation of a computer-based program intended to teach the relation between braille characters and English letters using a matching-to-sample format with 4 sighted college students. Each participant mastered matching visual depictions…

This paper updates the efforts to educate blind students in higher education in the digital age and describes how to support the development of mental models in learning through tactile learning and 3D-printing technology. It cites research documenting a drop in Braille literacy along with the growth in use of digital technologies by blind…

Imagine being in college and being deaf-blind. What opportunities might you have? What types of challenges would you face? This publication describes a study that begins to answer these questions. During the study, 11 college students with deaf-blindness were interviewed about their college experiences. They were like most college students in many…

In South Africa, higher education policy documents propose technology and resource-based teaching and learning to prepare youth for the knowledge and information society, and for a socially transformed society. However, the extent to which these policies are being implemented is still uncertain. This article reports on a technology-based English…

This article analyzes the braille spelling errors of 16 Greek students who are blind. More specifically, it explores the types of spelling errors, the students' attitudes toward spelling, and the relationship between spelling and reading strategies.

Explores the shift from observation of users to participation with users, describing and investigating three examples of user-centered design practice in order to consider the new ethical demands being made of technical communicators. Explores Pelle Ehn's participatory design method, Roger Whitehouse's design of tactile signage for blind users,…

The Tactile Diagrams Research Project at Loughborough University of Technology (England) developed 164 tactile diagrams for teaching 22 biological themes to blind students. Evaluation of the diagrams found most to be effective when properly introduced to students, and used with supporting text or tapes. (CB)

This project investigated the provision of a set of core tactile and large print diagrams and supporting materials for degree level psychology study, containing diagrams that are central to the majority of UK psychology courses, as an alternative to providing many different bespoke diagrams for individual students. Interviews with 12 blind and…

This article describes an experimental system for administering multiple-choice math tests to students who are visually impaired or have other print disabilities. Using a new audio-tactile computer peripheral device called the Talking Tactile Tablet, a preliminary version of a self-voicing test was created for eight participants. (Contains…

This study of the transition experiences of 102 college students with visual impairments (blindness or low vision), and of the services offered for students with disabilities at 66 colleges, found that the colleges provided most of the services students need to be successful. Students also identified areas in which visually impaired high school…