iPad Program

Liberty Braille is now offering a new program to provide accessible textbooks through loans of iPad tablets. The purpose of this program is to provide visually impaired Oklahoma students a device that will allow them to experience and master relevant mainstream technology, use applications to enhance learning, and access textbooks in a format that is customized to the student’s needs. There is no cost at all for participation in this program.

Candidates are visually impaired Oklahoma students being served by an IEP in grades 1-12, who are currently accessing large print texts. Students must complete a short-term evaluation loan through Oklahoma ABLE Tech before they will be eligible for a school year loan through our program.

Accessing electronic books on the iPad is intuitive and easy. Students will be able to increase the font size up to 72 points, change background colors, increase contrast, and/or may opt to have the book read aloud to them by a synthesized voice. The electronic books will be coming from Bookshare and the application your student will be using is called Read2Go. Here is a very informative, 3-minute video on Read2Go.

iPad Program FAQs

• I have a student whom I’d like to have try an iPad but school has started – is it too late? No, it’s not too late. ABLE Tech is doing demo loans all year round. As soon as you submit the paperwork for the demo, your student is put on our loan list. They will receive their school year iPad as soon as they complete the demo, based on availability. We will start the school year with iPads to loan but we do not have an unlimited supply so don’t wait!

• If I order an iPad for a student, do all her books need to be in digital format? No. Some books, such as workbooks, are not appropriate for digital delivery. In general, we find that Math does not work well in digital format but Language Arts does. You will use the demo process to determine which books  delivered digitally and which should be hard copy based on the needs of your individual student.

• Can an iPad work for a Student who is Braille Reader? Yes! There are many great accessibility features that make the iPad work well for students with little or no vision. When paired with a refreshabraille display, it works very well for many braille readers. ABLE Tech has demo braille displays to loan as well and the AIM Center is able to purchase them through APH.

• Which grade levels do well with the iPad? In general, we have seen success with kids in grades 2-12. Maturity and level of personal responsibility should factor heavily in your decision to try an iPad for a student. Overall, student response for all grades has been enthusiastic.

For more information on how to recommend a student for this opportunity, please contact us.