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ADA Workstations
Screen and keyboard are the primary
channels of communication between people and computers. Persons
with orthopedic, learning, or visual disabilities frequently experience
great difficulty seeing the screen or manipulating the keyboard. In the
past, this often presented an insurmountable barrier to successful use
of microcomputers by individuals with disabilities.
Adaptive computer technology refers to
any computer program or device which restores a person with disabilities
ability to see the screen and use the keyboard. Within the
context of adaptive computer technology, "seeing the screen"
and "using the keyboard" take on new meaning and dimension
undreamed of by the designers of the original screen/keyboard interface
between people and computers.
To meet the special educational needs
of students, Clackamas Community College provides state-of-the-art
adaptive computer technology for eligible students. Please see the DRC for a map of ADA workstations.
Eligibility
Students enrolled in coursework at Clackamas Community College
are eligible to use any of the ADA workstations. Any student who benefits from adaptive technology is welcome to use the
ADA workstations. In addition any student who feels that adaptive technology is something that might be helpful can come to the
Disability Resource Center (CC142) and be evaluated on which adaptive technology will help them the most.
Hearing,
Learning, Orthopedic & Vision Needs
Hearing Impaired
Congenitally deaf persons often
experience difficulty gaining facility with written language. In
addition to special word processing systems, the TACT Center uses
several adaptations that greatly reduce this difficulty.
Learning Disabilities &
Traumatic Brain Injuries
Adaptive computer technology
is invaluable for individuals with learning disabilities. By
combining word processing with specialized adaptations, a unique
writing environment can be created:
- Automatic spell-check and
correction are based on sound-alike words and common letter
reversals rather than on close spelling approximation. For
example, "hte" would automatically be corrected to
"the" and "psikolagsts" to
"psychologists."
- Screen-reading software is
combined with advanced speech synthesizers to allow a
learning-disabled person to hear what he or she has written.
Moving the error identification and correction process from a
visual to an auditory mode can be enormously useful to persons
with visual processing deficits.
- The size of the text displayed on
the computer screen can be enlarged, the background color
modified, and text color altered to enhance visual perception.
- Smart word processing systems can
be employed to speed up the writing process.
- Voice input systems allow the user
to input text via speech instead of the keyboard.
Orthopedic Disabilities
The ADA Workstations provide adaptations
that allow complete access to personal computers for individuals with
mild to profound orthopedic disabilities. Depending on the
nature and severity of the disability, the adaptation might be as
simple as stopping the automatic key repeat feature found on many
keyboards or as complex as adapting the communicator boards developed
for profoundly disabled non-oral persons to function as computer
keyboards. Computerized one-handed typing programs and
customized keyboards allow many people with physical limitations to
learn touch-typing and be competitive in the workplace.
The ADA Workstations utilize "smart"
word processing systems. A smart word processor analyzes the content
and word frequency patterns of the sentence under construction and,
based on the first two or three letters of the word or phrase being
written, anticipates what the entire word or phrase is likely to be.
It then completes the word or phrase with a single keystroke.
These systems also provide automatic,
continuous spell-checking, correction and instant access to a
computerized thesaurus. Using smart word processing systems,
moderately to profoundly disabled people can produce written material
at a faster pace.
Blindness
Advanced speech synthesizers combined
with screen-reading programs enable blind persons to "see"
the computer screen. The synthesizer "speaks" what the
screen-reading program "sees" on screen.
Sighted persons use a variety of
techniques in viewing and producing text. The eye jumps from
place to place. A quick glance takes the reader to an
interesting sentence or a typing error. Reading speeds up for lengthy
documents., slows down for critical letter-by-letter, word-by-word
analysis.
Adaptive computer technology enables
a blind computer user to employ these same techniques--whether writing
a document with a word processor, entering numbers in a spreadsheet,
retrieving data from a database, or using a host of other common
computer applications.
Low Vision
Individuals with low vision can use the wide gamut of
personal computer programs, thanks to adaptations that enlarge screen
text and graphics through a wide range of magnifications.
Staff
Information
For more information call 503-657-6958,
ext. 2324 to contact Betsy Pacheco, the Coordinator of Services for Disabled Students
in the Counseling Center.
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