Chetz Colwell

Using remote laboratories to extend access to science and engineering

This paper will describe an approach to the provision of laboratory experience using communications and control technology. This approach provides the possibility of extending access to laboratory work for students who are unable to attend a conventional laboratory for a variety of reasons, such as disability, caring responsibilities, or part-time study. A remote experimentation system is under development for students to conduct a range of experiments in science and engineering education. It will be seen that laboratory work is an important aspect of learning in these disciplines, although there are constraints on its provision, including the specific barriers facing people with disabilities. The PEARL project seeks to overcome many of the existing constraints. The paper presents the design for the system and its specific features, and discusses its use in an educational context. In order to illustrate how PEARL will support people with disabilities, this paper also presents an overview of the assistive technologies currently in use.

The Haptic Perception of Texture in Virtual Environments: An Investigation with Two Devices

The incorporation of the haptic sense (the combined effects of touch and proprioceptive information) into virtual reality (VR) has considerable potential to enhance the realism of virtual environments and make VR more accessible to blind people. This paper summarises an experiment into the haptic perception of texture in VR conducted with a Phantom haptic device. This experiment was an extension of a previous experiment involving the IE3000 haptic device in a programme of research into haptic perception in VR. On the basis of the reported work guidelines for the creation of haptic environments using textural information for both blind and sighted individuals are presented.

Initial requirements of deaf students for video: lessons learned from an evaluation of a digital video application

This paper reports the findings from an observational study of a digital video library system, DiVA, involving deaf students and students with other medical conditions affecting their use of video material. The Digital Video Applications (DiVA) system supports searching for and playing educational videos, and displays transcripts of the audio track alongside the video. Seven disabled students were observed while they watched nine video clips and then interviewed on their opinions of the system. The study is set within a context of an increasing focus on access to educational technology for disabled students motivated by recent changes in disability discrimination law. The findings of this study confirm the recommendations of existing guidelines that video material should be subtitled for deaf students, and that subtitles should conform to existing standards. It is acknowledged that subtitles may not be available on legacy video material and that transcripts may be a feasible alternative. This paper makes recommendations for the display of transcripts in digital video applications such as DiVA. It also emphasizes that disabled students have a range of different, and sometimes conflicting, needs and therefore the presence and display of subtitles or transcripts should be offered as options rather than by default.