TRANSCRIPT - Braille Displays

>>Donna: Good afternoon. Everyone welcome on this lovely weather thursday I don't know if it's lovely where you are. But it is beautiful where I am and can't wait for the Chili weather to completely kick in. This is our third installment i'm gonna give a few seconds for these last few people to to our bell in on us Alrighty, so welcome everyone that's our third installment of tech tea time. I'm glad to see everyone here I hope you had a great time last week with Kathy and Zoom text, and we are looking forward to you today as we are talking about Braille displays. Now I've got a little treat for some of you that are in Texas. You may have some questions about braille displays and the star test, and that will be coming up near the middle. So if you have questions about braille displays and star tests definitely stay in with us, and we'll get to it. Alright. so like I said, This is Braille displays. Now when you're filling out your paperwork. You're gonna take your opening code code and your closing code and put them both together. No spaces, no dashes, because it will ask you for a single number code. So you are opening code, and you're closing code go together, and they make your code for your for your credit. Alright before we start again, let's look at our goal. So our goal is to build a community of practice for technology that allows us to support each other while teaching our students in the spirit of This goal. Tea time is an interactive session, so please feel free at any point to unmute yourself. Ask a question or ask a question in the chat. We want to encourage conversation between myself and you and you and other folks. So if you you have a comment, and someone else has a way that they've completed that task before, please feel free to speak up as Be advised that this session will be recorded and posted on a website for later viewing, and that by registering for this session you are giving us permission to post that post this recording of voice or image of you as the registrants. How hi, Margaret! From North Carolina good to see somebody from my old stomping grounds. Miss the weather back there. Glad to see you with us today. And hopefully, even though you don't necessarily do the star test this may help you with some of your other questions. When it comes to testing. Alright, quick, Poll, start this pull here! What braille displays are you using with your students right Now, now, I've given you some choices and selected other yeah on there. If you do not use one of the ones that are listed Alright. We're gonna give that minute. Everybody answers Looks like we've got a nice tie there between the brilliant and the human work. Focus either the 14 or the 40 a lot less on those chameleons than I thought And those of you that are doing others if you wouldn't mind putting those in the chat. Just so we know what you're using Alright almost got, everybody answered. And please, if you put other, put what you what you are using. If you have other, or if you're trying to figure out Thank you, Sherlock, trying to figure out what would work best for your student, and hopefully, we can help you out there today. Alright, am I in this poll We've got some chameleons show results. Chameleons, mantis, brilliant human wear focus, and some others. Now I tend to lean toward the human wear they've been around for a while, and I and I like the devices. They're nice and sturdy chameleon i've been working with a lot this year. Because a lot more folks have gotten it I would love to hear from you Mattis folks that are using mantis for your students and here, how they're doing with that. And what what skills your student had prior to using the mantis, or if that was taught during the Mantis acquisition. So I would love to hear from you, man, just folks Okay, that's the end of the poll for our recording Alright. so we got some pictures here. we've got just about everything that was on our Our poll. We have the mantis quarty mantis, the brilliance, the humanware focus 40 and the orbits. I didn't see many people quite using the orbits new things coming down the pipe with with orbit company. They are still working on their graphic tablet so they are working on that multi line display which we don't quite have yet. So That's that's still in the pipeline We're looking at 3 5, and full page refreshable brail again. It's not quite ready for for complete use. I think they're doing some pre-ordering right. Now, and we have our chameleon off to this side, which is popular in the phone calls that I get lately Alright. so chameleon because we are short on time and I really want some conversation today, and we had some star things to cover. We're gonna focus kind of on the chameleon. And just general things about braille displays so the chameleon. You've new from a ph in the last few years speech has been added to it. This last fall. it has some small capabilities that the the focus 14 and the 40 don't have and a lot of braille displays. Don't have and that's and it can read write and edit text on its own The opening code. we'll get with you there in in a few moments. So the the chameleon, unlike some of our other debris, displays, can read right and edit text. Not all of these features are available across all braille displays. So if you're looking at a student who is maybe starting a little and you're looking at starting at a technology device. The chameleon is a nice start, because they can do things native to the device. They're