APH News: January 2014

Exciting New APH Products Announced!

Read on to learn about these new products – now available!

• APH Winter Wonderland Sale
• New Downloadable Manuals Available
• NEW! DNA/RNA Kit
• NEW! U.S. & Canada Tactile/Print Atlas
• NEW! Spangle Tangle: Play and Explore
• NEW! Flip-Over Concept Books: TEXTURES
• APH Braille Book Corner

Seeking Field Evaluators for the US Map with Interactive Talking Pen

APH is seeking field evaluators for the US Map with Interactive Talking Pen, the outcome of a collaborative effort between APH and Touch Graphics, Inc. This interactive color/tactile map of the United States works in combination with cutting-edge Talking Tactile Pen technology. With a simple, light touch of the pen to the map, a student has access to multiple spoken layers of information for each state including the state capital, 10 largest cities, immediate surroundings, land and water area, population estimate, statehood, nickname, state symbols (bird, tree, flower, and song), motto, famous people, points of interest, and interesting facts. The names of oceans, the Great Lakes, bordering countries, and mileage scales are also spoken. A dynamic menu bar at the base of the foldable map allows adjustments to volume, repeated information, and lockable layers of information; a convenient “Stop” button permits termination of speech and a “Help” button orients the user to the map’s layout and proper use of the pen. The audio content can be listened to through the pen’s own speaker or, for better quality sound, standard headphones or external speakers can be plugged into the audio jack near the power button. The Talking Tactile Pen comes with a USB cable to recharge the pen’s batteries after several hours of use.

Field evaluators will be asked to use the prototype with multiple students with visual impairments and blindness. Students may range in age, grade level, and primary reading medium (large print, braille, and/or auditory). Student outcome data will be collected by asking each student to perform specific tasks using the interactive map. Evaluators will then complete and return a product evaluation form at the end of the testing period.

Field test sites will be selected based upon geographic location, number of available students, and type of instructional setting. Preference will be given to those who have not recently field tested an APH product. The number of prototypes is limited. Field testing will begin in February 2014 and extend through the end of April 2014. If you are interested in possibly serving as a field evaluator, please provide the following information: your name, title, school/agency, type of setting (e.g., residential, itinerant), number of available students (with ages, grade levels, and primary reading media indicated), and your complete contact information (phone number, mailing address, and email address). Send this information to Karen J. Poppe, Tactile Graphics Project Leader, kpoppe@aph.org, by January 15, 2014. You may also contact Karen at 502-899-2322 or 800-223-1839, ext. 322. Thank you!

The Twenty-third Annual APH Juried Art Competition

The deadlines for the Twenty-third Annual Juried Art Competition and Exhibition for Artists Who Are Visually Impaired or Blind have been established.

The American Printing House for the Blind (APH) invites visually impaired and blind artists of all ages to submit artwork to APH InSights 2014! This art competition and exhibition is exclusively for blind and visually impaired artists and draws entries from across the U.S. and around the world. Last year we received 401 entries from across the U.S.

Again this year, there are two deadlines: Student Preschool through High School must submit a completed 2014 entry form along with the original artwork (no digital images) by March 24, 2014; adults must submit their completed entry form along with their entry by April 1, 2014. Each artist may submit only one entry.

The competition is open to any person who meets the following definition of blindness: corrected visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye (as measured on a Snellen Chart), or a visual field limited to 20 degrees or less. This includes those who function at the definition of blindness (FDB) due to brain injury or dysfunction. There is no limit on the subject or the type of materials that can be used, but the artwork must be original in concept and execution and be completed by the artist, with minimal assistance from others.

Updated entry forms and rules will be posted on the website in February.

Contact Roberta Williams by email with questions: rwilliams@aph.org.

Accessible Textbooks—Did you know…

…that all your questions about ordering accessible textbooks from APH are answered on our website?

A new document has been posted at sites.aph.org/atic/

If you were at Annual Meeting this year, you may have received a booklet at the Information Fair with all the details on how to order textbooks from APH. Now that helpful booklet is available online for everyone!

If you prefer to have the printed booklet, just contact us and we will drop one in the mail to you. It’s a handy reminder with sample pages and forms to use. Contact us at atic@aph.org with your requests.

