Distance Learning of Graphically Intensive Material for Visually Impaired Students

Abstract

Historically the conveying of graphical materials to visually impaired students has been difficult to achieve. Various methods have evolved that aim to solve the problem, ranging from those based on technology to the construction of models which the learner, relying on tactile representations, can employ. The various methods used to depict graphically intensive data assume the presence of a teacher, or the inclusion of Braille labels. If a learner is operating in a distance-learning environment, or cannot read Braille there is little to no access to graphical material.

This paper highlights the various methods used to convey diagrams to blind people. It outlines the perceived problems with applying these techniques to a distance-learning environment, and describes solutions which have been devised as part of the EU-sponsored project AHVITED (Audio Haptics for Visually Impaired Training and Education at a Distance) [1].