Bookshare, an Untapped Resource
By: Erin Phillips, EC-SEAT project scholar
Hey everyone! My name is Erin Phillips. I am currently an EC-SEAT project scholar working towards getting my Masters in Early Childhood Special Education with a certificate in assistive technology. This is my second and final year in the EC-SEAT program and I am doing my internship at the Oyster River Preschool Education Program and I also currently work as a Behavioral Tech at Community Partners, working with children ages birth-3 years of age in Early Supports and Services. I enjoy my work very much both while at Community Partners as well as when I’m doing my internship at Oyster River. Both locations have a lot of knowledge to offer and I look forward to learning more through these experiences, as well as my coursework combined in how to best support young children and their development.
Throughout my course work while in the EC-SEAT program, I
have been introduced to a wonderful online resource called Bookshare, and to my
amazement, this online resource is not nearly as well known as it should be,
and deserves to be. Bookshare works to assure that individuals with print
disabilities have access to the same materials as everyone else.
Over
the years, this organization has created the world’s largest online accessible
library of copyrighted content for individuals with print disabilities, and
they have been able to make it so this resource is free to all qualified U.S.
students. Students who are unable to read “traditional” printed books due to a
disability are given the opportunity to gain access to over 385,000 titles in a
variety of accessible formats.
Having
access to the same text as everyone else is an important part of participating
in the classroom curriculum and Bookshare has made it possible to those who,
otherwise, would be unable to do so. This program has already helped a number
of individuals, both children and adults, gain access to print in a format that
works for them. They have a variety of resources available as well, including
children’s books, materials for school, careers, skill development and more.
As
outlined on the Bookshare webpage, these books can be accessed a number of ways
through this organization including:
•
Listening to books with high quality
text-to-speech voices
•
Hear and see highlighted words on screen
•
Read with digital braille or enlarged fonts
•
Create physical braille or large print
•
Read directly from your Internet browser
•
And more
The
books that are accessed through Bookshare can also be used with other software
including apps, tablets, smartphones, assistive technology devices, and more.
Below is a link that brings visitors to a table of Member Preferred tools. This
table shows what apps and programs members like to use alongside their
Bookshare account and outlines exactly how compatible this program is.
Through
this program, individuals with print disabilities now have the opportunity to
access print materials. This program is also FREE for U.S. students who have
qualified print disabilities. Low costs for other individuals are also listed
on the webpage. I encourage educators and individuals who have print
disabilities, or know someone who have a print disability to visit the
Bookshare webpage below and check out this amazing resource.
About Erin:
Erin: Thank you so much for your thoughtful blog post endorsing Bookshare. I am a member of the Bookshare team and responsible for spreading the word about this wonderful resource. We rely on advocates like you to help us introduce Bookshare to individuals with print disabilities and the educators parents, and professionals who support them. It is our goal to make the world of books accessible to all. Thank you again for posting this blog, and we wish you every success in your graduate program.
ReplyDeleteBest regards, Laura Deck, Bookshare Marketing Communications
Thank you! Bookshare is a wonderful resource. Thank you for contributing to and providing such a wonderful tool.
ReplyDelete