Effective Practices for Description of Science Content within Digital Talking Books
January 2005-December 2007
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A significant amount of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) information is presented visually, from math equations to graphs and tables to diagrams. Students and professionals in the STEM fields who are visually impaired must find methods of accessing the data published in visual format. Here is an example courtesy of Teachers' Domain.
If the publisher has provided an alt-tag, a screen reader might read a simple caption such as this, "This full-color diagram illustrates the carbon cycle." For the student or scientist, however, it's the information within the diagram itself that is vital. If the diagram is published within a Digital Talking Book, full access to that diagram can be provided through audio description.
This project is a seminal effort to develop recommended practices for audio descriptions of science images within digital talking books (DTBs). The work is undertaken by leading organizations that have pioneered description for visually impaired users and are currently shaping national policy and practices for provision of accessible materials in the electronic formats. Research results will contribute to both the theory and practice of how best to use descriptive language to communicate the meaning of science content presented as images within books and journals.
Participate in User Testing
We are seeking STEM-focused professionals and post-secondary students who are visually impaired or blind, to participate in paid user-testing for this research project. For details please contact Bryan Gould, project manager.
Funders
Funding for this project is provided by the National Science Foundation.