not having to hook it up to an ipad right away, or hook it up to a laptop right away. They can do basic assignments in class now i'd say basic we're not do using a full fledged word processor. here. There's minimal editing no spell checking So you're looking at a device that would probably good for writing and editing up to about second maybe third grade if you're getting into heavy editing you're gonna need to look at either. adding a device like the ipad where you can use docs or a computer where you can use Microsoft or Docs In that the chameleon can use basic reading and writing, and and some proof reading. Oh, I put high level proof reading there what is supposed to be no high level proof for any. Sorry about that. Your littles can write and give assignments to their teachers via USB. Okay, that's that's by a thumb drive they can transfer those they can copy them over and put them in the USB. Haven't really been successful at printing I don't think that's capability with this one we can access our online books. So you can do bookshare. You can download it straight from their library or transfer it from an external device. The chameleon functions as that braille terminal for your laptop, and or your ipad. Oh, it's always the question. I do not I do not know that, Sherlock, I will I will check that out. That is always the question. I am not sure if it does. But I will check that out with you I should know that because that's always the first question. So what's sherland's asking there is if it will work with the chromebook. I will send out a mass mail after this, and tell yes or no with that one. If anybody else has used it with a chromebook, please free free to speak up. The function once you've got it hooked up is a little bit different. The keystrokes are a little bit different so there's a learning curve there once, you're hooked up. It'll tell you the date and time but you can't make any appointments. So if You're looking at like a note taker a pda function, you can't do that on its own, and that is a possibility, Shannon, that the Mantis is the only one that works with chromebooks Thank you. You can organize your files, highlight, and navigate your books. A basic calculator, and you could use some different languages. Okay, Alicia, you said you were successful. connecting the the chameleon to a chromebook, but couldn't get it to work Yes, i'm hi donna this is connected it to the chromebook, and it had the like, You know the cursor going, and it, and as soon as I plugged it in it automatically started I don't know what the chromebook voice over chromebox. Yes, it automatically started. Chromevox but I couldn't figure out what to do couldn't navigate from there. yeah alright. so it looks like we're gonna need to get some lesson plans up on the website for chrome box and the chameleon. So there was no i've got my next task. Thank you guys, I love that. If anybody has any lesson plans from chrome box or from the Chameleon that they've been working on, Please share those all right. So sorry, Dave, What the chameleon does not do, and what a lot of braille displays do not do. Are those advanced skills, the power of your braille display is once it's hooked up to that device. The power is, how powerful the device! You hook it up. 2 is so it would be like me asking my keyboard. I USB: keyboard, 2 words process for me without being hooked up to a computer. So the power comes from what device you have them hooked up to. It does not do editing beyond basic and again. remember most of our displays won't even do that. So the chameleon is special in that it will do that. It will not access third party apps such as ca classroom canvas Google suite stocks, sheet slides unless it's hooked up to a device that accesses. Those. Okay, is everybody kind of getting what i'm putting down there. It's not the chameleon that's the power behind what you can do with it. It's the device. you you hook it up to the chameleon doesn't do much multitasking on its own. It can do more multitasking, when you've hooked it up to a device again, unless it's hooked up to another device. It can write your notes, and it can read your books and that's where you are with the chameleon. This device, because of its size and ease of learning ease of use. I've found is really good with those younger students that are transitioning from the Perkins or the Mount Bat, and to a carry to class device. It's a good device for those basic read write calculate functions, and if you don't want them to get bogged down in a device like a brown note, touch yet if they're starting to learn what a brownout touch can do or if they're going to be on an ipad for a while. Then this is a route you could go to. You could learn this device, and then hook it up to a more powerful device. So any questions there on basic proud to displays Just remember it's the power of the device you hook it up to Okay and Chameleon special in that it has some of those extra features that note takers have Drum, roll, braille display and star jaws, laptop, desktop and display. So you kind of have to have more than just your display for Star. Okay, we're going to just go a little bit into this not too deep into it, because it is very intense. The good thing about braille display and star. This is a yay happy celebrate the way you hook up your device to the Star Test platform, and the way you hook up. You're just devised daily to your laptop or desktop is exactly the same. Nothing changes. There is that