The Collaboration for Effective Educator Development, Accountability, and Reform (CEEDAR) Center at the University of Florida (http://ceedar.education.ufl.edu/) is a national technical assistance center dedicated to supporting states in their efforts to develop teachers and leaders who can successfully prepare students with disabilities to achieve…

Blind students are bound to make up a very small part of the population most university lecturers will encounter during their careers. Research to date shows that good communication between staff and student improves the chances of a successful outcome for both parties. The research does show, however, that the exercise seems to be one of…

Mathematics is an important educational component for students with visual impairments, and technology to support the access to and success of students with visual impairments in mathematics is essential. However, little research exists. This particular paper explores one aspect of technology and mathematics education for students with visual…

Daegu University has enjoyed a long and remarkable history of special education. Daegu University is large University located in Daegu, South Korea, a large city in South Korea that is south of Seoul. Since the 1970's, South Korea has achieved unusual and comprehensive growth in its economy, and the field of special education continued to thrive…

The New 7 Wonders of the World organization announced a shiny new list of the world's premier candidates. The people behind "Exceptional Parent" (EP) magazine were intrigued and inspired by the New 7 Wonders undertaking, and it started them thinking. If they had to name the 7 Wonders of the World of Disabilities, what or who would they…

Explores the braille production and distribution activities of the National Library Service (NLS) for the blind and physically handicapped. Discussion covers how titles are chosen for production in Braille, how a book is produced, responsibilities and activities of the Production Control Section of the NLS, and how patrons can find out if a title…

The requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) concerning public school building accessibility are summarized. Requirements discussed include facility design and braille and raised letter signs. (DB)

Outlines the history of the National Library Service (NLS) for the blind and physically handicapped. The nature of the collection and services provided are discussed, including formats available (such as large print, flexible disk, audio cassette, braille); monthly and bimonthly publications announcing available texts; application procedures for…

Describes adaptive technology for personal computers that accommodate disabled users and may require special equipment including hardware, memory, expansion slots, and ports. Highlights include vision aids, including speech synthesizers, magnification, braille, and optical character recognition (OCR); hearing adaptations; motor-impaired…

For thousands of years, many people with special needs have not had the same access to communication technology that those without special needs have taken for granted. Because they lacked access to communication technology, those with special needs became an invisible population. However, the same communication formats, with adaptations, that…

The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), Library of Congress, administers a free national library program of Braille and recorded materials for eligible individuals residing in the United States or for citizens living abroad. Under a special provision of the U.S. copyright law and with the permission of authors…

Describes several programs that were developed by staff at the Cleveland (Ohio) Public Library to be accessible to users with disabilities. Highlights include a Braille reading program; sensory garden; poetry club; book club based on talking books; wheelchair athletics; touching museum artifacts; and a mobile library for users who could not visit…

Discussion of assistive, or adaptive, technology highlights major technologies that help physically impaired individuals at home, work, and school. Technologies described include voice recognition, microswitches, communication boards, headsticks and mouthsticks, vision control, adaptive keyboards, word prediction software, electronic readers,…

Describes the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and discusses its implications for both public and private libraries. The term "disability" is defined; sources of federal regulations that pertain to libraries are cited; the need for sign language interpreters is discussed; Braille materials are considered; and staff requirements are…

Daily communication journals are a powerful tool to promote communication development in children with severe disabilities. Each page of the daily journal features three parts: a print or braille label, a recording device, and a tangible symbol. Children should participate in both the preparation of the daily journal and its review, thus gaining…