Remember, it’s never too early to order textbooks!

Lights! Camera! Unforgettable APH Star!

Although the next Unforgettable APH Star Contest deadline is yet to be announced, we are now accepting entries for Spring 2014! What a great indoor project for these cold days! It’s fun and easy, too! Just grab your favorite APH product, get somebody to shoot some footage of you raving about it, send us the video, and BAM! The next contest winner could be YOU! As always, the Unforgettable APH Star Contest is open to individuals and groups of all ages. Go to archive.aph.org/contest for more information. Are you ready for your close-up?

APH Gets In Touch with “Getting In Touch With Literacy”

The Getting In Touch With Literacy Conference celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2013. The conference, founded by Dr. Cay Holbrook and APH’s Janie Humphries Blome in 1993, is devoted to addressing literacy for people who are blind and visually impaired. APH was on hand to participate in the 11th biennial conference, held December 4–7, in Providence, Rhode Island. The conference attracted over 350 participants from around the globe!

Field Services Representative Kerry Isham manned the APH exhibit booth for the event, demonstrating a variety of products from Building on Patterns to the Braille Plus 18. Most conference attendees stopped by to peruse the many great products available from APH. Many of those in attendance also had the opportunity to hear presentations from APH staff members Burt Boyer, Mary Nelle McLennan, Tristan Pierce, Cathy Senft-Graves, Susan Spicknall, and Dawn Wilkinson.

A highlight of the conference came during the Friday night awards banquet, when Dr. Ralph Bartley, APH’s Director of Research, was awarded the Alan J. Koenig Research Award. The award recognized Dr. Bartley’s contributions in research related to literacy, including the ABC Braille Study and the development of the Building on Patterns reading series.

Special recognition was also given to APH Ex Officio Trustee Nancy Niebrugge (CA) who was awarded the Holbrook-Humphries Award for outstanding contributions to literacy for individuals who are blind and visually impaired. Nancy was recognized for her work with the Braille Institute of America’s Braille Challenge, including the development of the new Braille Challenge mobile app.

Congratulations to all for a VERY successful conference and for their great achievements!

Oldies but Goodies: The "Established" APH Product Series

The Crafty Graphics: Stencil Embossing Kit allows you to create your own embossed graphics. This kit contains stencils, embossing tools, and other items needed to create tactile graphics by dry pressure embossing. The types of graphics you can create using this kit are almost infinite, including graphs, clock faces, cards, flash cards, street maps, flowcharts, etc. You supply your own light source to place underneath sheets to be embossed (for example, APH’s Mini-Lite Box, which is available separately). Crafty Graphics includes nine brass stencils, eight unique stenciling tools, 20 whole objects stencils, a stenciling accessories pack, bold line graph paper, a wooden braille eraser, a guidebook, and a carrying case.

Crafty Graphics II Kit provides supplemental tools to be used with the original Crafty Graphics: Stencil Embossing Kit. Crafty Graphics II includes a clear stencil which can be used to make simulated braille dots, a clear plastic pocket braille slate/stylus, three plastic stencils, a graphic boundary frame, three spur wheels and one compass with spur wheel. This kit may be used alone, or in conjunction with the first kit.

The Crafty Graphics: Stencil Embossing Kit Video is available to assist teachers, transcribers, and others in learning how to use this valuable tool. This 17-minute DVD demonstrates a variety of uses for the Crafty Graphics Stencil Embossing Kit, as well as briefly exploring some tactile graphic concepts. This video features a parent, a teacher of the visually impaired, a transcriber, and an art teacher. You will discover how they use the kit, for which projects and applications they use it, their favorite features, some tips and tricks, and how they used the finished results.

The braille and large print guidebooks for Crafty Graphics are available as free-of-charge file downloads from our downloadable manuals page at archive.aph.org/manuals/.

If you have any suggestions for other products you would like to see highlighted in this monthly feature, please send your comments to Monica Turner at mmturner@aph.org.

Final Results for Typhlo & Tactus, Tactile Book Competition

Typhlo and Tactus is a biennial tactile book competition created to stimulate new designs and to improve the quality and quantity of tactile books available to children with visual impairments. In 2000, the first year of the competition, there were entries from only four countries. This year, there were entries from 23 countries.

