How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments

This study explored the effectiveness of screen readers on the academic life of higher education students with visual impairments, including reading, writing, access to the internet, exams, and general information for their courses. This study was designed as a qualitative study and applied a phenom...

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Main Author: Sevgi Kırboyun Tipi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Sakarya University 2023-12-01
Series:Sakarya University Journal of Education
Subjects:
Online Access:https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/2759921
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author Sevgi Kırboyun Tipi
author_facet Sevgi Kırboyun Tipi
author_sort Sevgi Kırboyun Tipi
collection DOAJ
description This study explored the effectiveness of screen readers on the academic life of higher education students with visual impairments, including reading, writing, access to the internet, exams, and general information for their courses. This study was designed as a qualitative study and applied a phenomenological approach in order to discuss the experiences of higher education students who use screen readers as assistive technology. One college student and six graduate students with visual impairments were interviewed in the United States. The findings revealed that higher education students with visual impairments benefitted from screen readers; however, they also noted some limitations: difficulties in accessing printed classroom materials, inaccessible digital content, and time lost due to technical issues. Students with visual impairments should be offered accessible documents such as electronic versions of classroom materials, accessible PDFs and websites, and software compatible with JAWS. Universities should provide accessibility training for lecturers who want to better serve students with visual impairments. University information technology services need to train their technical services staff about screen readers to provide 24/7 professional services for students with visual impairments.
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publishDate 2023-12-01
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spelling doaj-art-9fa5ed1d6f4f4af98a2b3a63ec854c252025-08-20T02:27:52ZengSakarya UniversitySakarya University Journal of Education2146-74552023-12-0113341643410.19126/suje.120148228How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual ImpairmentsSevgi Kırboyun Tipi0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1971-417XISTANBUL MEDENIYET UNIVERSITY, INSTITUTE OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCESThis study explored the effectiveness of screen readers on the academic life of higher education students with visual impairments, including reading, writing, access to the internet, exams, and general information for their courses. This study was designed as a qualitative study and applied a phenomenological approach in order to discuss the experiences of higher education students who use screen readers as assistive technology. One college student and six graduate students with visual impairments were interviewed in the United States. The findings revealed that higher education students with visual impairments benefitted from screen readers; however, they also noted some limitations: difficulties in accessing printed classroom materials, inaccessible digital content, and time lost due to technical issues. Students with visual impairments should be offered accessible documents such as electronic versions of classroom materials, accessible PDFs and websites, and software compatible with JAWS. Universities should provide accessibility training for lecturers who want to better serve students with visual impairments. University information technology services need to train their technical services staff about screen readers to provide 24/7 professional services for students with visual impairments.https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/2759921visual impairmentsscreen readersjawsvoiceovergraduate studentsacademic work
spellingShingle Sevgi Kırboyun Tipi
How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments
Sakarya University Journal of Education
visual impairments
screen readers
jaws
voiceover
graduate students
academic work
title How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments
title_full How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments
title_fullStr How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments
title_full_unstemmed How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments
title_short How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments
title_sort how screen readers impact the academic works of college and graduate students with visual impairments
topic visual impairments
screen readers
jaws
voiceover
graduate students
academic work
url https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/2759921
work_keys_str_mv AT sevgikırboyuntipi howscreenreadersimpacttheacademicworksofcollegeandgraduatestudentswithvisualimpairments