CAREER: Bridging the Digital Accessibility Gap in STEM Using Multisensory Haptic Platforms

考虑在看不见的情况下学习视觉科目，如数学、工程或科学。突然之间，提供快速收集信息方法的图形、图表和图表不再有效。这是一个挑战，有视觉障碍的学生在教室里面临的今天，作为教育材料最经常呈现电子。目前，有视觉障碍的人“阅读”图形的方式是通过触摸，感觉纸上代表图像的凸起的点和图案。创建这些基于触摸的图形需要大量的时间和资源，并且输出提供静态的硬拷贝图像。在STEM科目中无法获得图形是视力障碍者目前面临的最紧迫挑战之一。这是一个令人担忧的问题，因为在STEM领域和专业中，这些残疾学生的代表性很低。该项目研究如何使用新的触摸技术，如触摸屏，来创建可以感觉到的图形和模拟，听到的，看到的。使用现成的，低成本的系统，首席研究员将研究如何映射视觉信息的触摸和声音。这项研究建立在以前的研究集中在非视觉表示图形（点，线和形状）的构建块。在本项目中，研究人员将确定如何以非视觉方式表示更具挑战性的图形，例如图表、绘图和图表。然后，该项目将探索触摸反馈在交互式模拟中的作用，这些模拟具有随用户输入而变化的移动元素，使非视觉访问具有挑战性。最后，该项目将研究扩展到其他残疾学生，以了解触摸技术产生广泛影响所需的好处和变化。该项目涉及约65名视觉障碍学生的小组和单一主题设计，并侧重于以下感兴趣的结果：学生的图形素养，任务评估的正确率，探索时间，响应时间，对图形特定区域的重访次数，以及层之间的切换次数。这项工作与残疾人及其教师密切合作，旨在弥合目前STEM中的图形无障碍差距，并提高对技术使用和开发中通用设计的认识。职业生涯计划是一个国家科学基金会（NSF）范围内的活动，提供奖励，以支持初级教师谁通过杰出的研究，优秀的教育，以及教育和研究的整合在其组织的使命的背景下，发挥教师学者的作用。该项目由NSF的发现研究PreK-12（DRK-12）计划支持。DRK-12旨在通过研究和开发创新资源，模型和工具，显着提高preK-12学生和教师的科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）的学习和教学。DRK-12项目中的项目建立在STEM教育的基础研究以及为拟议项目提供理论和经验依据的先前研究和开发工作的基础上。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Consider learning visual subjects such as math, engineering, or science without being able to see. Suddenly, the graphs, charts, and diagrams that provide a quick way to gather information are no longer effective. This is a challenge that students with visual impairments face in classrooms today as educational materials are most often presented electronically. The current way that individuals with visual impairments "read" graphics is through touch, feeling raised dots and patterns on paper that represent images. Creating these touch-based graphics requires extensive time and resources, and the output provides a static, hard-copy image. Lack of access to graphics in STEM subjects is one of the most pressing challenges currently facing individuals with visual impairments. This is a concern given the low representation of students with these disabilities in STEM fields and professions.This project investigates how to use new touch technologies, like touchscreens, to create graphics and simulations that can be felt, heard, and seen. Using readily available, low-cost systems, the principal investigator will investigate how to map visual information to touch and sound. This research builds on prior research focused on representing the building blocks of graphics (points, lines, and shapes) nonvisually. In this project, the investigator will determine how to represent more challenging graphics such as charts, plots, and diagrams, nonvisually. The project will then explore the role of touch feedback in interactive simulations, which have moving elements that change with user input, making nonvisual access challenging. Finally, the projects extends the research to students with other disabilities, toward understanding the benefits and changes necessary for touch technologies to have broad impact. The project involves group and single-subject designs with approximately 65 students with visual impairments and focuses on the following outcomes of interest: students' graph literacy, percent correct on task assessments, time of exploration, response time, number of revisits to particular areas of the graphic, and number of switches between layers. Working closely with individuals with disabilities and their teachers, this work seeks to bridge the current graphical accessibility gap in STEM and raise awareness of universal design in technology use and development. The CAREER program is a National Science Foundation (NSF)-wide activity that offers awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education, and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations. This project is supported by NSF's Discovery Research PreK-12 (DRK-12) program. DRK-12 seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.