For the second time, APH acted as the U.S. national contact organization, publicizing the competition, directing participants to competition guidelines, and accepting and judging U.S. entries. The winners from the United States competition were announced in the October issue of APH News:

• Ready, Set, Go: An Introduction to the White Cane, by Laura Chartier & Kara Miller;
• Pockets, by Carla Robertson;
• Look, Look Ladybugs, by Lori Gellhaus;
• Going to the Doctor, by Sue Parker-Strafaci & Kevin McCarthy;
• and an adaptation of Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?, by Jeeun Kim.

These entries were sent to Helsinki for the final judging, October 24th and 25th. Eight judges and two technical counselors selected award winners from the 61 entries received.

The three winners were:

• The Fabulous Mountain, by Erika Forest of Belgium
• Merirosvotarina: A Pirate Story, by Maarit Korhonen of Finland
• Sem, by Marino Valentina of Italy

Visit the Typhlo and Tactus website to find out who the judges were, read their comments about the entries, and see lots of pictures of the award-winning books. Each judge has also made a statement about which one was a “favorite,” and explained why.

Watch APH News for information about the next contest in 2015.

2014 Hall of Fame for the Blindness Field Nominations Now Being Accepted

Who should be the next inductees into the Hall of Fame for Leaders and Legends of the Blindness Field?

If you are interested in learning more about the easy (electronic) process for submitting a nominee to join the 52 inductees, please visit: archive.aph.org/hall/nominate.

The nomination process will close Friday, March 28, 2014.

New at the Hall of Fame Website

The new 2002-2013 Hall inductees video and the edited video of the 2013 Induction Ceremony (plus pictures)!

archive.aph.org/hall/about

Treasures From the APH Libraries

The APH Barr Library supports research initiatives at APH, while the Migel Library is one of the largest collections of nonmedical information related to blindness in the world. Although the collections do not circulate, arrangements can be made to use the materials on-site. In addition, an ongoing digitization effort means APH will continue to make materials available through the online catalog at http://migel.aph.org.

From the Migel Library: Lende, Helga, Evelyn Christiana McKay, and Sherman Charles Swift. Proceedings of the World Conference on Work for the Blind, under the Auspices of the American Association of Instructors of the Blind, American Association of Workers for the Blind, American Braille Press for War and Civilian Blind, Inc.; New York: Pub. for the World Conference on Work for the Blind by the American Foundation for the Blind, 1932.

The first World Conference on Work for the Blind was the largest and most inclusive conference on blindness of its day. Representatives from 32 nations attended, as well as several Hall of Fame inductees such as Robert Irwin, M. C. Migel, Edward Allen, and guests of honor Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan Macy. The Proceedings, digitized for Internet Archive at https://archive.org/details/proceedingsofwor1931helg, include over 60 papers on education, employment, technical aids and social services around the world. This “atmosphere of international cooperation,” was also significant in that it ended a 100-year stalemate, and initiated work that soon after led to the adoption of Standard English Braille.

From the Barr Library: World Conference on Work for the Blind under the Auspices of the American Foundation for the Blind, Inc., American Association of Instructors of the Blind, American Association of Workers for the Blind, with the Co-operation of the American Braille Press for War and Civilian Blind, Inc., Hotel Pennsylvania, New York, April, 1931. New York: 1931.

President Hoover invited delegates from 50 countries to attend the World Conference on Work for the Blind, which was held in New York City from April 13-30, 1930. The primary objectives of the conference were to encourage relationships in work for the blind, provide information about the activities taking place abroad, cultivate a discussion on advancements in the field, encourage the sharing of embossed literature, and brainstorm the promotion of work at global levels. To view the World Conference program in its entirety, including a pictographic “Who’s Who” of attendees, visit https://archive.org/details/worldconferenceo00unse.

APH is working with the Internet Archive to digitize portions of the M.C. Migel Library. Search the phrase “full text” to find these items at http://migel.aph.org. The digitized texts are available in a variety of formats, including DAISY, Kindle, EPUB, PDF, etc.

