This study sought to establish the role of assistive technologies on quality educational outcomes of students with visual impairment in Kisumu County, Kenya. The study adopted a mixed methods research design. The target population constituted 743 students, 11 principals, 11 deputy principals, and 19 Special Needs teachers making a total of 784. Purposive sampling was used to select 11 principals, 11 deputy principals, 19 SNE teachers and 120 students with visual impairments yielding a total sample size of 161 respondents from secondary schools in Kisumu County. The main research instruments were questionnaires for students and principals and interview guidelines for SNE teachers. Piloting was conducted to determine the validity of research instruments. Quantitative data and later qualitative data were collected in conformity with the chosen mixed methods research design. Quantitative data were analyzed with the assistance of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Computer programme version 20. The SPSS generated descriptive and inferential statistics. The qualitative data were analyzed thematically and represented in direct quotes and narratives in line with the study objective. The study revealed that most of the students with visual impairments were taught by SNE teachers who were highly qualified with long teaching experience. The majority of the students with VI largely relied on the use of obsolete assistive technologies such as the Braille and mirror magnifiers. The modern technologies had not penetrated into the study locale and as a result most students with visual impairments hardly benefited from the advantages inherent in these technologies. Nearly all SNE teacher interviewed concurred that the use of modern assistive technologies by students with VI was a very critical requirement for enhancing learning, independent study and active learner-teacher interaction that was a prerequisite for enhanced academic performance. The overall conclusion was that use of modern ATs by students with VI was quite low and hardly facilitated effective attainment of quality school outcomes such individualized learning and enhanced academic performance in internal and national examinations. The study made several recommendations mainly directed towards the Ministry of Education to give priority to learners with various disabilities, especially those with VI, by increasing budgetary allocation for the purchase of modern ATs and on in-service training of SNE teachers on use of modern ATs not only in the study locale of Kisumu County but other counties in the country experiencing similar challenges. [389 words].

Technology has emerged as a revolution in all walks of life. It has contributed significantly in empowering the disabled human race and help them overcome previously insurmountable barriers which led to their seclusion and ignorance.Assistive technology in particular has helped the students with low vision and blindness in accessing the curriculum.Technology should be considered as one of the important components of teaching learning material in an inclusive setup. Teachers need to make use of Assistive Technology to promote inclusion and meet the varied requirements needs of the students in the same class.A variety of Assistive Technology (AT) devices are available that can help teachers facilitate the process of curriculum transaction in the classroom and bridge the educational needs of students with disabilities. Research has proven evidences that technology has a significant impact on learning of the students in the areas of STEM and language learning as well particularly in rea...

Educational, vocational, and social inclusion is one of the fundamental principles that ensure people with disabilities a chance to have as a normal life as possible. In turn, accessibility is one of the most important components of inclusion and could be defined as the right of people with disabilities to benefit of the same products and services as all other community members. According to government data from 2015, in Romania 752 931 were people with disabilities, 60 289 were children and 13.9% had various forms of visual impairment. For these people, any limitation in accessibility means isolation and discrimination. On the other hand, education and new technologies can increase the accessibility of people with visual impairment to quality products and services in society. Therefore, the purpose of this research was the identification of attitude and training level of teachers in the educational process accessibility for students with visual impairment using ICT. The sample consisted of 210 professors who teach in pre-academic learning system in Bihor, Romania and research tool-a questionnaire composed of 76 multiple choice items – it was administered online by the end of 2016. The results of the research show that, even if they want to support inclusion of people with visual impairment using ICT in teaching/learning, most teachers do not have professional skills in that field and do not know how to use educational software or to adapt a scholar curriculum for this category of students.

The learning system for blind people has been a field of interest for researchers for many decades. Arthur (2000) holds that ancient Egyptians were the first community to show interest to have a talk on these issues relating to visually impaired learners. All the inventions till today, in this field, have been possible by the thorough researches by the experts. Researches are being made and new technologies are being added to thisphenomenon every day. Ranging from Braille to today’s JAWS (a talking software) are the result of those researches. Berthold Lowenfeld (1973) said, “Education must aim at giving the blind child knowledge of the realities around him, the confidence to cope with these realities, and the feeling that he is recognized and accepted as an individual in his own right.” Today the tendency of keeping the visually impaired students separate from the sightedones has been changed: researchers are now thinking about integratedlearning where all the students may get an equal environment for learning.Now, it has come to the researchers’ realization that the blinds have thepotentiality to attend regular schools. With the help of ICT based classroom,it is quite possible to engage the visually impaired learners in a regularclassroom with sighted students. In this integration process, some barriersand limitations have been experienced by the visually impaired learners,especially in developing countries, such as inaccessible classroomenvironment, lack of study material, inappropriate teaching techniques, andshortcoming of resources etc. As a result, in the low and middle-incomecountries, the blind learners are not being able to get the maximum benefitsfrom the use of ICT. However, the main focus of my research is to show the effects of using theeducational technologies to promote learning for the blind learners in lowand middle-income countries i.e. south Asian and African countries. Besides,I intend to analyze the adaptive ability of the visually impaired students inclass rooms and to make necessary suggestions to accelerate the usages ofvarious techniques in this field. In terms of the type of research, this will be an action research asDenscombe (2010, p. 6) maintains that an action research strategy's purposeis to solve a particular problem and to produce guidelines for best practice. Amixed methodological approach will be taken to study the problems. Theresearch will look for finding out the techniques to provide a bettereducational environment for the visually impaired learners in the low andmiddle-income countries. The main objectives of my research are aimed at:Ensuring equal educational environment to provide quality education toall.Removing the barriers between the sighted and the blind students so thatthe blind learners can study more likely as the sighted counterparts. Pave the way to make the education process for the visually impairedlearners more self-dependent. Studying the problems and shortcomings of the usage of ICT in the low and middle-income countries. Finally, making necessary recommendations to make education for theblinds more accessible and less expensive for the people living in themiddle and lower income countries.

