Bringing tech accessibility features to classrooms
Usually, in education, accessibility features are solely seen for students with disabilities, but the truth is that a wide variety of children can benefit from them.
Through the lens of universal learning design, accessibility features can benefit all learners as they minimise barriers and promote learning.
For example, text-to-speech tools benefit students with reading challenges and those learning a second language, proofreading their work, correcting errors, and auditory learners who can focus better while listening.
Using accessibility features offers a multimodal learning opportunity for all learners.
Here are some of the accessibility features that can be used in any classroom.
ipad Accessibility Features:
Spoken Content: The ipad’s textto-speech feature can read aloud a section of the text or the entire screen. Children can also be taught to change the speech rate and the text’s appearance.
Under this setting, words and sentences can be highlighted in different colours to make reading easier. This feature also includes typing feedback, where the ipad can read text aloud while it is typed.
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LIKE WITH ANY OTHER TECHNOLOGY WITH ACCESSIBILITY, THE MOST CRUCIAL PART IS TO HAVE STUDENTS PRACTICE THE FEATURES TO BECOME FLUENT
Google Accessibility Features: t 7PJDF 5ZQJOH DBO DPOWFSU
speech into text in Google Docs and Google Slides.
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Microsoft Features: Accessibility
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Like with any other technology with Accessibility, the most crucial part is to have students practice the features to become fluent. The more the students practice, the more willing they will be to engage with the technology and harness it to their benefit.
Equipping students with technology tools makes learning efficient and faster. It empowers students and enables personalised learning.