This presentation was delivered as part of the JISC RSC Scotland RSCtv session. The session focussed on the Techdis Toolbox which provides a range of guides and resources for staff and students. It focuses on everyday technologies and provides hints tips advice and guidance on how to exploit the everyday tools that we use to be more inclusion and to enhance our productivity. This resource will be of interest to a wide range of practitioners including lecturers, managers, marketing, library staff, support for learning tutors, equalities staff.
2. JISC TechDis Toolbox
• TechDis Toolbox is a collection of resources which
give useful hints and tips on technologies that can
help individuals work smarter.
• It is aimed directly at the end users – learners.
• Bite-sized videos and animations, short guides, audio
files and ‘how to’ word documents
• Small bits of just-in-time information that can be
easily absorbed.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8. Managing Information
Dry Icons
You are a staff developer and you have been
asked to provide some hints and tips on how to
manage the overwhelming amount of email
traffic staff receive.
10. Scenario
Dry Icons
You are a community based lecturer teaching a
basic IT skills class.
You want to prepare a session on web search
strategies, and because it is familiar to most
people you want to plan a session about making
the most of the Google search engine.
12. Scenario
Dry Icons
As a study skills tutor you are working with a group of
first year students who are adjusting to university life,
and in particular some of them are having difficulties
managing their time.
You are preparing a session on time management and
you want to find useful information that you can share
with learners.
In particular you want to provide them with insights into
how they can exploit everyday tools to assist them in
being more productive.
15. Scenario
Dry Icons
As Equality Manager you want to raise awareness
about ways that departments across the
institution could provide information about their
services in different formats – not just text.
You know there are relatively easy ways to
provide information in audio format and want to
share information about free tools to do so.
17. Scenario
Dry Icons
You know that many students that use your library
struggle when reading text, even though they are
not dyslexic. Some have difficulty concentrating,
others have literacy issues and some learners find
reading information difficult because they have
English as a second language.
You wanted to find some strategies to help them
access web based information with greater ease.
23. Scenario
Dry Icons
You know that your Equality Manager has been promoting Audacity
to encourage staff to create audio based information.
As the Support for Learning tutor you are delighted that this is
happening but you also know that there are some other excellent
free and open source software that staff could use to create their
information in alternative formats.
In addition they could be telling students how to use these free
tools for themselves.
You also know that the library staff might also be interested in this.
http://www.jisctechdis.ac.uk/tbx/audio
26. Students using free TTS audio tools to
learn lines for performances
Dspeech will
hook into the speech
engine on any
windows PC you
use and will either
read out text or
convert to MP3
http://tinyurl.com/br8fsqq
27.
28. Scenario
Dry Icons
You are a product design lecturer and you have dyslexia.
You know that there are students in your class who are visual
thinkers, and you want to introduce some strategies that work
for you with your class to outline the next project that the class
will be involved in and to encourage them to start thinking
about mind mapping themselves.
You want to find some resources that you can share with your
learners to help them understand how to use mind maps.
30. Scenario
Dry Icons
You are a departmental manager and you are keen to
encourage your staff to communicate more efficiently as a
team.
You want to provide them with some ideas about how to
work together and to share information with each other
about timetables, project ideas etc.
34. And there is more….
• Use autotext to help with word prediction.
• Use autocorrect to help with spelling errors.
• Change colour of background in Word to help
readers with visual discomfort..
• Add audio and video into Word documents.
• Make the most of iPhone and iPad accessibility.
• Take advantage of accessibility options in PCs and
Macs.
• Connect a switch to a computer to help students
who have difficulty using a mouse.
The session will provide people with a chance to become familiar with the Techdis toolbox. is a collection of resources which give useful hints and tips on technologies that can help individuals work smarter. While written primarily for those with disabilities or difficulties, it is useful for just about anyone who wants to gain or improve on the skills most valued by employers. It explores many common workplace technologies and explains how to get the most out of them
The TechDis Toolbox is a collection of resources which give useful hints and tips on technologies that can help individuals work smarter. It is aimed directly at the end users – learners and based on questions that Techdis asked former students (learner ambassadors) who were asked “ In retrospect what should your tutor have told you but never did? ” This short webinar will hopefully provide you with the chance to learn more about the Techdis Toolbox and and consider how the resources found in this toolbox would be of interest to your learners and indeed for staff in your institution. Designed primarily for people with disabilities or difficulties however I believe that this is something that could benefit everyone. bite-size videos, short guides, animations and brief audio files. These small bits of just-in-time information can be easily understood and absorbed allowing users to learn something new and put it into practice straight away. Most people use technology everyday. Using it smarter can help people be more productive, organised and creative.
