3 digital developments for visually impaired students

As someone with years of experience working with visually impaired students, I am thrilled by the transition from traditional to digital classrooms–and I am particularly excited by the opportunities that new technology is bringing with it.

Although there has long been a shortage of accessible educational apps for this population of students, especially at the preschool and elementary levels, fresh innovations in educational game design are coming to the rescue. Let’s take a quick look at three positive developments in this arena.

Visually impaired students are gaining new learning opportunities

Tablets are now employed in many classrooms–and as a result, most apps geared to young children are visual. Unfortunately for visually impaired students, these apps have traditionally not been accessible with a screen reader. At the same time, a number of textbook companies have been transitioning their offerings from print to online, which brings with it a similar opportunity: how can these digital materials, which are often interactive in nature, be made fully accessible for the blind?

Related: 4 examples of engaging vision-impaired students in STEM