cool? That was what we had some panic questions in the last couple of weeks. Of. How do I hook it up? How do I get it started There's nothing new for your student to learn there. If it hooks up to the laptop it hooks up to the computer that's good to go what What is difference? is our sequence of instruction prior to the test? When I know when I teach a braille display. I don't always teach our brail display in jaws. Internet is not my first instructional module We are teaching how to write in word, or Google. We're teaching how to how to edit papers Where teach you how to use jaws on a desktop? We're not going to the Internet first that's usually a little ways down the line. Unfortunately, that has to be switched a bit if you're aiming on taking your kiddo as as we all are to the online site for the start testing. Since star testing is online, it is through a web based platform. And the students have to know how to navigate web pages. So that's a big big change from how we would instruct previously. Are there any questions on that Yeah, I really thought that would get a lot of response. Oh, my goodness, Okay, alright. So we will head on Okay, if they cannot navigate the tests. Stacey. Good question. If the students are not able to independently navigate the test or the test platform, then they are not going to be able to successfully, independently. Take that test. There are some trials that are that can be done ahead of time that called at bats. They? Those are just starting to come through the pipeline to be talked about where the students trial on line platforms prior to. But if that student is not able to navigate and access an access the test online, then a paper copy can be requested. We're gonna get to a little bit more information about what tests are absolutely moving quickly online. The first one math is not path is not even in the consideration, so we could breathe easily on that one mass, not in the list. But yes, if they cannot independently navigate the test platform which you can use on the practice, and the practice is not the only justification. 4 before the paper test. Okay, there has to be testing attempts. Does that make sense awesome? So paper test is absolutely available for Braille students upon request. If they are not using a braille display and jaws or braille display, and nva or braille display, and ipad chromebook. Whatever the test is, is administered on if they are not independent in that area. Okay, So I wanted to show you this practice site. you don't need a login to get to it. You just go to it. I'm gonna pull up one here This is third grade. They have the redesigned items, and they allow you to look at the braille. Now if you click into the redesign items, and I wanted to show you the difference of this. Here you click into the redesign items. Do you not turn this on the auto text to speech? It will interfere with jaws and you'll have 2 things talking. Okay. So if you see this auto text to speech and text to speech presentation English, you are not in the Braille practice. Okay, I'm gonna go here for a second I just wanna you see the difference between the 2 tests? The main test. is it multi windows? and each of these areas is a different navigation area. When it comes to jaws. So the student has to know what these different navigation areas are, and so they wanted to make it easier for our Braille students. So in the testing area. if you want to practice with your student you can pick the redesigned braille you'll notice now there's no auto text to speech. If they have content support you can turn this on if they're dual, and you want to have zoom you can turn that on spelling assistance. If that's offered in there as one of their supports go right ahead. So we're gonna go in here Now you'll notice it is simplified for our students We still have 3 areas to navigate 3 main areas. But that's better than 5 or 6 so they've done some thinking there, and gotten gotten a simplified so having your student to be able to navigate between these 3 areas. May get them quicker onto the online platform They are reading the display for the passages. the passages cannot be read to to them. Through jaws, so jaws will not read that portion, so they'll pan through with their pan keys, and just keep reading to the next navigate the way as usual. Once they've gotten to the bottom then they'll get into this navigation, and i'm going very quickly over this, because I want to show you where to get the navigation. information. So we can start adding it to students lessons. So Okay, we're here, and if we've gone into the third grade Braille. You'll have an instructions and help section now i'm gonna show you this here, But I've actually made a document that takes all of this out of the help. guide. So then I can share it with you it'll stay as updated as they keep this updated. So in this help guide you have your basic rules but if we slide down after all of the low vision supports and language supports, we've got a whole section on navigating the test with j with jaws So I've taken all of this, and put it in a document for anybody that's in this session today. You'll get a copy of that document those 3 regions that they discussed the banner. The navigation region and the main region. Those are those 3 areas. On the test that the students have to be able to navigate. They've named them a little bit differently than what they're used to hearing in jaws. Stimulus is the pack, the passage, and it has 3 sections. Title may