An exploration of the potential of Automatic Speech Recognition to assist and enable receptive communication in higher education

The potential use of Automatic Speech Recognition to assist receptive communication is explored. The opportunities and challenges that this technology presents students and staff to provide captioning of speech online or in classrooms for deaf or hard of hearing students and assist blind, visually impaired or dyslexic learners to read and search learning material more readily by augmenting synthetic speech with natural recorded real speech is also discussed and evaluated. The automatic provision of online lecture notes, synchronised with speech, enables staff and students to focus on learning and teaching issues, while also benefiting learners unable to attend the lecture or who find it difficult or impossible to take notes at the same time as listening, watching and thinking

Quality Improvement Project Evaluating the use of CyraCom Language Translation Application in Two Metro Atlanta Infusion Centers

Purpose: Evaluate the use of CyraCom video assist language translation application among Korean- and Spanish-speaking patients, seen in two infusion centers located in a southeast metro area, and summarize the patient and staff responses. Methods: This project used a descriptive study design where participants were recruited via a convenience sample from two infusion centers in the southeast United States. Eligible participants were patients undergoing infusion therapy, RNs, MDs, and PAs. Participants completed a pre and post-survey that was comprised of three-questions. The questions measured ease of use and satisfaction in both infusion centers. Results: A total of five surveys were collected from participants and seven surveys from the clinical staff. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Among patients when asked compared to a live translator would you use this device again? 80% of participants responded yes . One-hundred percent of participants responded yes to the question have you ever used a live interpreter to translate for you before? A total of 7 responses were received from infusion center staff. Approximately 72% of the staff thought the system was easy to use . However, 29% agreed with the following statement I felt very confident using the system . Conclusion: Findings suggest that although technology cannot replace a competent, trained language interpreter, using a language translation application can assist in reducing costs associated with acquiring language interpretation services, reducing the time it takes for the translator to travel to the location, and allows the care team easy access to contacting a translator with three clicks when using the iPad, streamlining an operational process for improving practice issues. Technology-driven innovations are especially imperative for transformative service organizations like hospitals, where new devices and systems can dramatically enhance patients outcomes

Using Information Communications Technologies to Implement Universal Design for Learning

The purpose of this paper is to assist Ministries of Education, their donors and partners, Disabled Persons Organizations (DPOs), and the practitioner community funded by and working with USAID to select, pilot, and (as appropriate) scale up ICT4E solutions to facilitate the implementation of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), with a particular emphasis on supporting students with disabilities to acquire literacy and numeracy skills. The paper focuses primarily on how technology can support foundational skills acquisition for students with disabilities, while also explaining when, why, and how technologies that assist students with disabilities can, in some applications, have positive impacts on all students’ basic skills development. In 2018, USAID released the Toolkit for Universal Design for Learning to Help All Children Read, section 3.1 of which provides basic information on the role of technologies to support UDL principles and classroom learning. This paper expands upon that work and offers more extensive advice on using ICT4E1 to advance equitable access to high quality learning. Like the UDL toolkit, the audience for this guide is mainly Ministries of Education and development agencies working in the area of education, but this resource can also be helpful for DPOs and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) wishing to pilot or spearhead ICT initiatives. Content for this paper was informed by expert interviews and reviews of field reports during 2018. These included programs associated with United Nations, Zero Project, World Innovation Summit, UNESCO Mobile Learning Awards, and USAID’s All Children Reading: A Grand Challenge for Development. Relevant case studies of select education programs integrating technology to improve learning outcomes for students with disabilities were summarized for this document