Authors: Martin Menna; Michael King; Nick Speal
http://www.speal.ca/brailleuniversity/
Braille University is an application for instructors to teach Braille to their students. It is fully accessible using VoiceOver and does not make use of graphics for any functionality. Users should pair a QWERTY keyboard and a Refreshable Braille Display to their device using Bluetooth. In “Teach A Lesson” mode, the teacher can type letters, words, and phrases on the keyboard, while the student reads along on the Braille Display. The “Library” mode allows students to repeat saved lessons.
In recent years, there has been a major decline in braille literacy and a push to get people learning it again. The statistics show that it is tremendously important for a visually impaired individual to know braille to hold steady employment, yet more and more people are relying on text-to-speech technology for reading. This is due to the shift from books and paper to computers and phones, and the improvement in audio and speech technology. Learning to read bumps from a large heavy book has become very unappealing, and requires feedback from the instructor to practice. Braille University leverages the power and portability of the iPhone to encourage users to learn Braille even in the modern world.
This application was developed with equal contribution from Michael King, Martin Menna, and Nick Speal. We would like to acknowledge the support of Dalia El-Shimy and Prof. Jeremy Cooperstock at McGill University for their review, and Natalie Martiniello and Prof. Anne Jarry at the University of Montreal for their user feedback and funding.
For all support inquiries, please contact nick at speal dot ca