in menu and content. and Then the questions have elements 4 elements to it, and these jaws commands here. Now you'll notice they're all keyboard commands I'm. working quickly to try to get braille display commands, because right now the student has to take their hands off their braille display and navigate with the keyboard. i'm trying to find out if there is a way we can navigate with our braille displays, so they're not moving around so much so when I find that out I will let you know i'll send out an email and update the documents They did a nice job in telling us how to open each of the context. Menus there's some double tabs and some double enters and things that our kidos are not quite used to doing. But they did a very nice job at outlining how we teach each section of taking the test in the test platform. And how to respond to all of our questions they've even started equation questions which are again not required at this time. Okay, any questions on this part, Brittany. I saw your clap. Thank you. I have to support you guys as much as we can to get us through this Any other questions. All right, so if you lose my instructions, you can go to the administer site and find all of those. So what I wanted to make sure you knew both directions. My panic was, How are we doing math and so I went found, Thank goodness we don't have to dress that yet. Right now. it is Star 3 through 8, reading English only grades for English only grade, 7 writing grade, 8 social studies, and then Eocs for English, 1, 2, and Us. History. Companion paper can be ordered if you think your student needs support for graphics in any of those areas, so you can order a paper copy. What was the other thing Okay. So I think we've covered all of this they've adjusted our formats like I said trying to make things easier. They've left justified everything. the text has been streamlined to be continuous. Instead of jumping around And the questions are directly below the passage So let's see. Hi! I see some of my folks in here that I haven't seen in a while. Okay, so it's brilliant community are We concerned about fluency, and only getting 14 to 40 characters at a time. My student use the braille display very efficiently, but is not used to reading long passages with it. Totally agree. Stacy. So you know I would address it and say, You know my student is much more efficient and less fatigued. Fewer brakes, you know all those things we know that happens when they're using a braille display and a paper copy would be additional, you know. And see if that can be an accommodation for him or her. Maps described for history. I do agree with you about the fluency There, I don't think that's what they're testing at this moment. It's just testing can They read the the document and answer the questions, and we know their their fluency affects that So we're kind of back and forth on that one see history let's go Look at history History is what great does anybody see history that's eocs looking at 11 Okay, from what i've seen they've been describing a majority of unfortunately, they Won't I don't think there we go. They've been described most everything again we're in a trial phase there. These may be on a paper copy. as Well, again, i'm Sorry, guys, I don't know all the questions for the Eocs yet still working on getting those. So I will check on history and see what we have on diagram descriptions. Good map descriptions if you'll be patient with me on those i'll get that answers I love that Veronica. I've seen that in several other states and we've actually been We've been talking about that in-house about would that work for us as it has worked for other states? So that they thank you for bringing that out. That is a that is a wonderful setup. I know Utah does the same with their testing where someone is. There at the moment, and able to print any section that the student needs for. Refresher and Stacy I'll check eighth grade as well as the Eocs. For those map descriptions. Alright. So again, it connects the same as as usual. Nothing different. there We've had some discussion, but I wanna really open it up to other questions. When it comes to braille, display You know i'm not sure stacey she has to the simplicity of it could be used with print renters, readers. I'm not sure on that question we'll have to if we're looking at the fifth grade, because this is, if you haven't seen this the zoom is interesting the zoom is 3 x Max and I just want to see if they simplify it when you zoom in. This is not something I've been working with lately? Why not block? Okay, make this big just to be able to see it And you can see now it does not simplify it. The only thing I can suggest is if you're working with a a zoom in, or some of your print readers to get them to use this arrow key here at the top, and close the questions altogether, and then they they lose a little screen. wow! that is awesome, Erica. Thank you. That's the streamline option that can be available from for any student. That is something that we can ask because like right now the only thing that they've put in is this arrow that will allow us to shut the pains. So stacy them, and that's what we have right now, until we can find out if we can do. Yeah, the tiny, tiny arrow that doesn't get any bigger But if we, if we direct them to that tiny arrow that's kind of cluttered it's gonna be right up in about the same place, and it does change the color when we get up there at least But that is the way they have chosen to