EASI Webinar: The Future of E--books Is Here!
Accessible E-textbooks for Students: May 1 2 PM Eastern
Presenters:
Nicole Gaines, NIMAC Manager, American Printinghouse for the Blind
Julia Myers, Director, Resource Services and NIMAC, American Printing House
for the Blind,
Skip Stahl, Project Director, NIMAS Development Center, Center for Applied
Special Technology
President Bush signed the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) on December 3, 2004 which, among other
things, mandated
the provision of textbooks and instructional materials in accessible
formats for students who are blind or print disabled. While the legislation
relates to K-12 students, we believe that the more that publishers are
creating accessible e-textbooks for K-12 that they will inevitably expand
to a broader audience. If not, there will be an outcry from K-12 students
as they transition into higher education wanting the same quality of
support for their studies. This will be like dropping a pebble into the
water. The wave will expand to include higher ed and the general
public. Learning about this dramatic e-book revolution is important for
all of us.
This presentation will focus on NIMAS, (National Instructional Materials
Accessibility Standard), the role of APH, (American Printinghouse for the
Dlind)
and the role of CAST, (Center for Applied Special Technology).
The National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) is a file
repository for core print textbooks and related instructional materials
required for
use by blind or other persons with print disabilities in elementary and
secondary schools in the U.S. and its territories. These National
Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) source file sets can
be used to create specialized formats, such as braille, large print, audio,
or digital text. The NIMAC opened in December 2006.
CAST is the home of the NIMAS Development Center and the NIMAS Technical
Assistance Center, Cooperative agreements with the Office of Special
Education Programs, United States Department of Education.
While this Webinar is free, you need to register in advance to guarantee a
seat in the room. (Those who register, whether or not they attend, will
afterwards
receive a link to the recording. When you connect over the Internet to the
Webinar room, you can listen to the presenters and watch as supporting Web
pages are pushed to reinforce the presentation. The audience can also make
comments or ask questions either by using a mic to talk or by writing into
the room's text window.
To read more and register to reserve a seat and to get login information
for this free event, go to:
http://easi.cc/clinic.htm
Look for other future Webinars on that page. We have several being
finalized and they should be on that page very soon.
The EASI month-long, online courses on accessible Information Technology
for May are:
Barrier-free Information Technology (4-week online course starting May 7)
http//easi.cc/workshop.htm
Creating and Repurposing More Accessible Content (4-week online course
starting May 7)
http//easi.cc/workshop.htm
Norman Coombs
CEO EASI
---------------------------
Check out EASI New Synchronous Clinics:
http://easi.cc/clinic.htm
EASI Home Page http://www.rit.edu/~easi
Online courses and Clinics http://easi.cc/workshop.htm
Check the EASI Library Web http://www.rit.edu/~easi/lib.htm
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