[nfbcs] Research

Thu Feb 23 02:31:19 UTC 2017

Amanda,
I have to disagree. I currently have an under grad degree in CS, and I 
am working on a Ph.D. I am also employed full time as a computer 
scientist. There are some issues the blind will experience with 
technical degrees that are unique to those degrees, but it's definitely 
doable.

--
Joe

On 2/22/2017 12:13, Amanda Lacy via nfbcs wrote:
> I have a CS degree. I cannot in good conscience recommend it to other
> blind students unless they accept that they will experience a lot of
> hurt. I don't have satisfying answers to most of your questions.
>
> On 2/21/17, Michael via nfbcs <nfbcs at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> Hello Andy,
>> Thank you for your response. Before answering your questions, I will preface
>> my response that this project is entirely predicated on ensuring other blind
>> students, who may be considering computer science, do not do what I did;
>> namely, believing that blind people cannot do computer science. Now, your
>> questions:
>> (1) No University, community college, or vocational school is funding this;
>> this is an assignment that I have received on behalf of the Louisiana Center
>> for the Blind (LCB) for my technology class.
>> (2) I graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno, this past December with
>> an Honors B.A. in Philosophy with an emphasis in logic, metaphysics, and
>> epistemology.
>> (3) This guide will serve to educate prospective computer science students
>> who are blind. When I was in high school, I was extremely interested in
>> doing computer science. I was told that blind people could not do computer
>> science; mistakenly, I believed this to be true and thus proceeded into the
>> liberal arts. If I can provide clarity to other students thinking about
>> computer science, or elucidate blind students when it comes to the copasity
>> of blind people, I would be very happy. As it stands, the only place I know
>> for sure this research will end up is the national Association of Blind
>> Students website, as I sit on the board and can make that happen. Otherwise,
>> I have no idea.
>> (4) This is true. I did not make this anonimis. If people are willing to
>> answer, I would be very happy, and will of course cite you, or not cite you,
>> depending on your permission. If people are not willing to, I totally
>> understand that as well.
>> I hope I was able to address your concerns.
>> For anyone else who wishes to help me out, you can email your responses to
>> my email (mausbun at nevada.unr.edu) or, if you feel confortible, just
>> responding to this thread.
>> Thank you again for all your attention and time!
>> Respectfully,
>> Michael Ausbun
>> Vice President, National Federation of the Blind of Nevada.
>> Secretary, National Association of blind Students
>> Student, The Louisiana Center for the Blind
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nfbcs [mailto:nfbcs-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Andy B. via nfbcs
>> Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2017 2:24 PM
>> To: 'NFB in Computer Science Mailing List' <nfbcs at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: Andy B. <sonfire11 at gmail.com>
>> Subject: Re: [nfbcs] Research
>>
>> I am interested in answering these questions. However, you never displayed
>> your credentials or qualifications in the subject. What school is funding
>> this study? Where did you graduate and with what degree? What do you intend
>> on doing with the guide when it is finished? The results of this survey are
>> not anonymous. Therefore, people might be hesitant.
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nfbcs [mailto:nfbcs-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Michael via nfbcs
>> Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2017 2:45 PM
>> To: 'NFB in Computer Science Mailing List' <nfbcs at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: Michael <mausbun at nevada.unr.edu>
>> Subject: [nfbcs] Research
>>
>> Hello All:
>> 	My name is Michael Ausbun, and I am currently a student at the Louisiana
>> Center for the Blind. I am conducting research, to develop a comprehensive
>> guide for prospective computer science students. I would much appreciate it
>> if you would take some time and answer the following questions.
>> 	Thank you for your attention in this matter.
>> Respectfully,
>> Michael Ausbun
>>
>> Research questions:
>> Advocacy:
>> (1)	What accommodations do you believe were most beneficial to you in
>> completing your degree?
>> (2)	What accommodation(s) were necessary when completing visual components
>> of one’s degree requirements?
>> (3)	In what ways have you advocated for the modification of materials to
>> ensure equal access for yourself or future computer science students?
>> (4)	What is the most important question(s) a computer science student should
>> ask their instructors before and during a selected course of study?
>> (5)	Are there any Universities, companies, or organizations who have been
>> greater benefactors?
>> Academics:
>> (1)	How much math and science is necessary for a person to be successful
>> within the computer science field.
>> (2)	In general, are materials accessible with access technology?
>> (3)	What are some effective, and somewhat universal, techniques for
>> manipulating and writing computer languages?
>> (4)	In what ways did your assignments get modified, to establish equal
>> access to all requirements?
>> (5)	What are some effective ways for designing accessible algorithms and
>> data structures?
>> (6)	When developing a portfolio, did you find an accessible way of publicly
>> displaying your code, or for hosting your portfolio?
>> (7)	After publishing your code, what methods do you use to ensure the
>> visible code is visually appealing or readable?
>> (8)	Are there any courses you might recommend to take in high school to
>> prepare someone going into the computer science field?
>> (9)	Besides the source work required to obtain your degree, what additional
>> course work might you recommend to enhance one’s employment effectiveness?
>> Access technology:
>> (1)	What access technology gave you the greatest degree of opportunity to
>> compete on an equal playing field with your peers?
>> (2)	What challenges did access technology present when interacting with the
>> technology required to complete tasks and assignments for your computer
>> science degree or profession?
>> (3)	What role does access technology play in the completion of your daily
>> assignments or tasks?
>> (4)	How might modifications to standard technology create more opportunity
>> for usability with access technology?
>> General technology:
>> (1)	In what ways is the general technology inaccessible when paired with
>> access technology? Are there any work arounds for these issues?
>> (2)	What sort of accommodations are necessary for the use of most general
>> technology used in this field of study or profession?
>> (3)	Can standard tasks be completed on a unit without extensive modification
>> or accommodations?
>> Does most technology come ready to use? Are there ways to increase one’s
>> productivity when using Python JavaScript C++ swift and racket, and
>> integrated development environments (IDEs)—such as CodeLite, Eclipse,
>> NetBeans, VisualWX, Xcode, and KDevelop?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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