streamline for zoom. And then you can see you. You lose for you zoom people that are using zoom. Our reader is just blue. It has anyone found a way to change the color of the light? Reader. Oh! Yeah, I haven't found one either. so just be aware that your line, reader, if you have a kid that uses the line, reader, it is light blue. If you're, using the grid in the math for drawing for your low vision, students make sure they know how to change the transparency, because the transparency makes it see through and you're really getting all the clutter of everything behind in the test, as well as the grid laying over top Okay. All right. we're gonna go for open discussion if we didn't answer the questions you were looking for. For maybe picking a device or you have another question for what's good for your age. Students or what skills you need to look at. for your age, student, and picking those devices. Skills, setting environments and tasks for those students. That set platform is what we we go by so if you have any questions about that, please need yourself or in the chat. Let us know what questions you have about either picking it device, or what it What device you're using now or anything more on Star Okay, i'll go first. this is cheryl Oh, thank you Sharon. Bye. Oh, you'll start my video So you know what I look like sorry about that. Hi, I have is student who is a seventh Grader and rapidly decreasing his vision, started. Braille. I mean we're talking the last year went from 2120 to 2350. I mean it's going fast. We have neuropathy issues So paper is not really working for him. That's Why, we're going for a refreshable Brill display. We start a braille during esi so he's only been doing this for a little while, but he has some. He hasn't rapidly in his hands he's losing the coordination of his left hand. So he's going to end up being a one-handed and they have chrome and i'm just trying to figure out we did a little bit with refreshable growth display. I'm not even sure I think we we through an orbit Adam one day, just to see if he could touch if he could tactically discriminate the dots is what I was going for that day. But i'm not sure where to start Oh, you started off as at a good place. Can you feel the talks that's going to be a good one. Since the brown is display has that that great contrast And I would try to get your hands on as many of those variety of the devices as you can, because some of them are more rounded than others. So the feel may be a little bit different. Then under his fingers, so getting him to to feel that one-handed brilliant, I am pretty sure that most of them will adjust for one-handed brow. But I will get positive or not since there's so many varieties. I know. I will say that I did throw some of the A. ph tato graphics on the plastic under his fingers to see if that sharpness would help. I will say that was his best access point was the So that's not going for that sharper pin and if you have an embosser, the tiger is a sharper it's more of a choice than around So when it comes to embossers anything from view, plus get them to send you a even a print copy or a of embossed copy of what what that sounds like because like back in the day our our Romeo and juliet's were very rounded and smooth, and so our little's really liked those. And then they came out with the tigers and the tiger cubs, and those our kids hated right off because they were very pointed. And you i'm i'm finding with the higher resolution of dots like if they're doing more graphics. And those dots are getting a little bit close together. they're a little bit more pointed than rounded If he really is good with that plastic sheeting. The plastic shooting is what he had the best accuracy with But I can't I I can't emboss everything up blasting. That's a lot of plastic. it's a lot of plastic and that gets really pricey I would. I would go with the the teaching those first skills on that plastic and phasing whether it's his first map or his first graphic go from there to the paper but the braille displays definitely will give you that height, and and contrast that his fingers are going to need as that neuropathy really sets in. Yeah, we're just there. I mean they're they're on the struggle bus right now trying to figure what's going on medically with him. So I'm trying to get everything. I can in place okay and Chrome Chrome is not the best I know. when it comes to braille displays they are, I will say, i'll give them credit. They are listening, and they are getting better. They are much better than they were a handful of years ago. But they are just not as stable of connection and interaction as a Pc. With jaws or nva yeah it's just it's just not there yet. I'll give them i'll give them some credit and the district is in is really reset that receptive to saying, Hey, this isn't gonna work for him which is lovely Yeah, So there's that. And i'm a pc girl myself so and you know it could be that he' having him on a laptop, I mean, that's for employability as well and that's where I come from is that if we put this student on a chromebook. How long is that really going to last If we leave them on an on a tablet? How, How long is that really gonna last and what does that look like for their employability? It's not just getting their homework done now. It It's looking for that longevity as well, because our the the days of one and done when a perkins are amount that would do everything for our student are are long gone so just keep in in. in