postsecondary Archives - Page 4 of 4

Published February 4, 2013

First Reactions: Educators and Members Talk about the Bookshelf and Web Reader

You probably saw that Bookshare just released two new pieces of functionality, the Bookshelf and Web Reader. If you haven’t heard the news, our website has lots of information, including links to training, videos, and webinars. You can also read the announcement. Both tools are going to make it quicker and easier to get books to Bookshare students, saving time and effort. The Bookshelf will help individual members organize their books. Several educators and members have already tested and used the tools and have agreed to share their feedback. We encourage you to try the tools too! Here’s what they…

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Published January 31, 2013

The Year That Was and the New Year Ahead

2012 was a year of titanic shifts in the fields of consumer technology, education, and publishing, along with the requisite challenges brought about by such rapid change. At Benetech, where innovation is the engine behind our mission, we did our best to make the most of it and help lead the charge into the future. Bookshare and our other Access to Literacy initiatives, including the DIAGRAM Center and Route 66 Literacy, all made big strides this year through the significant dedication of the community that makes it all happen. We celebrated the tenth anniversary of Bookshare—both online and with in…

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Published January 23, 2013

Educators, This Week Is the Week for Individual Memberships Because…

An announcement next week about changes to Bookshare will let students with individual memberships (IMs) get books more quickly and easily. So get them ready! Giving students individual memberships is really easy: In your account, in “My Organization,” select “Members,” and click the box next to the names of all members you plan to give an individual membership. Then select the “Individual Membership Form” at the bottom of the screen. Forms will have the basic information about your students filled in. Print the forms and send them home for a parental signature, email address and mailing address. Teachers or parents…

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Published September 27, 2012

Students Volunteer to Make Textbooks Accessible for Bookshare Members

The Bookshare textbook image description volunteer program is excited to announce two partnerships kicking off the new school year. Last winter, Bookshare launched a partnership with BYU students through their Peery Social Entrepreneurship program. The partnership was so successful (and fun) that BYU, led by returning student Ted Jackson, chose to continue the work begun last term. The BYU charter promotes volunteerism by recruiting fellow students to write image descriptions in Bookshare textbooks. Last spring, the BYU Bookshare charter contributed hundreds of descriptions and developed a facilitator’s guidebook for establishing such charters on other college campuses. This fall, their goals…

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Published September 20, 2012

Personnel Development on Assistive Technology and Digital Books

Do you teach future classroom teachers, existing teachers, or other professionals who want to know more about assistive technology and digital books? Teachers, counselors, and other professionals who work in special education and rehabilitation need to know about all available resources to find the right resource for each student. For example, these specialized teachers and professionals need to know that students with print disabilities benefit when they have access to assistive technology and books in alternate formats. They need to know how to use these resources in the classroom. To help provide a single source of instructional materials about assistive…