The toolbox has a set of drawers to help users find the tool they need. There are five drawers in total and the first four correspond to skills that are valued by employers: · Technology. · Planning and organisation. · Communication. · Team working. The last drawer provides an overview of resources and strategies that are can be exploited in the day to day technologies that we used (such as Windows, Mac, IOS devices), that can help different users and support different needs The Toolbox was designed primarily for people with disabilities or difficulties however I believe that this resources is something that could benefit everyone. Whilst working at the BBC as Head of Usability and Accessibility Professor Johathan Hassell commissioned research into the use of assistive technology, this research identified that 57% of all computer users (aged between 18 - 64) were likely or very likely to benefit from the use of AT or enabling technology strategies to help their computer use HOWEVER According to Office for Disability Issues - only 6-8 % of people actually use AT to access the internet. This highlights the fact that there is a huge potential that have not been exploited for people to benefit from inclusive strategies and enabling. Also when we talk about AT this doesn't ’ always mean purchasing expensive technologies. Settings in day to day technologies ( Windows, Word, Mac, IOS devices) can be tweaked http://www.hassellinclusion.com/2012/01/web-accessibility-myths-2011-part2/ (source EEDP 2008)
Technology Working with Windows Working with Mac OSX Mobile Phones Tablet Devices Using the Web Free Software Assistive Technologies This section contains a large number of ideas to help people adapt the technology they use everyday. It covers both Windows and Mac computers as well as drawing out the benefits of accessibility features in Apple mobile devices and tablets. This section incorporates guidance on tools that people are already be using or that they would like to learn more about. Ideally this section should inspire people to learn some new techniques so they can do things smarter and faster. For example –Learning how to use Autotext function in Word to save some typing time or can help remember regularly used longer phrases (e.g. a long address, a title) or Autocorrect – to correct commonly misspelled errors. Have you considered changing the background colour of Word to help you to read what you are typing on screen? This section should inspire you to pick up some new techniques so you can do things smarter and faster. It also suggests different tools for different needs, for instance, those with a visual impairment may find screen magnifiers or text-to-speech tools useful. Individuals with dyslexia or memory problems - use task lists, calendars and reminders.
Different Needs Vision Hearing Mobility / Coordination Understanding Memory/Concentration Profound and Complex Dyslexia Technology allows us to change and personalise the tools that we use. For instance, you can have text read out to you or you can control the computer using your voice alone. This section is rich with ideas on how to adapt different tools so that they support us in what we want to do.
Different Needs Struggling Readers Auditory Learners New to IT Visual Learners Literacy Support English Language Students
This section should inspire you to pick up some new techniques so you can do things smarter and faster. Planning and organisation skills are very important to employers. These skills help you set priorities, focus on tasks and manage your time. They make it easier to achieve your targets and goals. There are lots advice and online tools which can help you plan and organise more efficiently and effectively. Learn more: Manage your messages Manage time Finding information Organising information
Creating folders, label and rules to organise emails and easily find information in your in box
A learner has come to you for advice about researching information for her coursework. She finds that when she browses for information on the internet, she finds herself spending ages trying to find the appropriate information. Not only that, when she does find what she is looking for, she often loses it again. She is keen to learn more about good practice in using search engines Not always reliable or of an academic standard Large number of hits - can be difficult to identify the best results Google Web search strategies in plain English, Making basic searches, using google search images, using google maps tool,
As a study skills tutor you are working with a group of first year students who are adjusting to university life, and in particular some of them are having difficulties managing their time. You are preparing a session on time management and you want to find useful information that you can share with learners. In particular you want to provide them with insights into how they can exploit everyday tools to assist them in being more productive.
Recurring events Plan by colour Task lists in email accounts, Google calendar
Communication Presenting Yourself Video Calls Reading Tools Writing Tools Multimedia Tools Computers, mobile phones and the internet have changed the way we communicate. This section can help you use these tools to your advantage, whether you're preparing for a job interview or you want to convert text to audio. You can also find out more about social media and staying safe online. Communication or getting your message across is an essential part of working life. There are many ways to do this and sometimes it might be easier to use more creative ways of communicating instead of the more traditional ways.
As Equality Manager you want to raise awareness about ways that departments across the institution could provide information about their services in different formats – not just text. You know there are relatively easy ways to provide information in audio format and want to share information about free tools to do so.
Learn more: About using Audacity and making full use of its features about recording, saving files and exporting files with Audacity about editing recordings in Audacity about adding effects to your recording in Audacity
You know that many students that use your library struggle when reading text, even though they are not dyslexic. Some have difficulty concentrating, others have literacy issues and some learners find reading information difficult because they have English as a second language. You wanted to find some strategies to help them access web based information with greater ease.