their view of this is further along than just getting our assignments and meeting our needs right. This second. Yeah, part of the problem is is the district's going well. His vision much in the last 6 months i'm like it's getting worse. It's not getting better. A Pc. machine. you don't have to look at a huge machine. Because we're looking at him being a tactile auditory. Yeah, So we've we've added pretty much everything in the last 6 months. So yeah, and it's just getting them to learn it is you sounds like you're on the right track. But yeah, we can check on this this brail display best for one hand it and and get back to you. Excuse me in our last few minutes we've got about 10 min. Excuse me for losing the voice there. does anyone else have a question that's some amazing questions. Oh, here we go, Hey, Michael, Best display to be able to control. Navigate a Pc. little keyboard ability that is the best thing about a a braille display. They don't have to have any keyboard ability at all they just have to know Brown, and they could be learning braille Your issue with that is how much jaws skill do they have? Because it's not necessarily the display it's how much jaws skill. Do they have to navigate the Pc. in that way? Your does your student need? So, Michael, this is George. You. Does your student need the display to do things outside of the Pc. So like the chameleon, will do basic things, or are they older? It needs be more on that Pc. for the power It's Michael so the yeah so We're getting into Upper Middle School into high school. So the need for accessing higher level, and and and the You know what kind of output you're gonna need has to be higher level as well. But the the full query, keyboard thing is just not not really happening. Yeah. So thinking of, okay, can you run the machine with the display? We've been following a couple of things but I didn't know if anybody had had really run through. Which which device does more, or has a little more ease of use. That kind of stuff. eileen for you know that's older. I don't know if we're talking about a boy or a girl. Our kiddos that are moving around a lot that go from class to class. I usually go for a more durable device. Something like the focus 40 or the focus 14? because it is at heavy material. So if they drop it it's it's less likely to break or if they drop it down into their backpack, and it hits a corner, it's likely to pop off all the braille displays or braille pins. it has great navigation with jaws and Pc. And it also has the option of 2 pathways after that it's very similar, because it's a human wear device to the commands for the braille Note touch and the focus 40 in the focus. 14. Both have the option of adding the l braille note taker, which is a jaws windows no ticker, so it's like having a a Pc. On your hip that has no screen because we wouldn't need it Yeah, that and iconic where I was already but I appreciate the confirmation. Yeah, that's as you do I don't want to have to reinvent the wheel we definitely don't want that. We we definitely don't want that and that's what that's what my goal here when I when I just decided to start this group is that we are talking to each other, and we're sharing, and we're not reinventing the wheel. And so I really appreciate you guys speaking up today. Thank you very, very much we shared a lot of good information, and if you have any questions after this session, My, email, which I realized I did not put it anywhere in the slides, i'm gonna put in the chat right now. It is Clemens D. at Tsbvi dot edu. That is my direct email. If you would like more resources, this is my website. This is the website that all of these tea times will be posted. I also have lesson plans there. for the chameleon. If you're doing the chameleon the brown note touch if you're doing that, and other devices will be added as they come around. So as I get more requests i'll start adding more devices to that. Is everybody able to get that from either the the view or the link If not, I will put it in the chat Cause we've got a couple more minutes anybody think of any questions while i'm typing this Okay, So while we're going here, there's the link for this website, if you need more assistance from our outreach team, we have a button here that will take you to a request for that here are all of our lesson plans those of you that came a couple of weeks ago, Will I have seen some of those and we've added some sense technology guidelines this from a Michigan site which I adore. That breaks down via for students with visual impairments for from pre-kinder to 12. So if you look on each of those it has what a T or what technology skills the students should have, or should be learning. At those different periods we have some resource guides, and then our tech t times are posted at the bottom of this site. Right. Our next tea time is going to be software etc. So we're gonna talk some about jaws we're gonna talk some about a few other things. It'll be a surprise have to show up and find out and if you want to discuss something in the upcoming tea times, please follow this Qr. Code or the link in the chat. Sorry, Doron. I sent that right to. you Oh, there we go if there's something you want to discuss in the upcoming tea times. Please fill out this form. i've already gotten some suggestions so some previews for the upcoming months are low tech advocates. We're gonna have a couple of sessions on Abacus and the rest. You will just have to come and find out.