Visual Assistive Tools

The visual assistive tools for individuals with blindness, low vision, color blindness and deafblindness are varied and can include service animals, tactile markers, braille keyboards, speech input tools, screen readers, color contrast adjusting software, screen magnification, and more.

Listen to the audio samples and see if you can keep up with those that use screen readers on a regular basis!

Activities

Listen to the start of the Disney film The Lion King with Audio Description enabled and an example of how fast some screen reader users are able to have devices read back text to them and still understand what is being spoken. Try to pick out even a few words without slowing it down.

Man in a gray denim jacket stands with his black lab guide dog to his left facing the lit up New York skyline from the New Jersey shore as a ferry boat crosses the Hudson River

Living Assistive Tools

Assistive tools can take the form of service animals as well. Guide dogs, for example, can provide safety and independence for those who may have blind or low-vision by weaving their handler through obstacles, be they people or potholes, and indicating when they are approaching items that may need the persons attention such as steps, tree branches, or water puddles. In the United States of America, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provides equal access to all service animals and their handlers. It's important to note, however, that support animals are not the same as service animals. Service animals are specifically trained to do a special task for their handler be it guide them, notify them of an impending medical issue, provide mobility stability assistance, or provide other medical assistance.

Reflection

1) How do some of the assistive tools that many in the visual disability communities used beneficial to other communities in and out of the disability world (eg. speech input, screen readers (text-to-speech), service animals, etc.)?

2) Why do you think there is a difference between service and support animals?

3) Though difficult to do at times it's important to ignore a service animal as if they aren't there. Why do you think that is?

Other Resources

Blind/Visual Impairment: Common Assistive Technologies

Understanding Assistive Technology: How Does a Blind Person use the Internet?

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