[nobe-l] Esablishing a School for the Blind

Fri Jun 15 19:59:21 UTC 2012

Hi there,

I don't know much about establishing a school for the blind, but I can share
what I know regarding providing free resources to the students.  Someone
recently recommended NVDA to me, and I've been using it consistently for the
past two weeks and it works just as well as JAWS 11.  It's completely free
open source technology,and can be installed on computers as well as thum
drives which makes it much more portable. 
http://www.nvda-project.org/
I also found the following links to other opensource screen reading
software.
http://ostatic.com/blog/4-open-source-applications-for-the-visually-impaired
http://www.disaboom.com/vision-and-hearing-technology/assistive-technology-b
rowsers-for-the-blind
http://www.disabled-world.com/assistivedevices/computer/screen-readers.php
Project Gutenberg is an excellent source of accessible texts.
However you might also want to look at the following links to free
textbooks, simulations, labs, teaching/learning resources, and assignments
to see if there is a potential for any of this material to be informative
for and accessible to your students.
http://www.ck12.org/flexbook/
http://www.ksde.org/Default.aspx?tabid=4995

And here are some more resources like this.
http://www.oercommons.org/courses/material_types/textbooks?gclid=CKq3ls_70LA
CFaYaQgodvXpzXw
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Main_Page
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/david-thornburg-open-source-textbooks
http://classroom-aid.com/educational-resources/open-educational-resources/cu
rriculum/

I also found an article on RFB and D in the U.S.  and it's involvement in
making open source and etext material accessible to blind students, even
when those books contain graphics.  I'm not sure if such a thing can be
replicated in Uganda, but it could be worth aspiring to.
http://www.edutopia.org/digital-textbooks-new-hope-for-visually-impaired

I hope this information is somewhat helpful.  Good luck in your endeavor in
starting your school.  I think it is a very commendable project and wish you
the very best with it.

Liz

-----Original Message-----
From: nobe-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nobe-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Smith, Pauline L
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2012 11:13 AM
To: 'National Organization of Blind Educators Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [nobe-l] Esablishing a School for the Blind

I added a subject line because many people automatically delete emails that
don't have one.  They are afraid the messages will contain viruses and/or
other bad stuff.

Good luck in establishing your school.  Blind students worldwide deserve a
quality education, regardless of economics, ethnicity or other variables.

-----Original Message-----
From: nobe-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nobe-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Amanda Matheny
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2012 10:13 AM
To: National Organization of Blind Educators Mailing List
Subject: Re: [nobe-l] (no subject)

Wow, that is an awesome cause. I hope it works out well for you! I think if
you look around you can probably find the funding you need.
You may even be able to get a grant or something similar. I can't support
your idea financially, but I support it in my thoughts anyway and hope it
goes well. Providing a quality education for blind students in other
countries, especially less privileged ones is a great thing!

On 6/15/12, Michael Baird <oonyusilver at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi Liz and All,
>
> My name is Silver Francis Oonyu!  I am a Ugandan national with very 
> low usable vision.  I managed to complete a masters degree in Vision 
> studies at the University of Pittsburgh, this last Spring.  My end 
> dream is to establish a school for children who are blind. In my 
> community, of Teso sub-region in eastern Uganda. So as to help other 
> children, in a similar situation.  Blind children in Uganda are 
> without education in the strict sense of the word.  I have many 
> challenges concerning what I want to do. My community has donated land 
> but lack of funding is a big drawback but the children?  In need of 
> help.  Many have never even heard of JAWS. Can anyone out there?  Help 
> me help these children? My other email is oonyusilver at yahoo.com also 
> sfoonyu at gmail.com. 256 779334895 is my cell phone number.
>
> I do appreciate any possible help!!
>
> Silver
>
> On Fri, Jun 8, 2012 at 5:06 PM, Amanda Matheny
> <mommyzhuuraan at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> Hi Liz, I have used JAWS 13 with blackboard and it seems to work.
>> There's a few quirks, like on the file upload screen but they can be 
>> overcome. It just takes a little patience. I thinkt here is a link to 
>> a non-java based uploader or something like that if I remember 
>> correctly that works.
>>
>> I haven't actually tried NVDA with Blackboard, but it might be worth 
>> exploring. I agree about universal access. The interesting thing is 
>> that NVDA was just a glorified Narrator just 5 or 6 years ago, but 
>> now it's creeping up to on par with commercial screen readers, and is 
>> just as good if not better on some things.
>>
>> I wish you the best of luck in your teaching goals, and have similar 
>> ones myself. Planning to get my Bachelor's ASAP.
>>
>> On 6/8/12, Elizabeth Phillips <evp at email.arizona.edu> wrote:
>> > Hello Everyone,
>> >
>> > I'm totally blind and want to start teaching online in the next few 
>> > semesters.  My computer is quite old, and I only have JAWS 11 at 
>> > the
>> moment
>> > which is wanting when it comes to optimally making teaching 
>> > platforms
>> such
>> > as Desire to Learn and Blackboard accessible.  It's also had great
>> trouble
>> > with JAVA and Flash media.  I'm in the process of acquiring a new
>> computer
>> > with Windows 7, with the most optimal configuration of programs and 
>> > applications for word processing and online teaching.
>> >
>> > I have two questions for the group and would welcome any 
>> > suggestions, feedback, or experience you might have.
>> >
>> > First, is there anyone here using JAWS 13 with Blackboard, Meeting 
>> > Space, webconferencing programs, and similar applications?  If so, 
>> > what has been your experience?  Have you found that specific JAWS 
>> > configurations
>> coupled
>> > with older versions of Flash and Java more compatible than JAWS 
>> > with up
>> to
>> > date versions of the same software?  Is there anything I should be 
>> > particularly aware of regarding JAWS 13 accessibility?
>> >
>> > I am also wondering about peoples' experience with open source 
>> > screen readers.  Does anyone on the list use one and, if so, which 
>> > one?  Would
>> you
>> > recommend it as something comparable to JAWS 13, and do you think 
>> > it
>> works
>> > well with the kinds of programs and add ons needed for online teaching?
>> > I'm
>> > very interested in supporting universal access to screen reading 
>> > software and the ability of all blind people, regardless of 
>> > socioeconomic background, to have as much access to information as 
>> > their sighted cohorts.  So, if there is one or a number of open 
>> > source screen readers compatible with Windows 7 and the 
>> > applications I've mentioned I'd prefer to use it over JAWS.
>> >
>> >
>> > Thank you,
>> > Liz
>> >
>> >
>> > _______________________________________________
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>> >
>>
>>
>> --
>> Amanda Matheny
>> Twitter: http://twitter.com/zhuuraanpub or, if you think you know me 
>> well enough, request my private twitter username.
>> Website coming soon!
>>
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--
Amanda Matheny
Twitter: http://twitter.com/zhuuraanpub or, if you think you know me well
enough, request my private twitter username.
Website coming soon!

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