Web Based Reading tools Chrome Reader
Chrome Reader http://tinyurl.com/8wopfne
Web Based Reading tools Firefox Reader
Firefox Reader http://tinyurl.com/9kpccn8
Safari Reader http://tinyurl.com/8bwees2
You know that your Equality Manager has been promoting Audacity to encourage staff to create audio based information. As the Support for Learning tutor you are delighted that this is happening but you also know that there are some other excellent free and open source software that staff could use to create their information in alternative formats. In addition they could be telling students how to use these free tools for themselves. You also know that the library staff might also be interested in this. http://www.jisctechdis.ac.uk/tbx/audio
Balabolka is a Russian word that means “ chatterer ” . Balabolka is also very good free text-to-speech software for the PC, running in all versions of Windows–from Windows 2000 through Windows 7. There are two versions of the program, one that is installed on a host computer, and a portable version that will run from a USB flash drive. Balabolka is a very good free Windows text-to-speech tool . It includes magnification (2X to 16X) and spell checking. It is also keyboard accessible.This software will create audio files on an iPod or other mobile device. Balabolka is available in the following 15 languages: English; Bulgarian; Chinese, Czech; Dutch; French; German; Hungarian; Italian; Polish; Brazilian Portuguese; Romanian; Russian; Spanish; Ukrainian.
The Scottish Government funds CALL Scotland to provide a Scotland-wide schools licence for 'Heather' and 'Stuart' - high quality Scottish computer voices from CereProc in Edinburgh. The voices are licenced for schools, colleges, universities and NHS patients. http://www.thescottishvoice.org.uk/Home/
Students using free TTS audio tools to learn lines for performances
Team Working Team Planning Team Communication Collaboration Sharing Information Team working is an important part of almost any job. Technology supports team working by making it easier to connect with other. Teamworking is a very important life skill and there are many tools that can help us to share information and communicate better. You can use Wiki websites to plan and discuss a project so that everyone can contribute. And there are so many ways to share images, videos and audio files with the rest of your team. It makes creating things with other people so much easier
You are a product design lecturer and you have dyslexia. You know that there are students in your class who are visual thinkers, and you want to introduce some strategies that work for you with your class to outline the next project that the class will be involved in and to encourage them to start thinking about mind mapping themselves. You want to find some resources that you can share with your learners to help them understand how to use mind maps.
about using Xmind and making full use of its features about how to get started using XMind about using templates in XMind about structuring your mind map in XMind about linking cells together in XMind about exporting your mind map to other formats using XMind
You are a departmental manager and you are keen to encourage your staff to communicate more efficiently as a team. You want to provide them with some ideas about how to work together and to share information with each other about timetables, project ideas etc.
Sharing Calendars http://tinyurl.com/99hce3d
Explaining Wikis http://tinyurl.com/8w9x2z8
Who? Students Support for Learning Curriculum Staff Community Based Tutors Library/Learning Resources ESOL Tutors Adult Literacies Tutors
Use autotext to help with word prediction. Use autocorrect to help with spelling errors. Change colour of background in Word to help readers with visual discomfort.. Add audio and video into Word documents. Make the most of iPhone and iPad accessibility. Take advantage of accessibility options in PCs and Macs. Connect a switch to a computer to help students who have difficulty using a mouse.
The toolbox has a set of drawers to help users find the tool they need. There are five drawers in total and the first four correspond to skills that are valued by employers: · Technology. · Planning and organisation. · Communication. · Team working. The last drawer provides an overview of resources and strategies that are can be exploited in the day to day technologies that we used (such as Windows, Mac, IOS devices), that can help different users and support different needs The Toolbox was designed primarily for people with disabilities or difficulties however I believe that this resources is something that could benefit everyone. Whilst working at the BBC as Head of Usability and Accessibility Professor Johathan Hassell commissioned research into the use of assistive technology, this research identified that 57% of all computer users (aged between 18 - 64) were likely or very likely to benefit from the use of AT or enabling technology strategies to help their computer use HOWEVER According to Office for Disability Issues - only 6-8 % of people actually use AT to access the internet. This highlights the fact that there is a huge potential that have not been exploited for people to benefit from inclusive strategies and enabling. Also when we talk about AT this doesn't ’ always mean purchasing expensive technologies. Settings in day to day technologies ( Windows, Word, Mac, IOS devices) can be tweaked http://www.hassellinclusion.com/2012/01/web-accessibility-myths-2011-part2/ (source EEDP 2008)