A lot has happened over the year with university press partnerships. With three new partnerships in the last few weeks, I realized it was time to post an update. These three new university presses signing agreements to contribute digital files with world rights to Bookshare bring the total number of university press partners to twenty-six. The new partners are: Edinburgh University Press. As the imprimatur of one of Britain’s oldest and most distinguished centers of learning, they publish books of the highest academic standards. Their main subject areas are American Studies, Classics & Ancient History, Film & Media Studies, History,…
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New Jersey Task Force Researches Services to Students with Reading Disabilities
We recently learned about the work of the New Jersey Reading Disabilities Task Force from Kathy Stratton, the mother of a Bookshare member. Appointed by the governor, this 11-member task force is researching the services available to students who struggle with reading to find out if the state is meeting the needs of its students with reading disabilities. On April 30, the Task Force held a public hearing to gather testimony; over 130 attended and 60 spoke. In Kathy’s words, “The theme was clear and consistent – schools are not meeting the needs of students who struggle with reading. Parent after…
Leave a CommentFurthering Accessibility of Graphs at the International Space Apps Challenge
Over the weekend of April 21 and 22, two engineers from the Bookshare team, Gerardo Capiel and Rom Srinivasan, participated in the International Space Apps Challenge, a two-day event designed to bring citizens from around the world together to solve challenges relevant to spatial exploration and social need. It’s a “code-a-thon” weekend – a technology development marathon – with engineers on all seven continents and in space volunteering their time, collaborating on solutions to interesting problems. The Bookshare team contributed one of the challenges for the weekend: to continue development of MathTrax, an open source graphing application developed by NASA…
Leave a CommentStudents with Print Disabilities Can Participate in Battle of the Books
Students with print disabilities, such as blindness or low vision, a physical disability, or a severe learning disability like dyslexia, can participate in their school and state Battles of the Books! What is “Battle of the Books” you might ask? It’s a voluntary incentive reading program for students in grades 3 to 12. Throughout the year, students read the books on the Battle lists and then compete in local battles or tournaments, answering questions about the books, like the College Bowl. Winning teams may compete in their regional or state tournaments. Participation in Battles would be difficult for students who…
1 CommentWho Needs Text-to-Speech and Why?
Text-to-speech helps those who cannot read print for a variety of reasons. To understand its use and benefits, let’s explore different reading styles that would benefit from text-t0-speech. These reading styles might qualify someone for a Bookshare membership; a qualified professional would make that decision. Individuals who are blind depend on text-to-speech to navigate a computer. Those with low vision may or may not use text-to-speech, depending on the accommodations they need. Text-to-speech output can be used to read a book on a device, such as the devices from Plextalk and Humanware, or an computer, such as Kurzweil 1000 from…
3 CommentsRemember Arkenstone, before Bookshare?
In January every year, we often make resolutions and look forward in eager anticipation to the year ahead. However, January is also an opportune time to reflect on the past and remember what life was like just a short time ago. For example, today we have Bookshare and its vast library, ease of access, and tools for reading. However, printed content has not always been this accessible to people with print disabilities. Bookshare represents huge advances in accessibility and availability of content for individuals with print disabilities. The path to Bookshare, under the leadership of CEO Jim Fruchterman, begins in…
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