The study aimed at exploring barriers to the use of computer assistive technology among students with visual impairment at Akropong School for the Blind. A case study design was adopted and the purposive sampling technique used to select 35 participants for the study. The researchers gathered qualitative data using an in-depth interview guide to investigate barriers to the use of keyboarding skills and Job Access with Speech (JAWS).Data were transcribed and analysed thematically. That is the key themes were identified in the conversations and these were drawn and discussed. This was done using both the narrative methods and opened quotes from interviews. The findings indicated that challenges limiting effective use of computer assistive technology in the School were more personal than external influences. This was because most of the challenges were due to the individual response to the training and familiarity in developing their competencies in using computer assistive technology. Based on this, it was recommended that efforts should be made to stock the laboratory with additional computers. Directly in line with the first recommendation, it was further suggested that more practice time should be created for the students to maximize computer use. Also, Licensed JAWS must be acquired by the school to advance students' competence in using computer assistive technology. A number of the challenges were expressed by the students on their non-familiarity with the JAWS. As a result, it was recommended that instructors and trainers at the school should engage the students in revised lessons on introduction to computer. This will help to refresh the minds of students.

This descriptive research was carried out to explore the training facilities provided by special education schools to their students with visual impairment and their teachers in the field of assistive technology. A sample of 250 students with visual impairment and their 150 teachers was taken by using purposive sampling method from 31 special schools at secondary level of education (grades 6-10) situated in 15 cities of Pakistan. The data collected through structured questionnaire was analyzed by descriptive statistics and “independent-sample t-tests”. The results of present study reveal that most of the special schools were not providing any training for the students with visual impairment and their teachers regarding using assistive technology, software training and training for use of daily living aids, however some special school provide training for Braille to their students and teachers. Training of Walking Stick / White Cane was given to students and teachers as it is easy to...

Proper visual environment which allows for maximum comfort and visual performance is essential for the low vision learner. In designing the proper visual environment for children with visual impairments, careful consideration should be given to the individual needs of each low vision learner based on the requirements of the visual task. With proper training learners with low vision can read rapidly with optical devices. The study by Sykes (quoted in Harley, 1984) indicated that visually impaired high school students were able to read as well with optical devices and standard print as with large print. Since large print is not always available, optical devices can provide a more convenient and equally effective choice for some learners with low vision. Before beginning class activities, the classroom must be prepared to maximize the amount of time the student will spend on the activity. Barraga (1983) noted that magnifying devices and prescription of optical aids have received increasing attention from clinicians and instructors as a valuable means of increasing the use of functional vision and efficiency in both near and distance visual functions. Prescriptive optical low vision devices for near and distance use have received more consideration for school-age learners with low vision. Barraga (1983) felt that the use of distance aids in the classroom may be of crucial concern than use of near prescriptions or magnifying devices because they put the learner in touch visually with his environment both in the classroom and on the playground. She further noted that such exposure prevents some of the visual experiential deprivation often related to developmental lag found in many visually impaired learners. The purpose of this study was to investigate reading proficiency of learners with low vision when using low vision devices in Kenya's primary schools. The study was carried out in five primary schools for the visually handicapped in Kenya. The study population included 90 teachers and 80 eight learners with low vision, a sample of 65 teachers and 78 learners took part in the study. Survey research design was used to collect data. Research instruments were questionnaires, observation schedule, interview schedule, a reading proficiency test and document analysis. Validity of the instruments were overcome by the researcher giving the research instruments to three experts on the topic of study who validated the contents of the instruments. Reliability was done by test re-test method. Data was analyzed by use of descriptive statistics that included frequency counts, percentages and the means. Findings of the study were that low vision learners lacked devices that can make them access curriculum content to the full. Recommendations of the study were: regular case conferencing be held among low vision team members to chart out learning needs of learners with low vision, and more contact time for the schools for the visually handicapped be created. Findings from the research could help curriculum developers at the Kenya Institute of Education to adapt and improve on low vision training curriculum. The Directorate of Quality Assurance and Standards also will glean information that will help in stocking classrooms with optical and non-optical low vision devices.