Derrick W. Smith

On the design of an educational infrastructure for the blind and visually impaired in computer science

The blind and visually impaired community is significantly underrepresented in computer science. Students who wish to enter the discipline must overcome significant technological and educational barriers to succeed. In an attempt to help this population, we are engaged in a three-year research project to build an educational infrastructure for blind and visually impaired middle and high school students. Our primary research goal is to begin forging a multi-sensory educational infrastructure for the blind across the United States. We present here two preliminary results from this research: 1) a new auditory programming environment called Sodbeans, a programming language called Hop, and a multi-sensory (sound and touch) curriculum, and 2) an empirical study of our first summer workshop with the blind students. Results show that students reported a significant increase in programming self-efficacy after participating in our camp.

Assistive Technology for Students with Visual Impairments: A Research Agenda

Abstract This research synthesis examined the literature on assistive technology in education for individuals with visual impairments from September 2009 to May 2013 and is a replication of a previous study by Kelly and Smith (2011) . To identify changes in the types, methodology, and rigor of research since August 2009, we located and analyzed 141 articles in English peer-reviewed publications. Only 2 of the 141 articles met the standards for scientific research developed by the What Works Clearinghouse. While only two studies met criteria for group research, there was an increase in the quantity of published articles, including a number of qualitative and single-subject research studies, suggesting that more and higher quality research is being conducted. A succinct summary of notable studies is provided as well as possible strategies to advance research on assistive technology for students with visual impairments to promote more rigorous and robust standards/competencies.