Contact Library staff: library@aph.org, 800-223-1839, ext. 705

2013 Summary of Results: Which Refreshable Braille Displays Are Being Used?

Due to the upcoming increase in online testing expected to occur in 2014 and 2015, the Accessible Tests Department staff needs to know which refreshable braille displays (RBDs) and which screen readers are being used across the country. WebAIM’s 2012 Screen Reader Survey results provided some needed answers, but in order to find out which refreshable braille displays are being used, a survey was developed and posted on the APH website for approximately one month. 15 forms were completed. What follows is a brief summary of the results, which will also be posted on the Accessible Tests Department webpage on the APH website.

JAWS (primarily JAWS 14) and VoiceOver are the speech output programs most commonly used. No Window Eyes or NVDA users responded. Results of WebAIM’s 2012 Survey of Screen Readers in common use found that “While JAWS is still the most popular screen reader, it has seen a significant decline in primary usage – down to 49% from 66.4% in October 2009 and 59.2% in December 2010.” Window-Eyes and ZoomText saw small increases in primary screen reader usage while VoiceOver saw a small decrease in usage. NVDA saw a continued increase in usage, with a nearly 500% increase in just 2.5 years. Perhaps most surprising is the significant increase in usage of System Access or System Access to Go, jumping to 10.4% from only 4.7% in December 2010. It is clear that screen reader users are abandoning more expensive primary screen readers for free and low-cost alternatives.” For WebAIM’s Fifth Screen Reader Survey and results of their first four screen reader surveys, go to http://webaim.org/projects/screenreaderssurvey5/

The December 2013 results of APH’s 2013 Refreshable Braille Display Survey show that the RBD of choice, by far, for those fifteen teachers/administrators who responded, is the APH Refreshabraille 18. Five teachers/administrators said their students use the Refreshabraille 18 frequently. Ease of use is noted as the primary strength of the Refreshabraille 18.

Seven out of 15 respondents stated that their schools or organizations have future plans to purchase at least one RBD. Three respondents stated that their schools or organizations do not have future plans to purchase a RBD. Of the respondents whose schools or organizations have upcoming plans to purchase RBDs, the majority plan to purchase APH’s RefreshaBraille 18. Other RBDs that respondents plan to purchase include the Freedom Scientific Focus 14 Blue, Baum Pronto! 18, GW Micro Braille Sense Plus 18, Humanware Brailliant 32, Freedom Scientific Focus 40 Blue, HIMS Braille EDGE 40, and Freedom Scientific Focus 80 Blue.

These partial results may not reflect what is happening across the country. If you are one of the initial 15 respondents, we appreciate your time, interest, and expertise in completing the survey form! If you are not one of the original 15 respondents, and you would like to participate in this survey, please go to https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PJ6G9P7. Your feedback on surveys such as this one helps guide APH staff as we purchase and learn to use select AT hardware/software, make plans for the future, and provide information to instruction and assessment developers regarding technology/assistive technology in common use across the country by students with visual impairments.

Social Media Spotlight

Happy Birthday to Louis Braille, whose birthday was this past Saturday, January 4th. In honor of his birthday, we posted an image of a new museum object: a bronze medal carved in honor of the 100th anniversary of Braille’s death. Check out the post and tell us what Louis Braille and the braille system mean to you!

"Like" APH at Our Facebook Page!

We invite you to visit our Facebook page and "Like" us! You can find APH at these social media sites: Twitter, Google+, YouTube, Flickr, and at our blog, Fred’s Head from APH.

APH Welcomes New Ex Officio Trustee

William Tubilleja, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, replacing Julie Kagy.

APH Travel Calendar

January

January 29, 2013
NIMAS Board and AIM Advisory Committee Meetings;
Orlando, FL

January 29-February 1, 2014
ATIA 2014;
Orlando, FL

February

February 13-14, 2014
Illinois AER 2014;
Schaumburg, IL

February 27-March 1, 2014
AFB Leadership Conference 2014;
Brooklyn, NY

March

March 12-14, 2014
KAER 2014 State Conference;
Lexington, KY

March 17-22, 2014
CSUN 2014;
San Diego, CA

April

April 3-6, 2014
CTEBVI 2014 (California Transcribers & Educators for the Blind & Visually Impaired;
Los Angeles, CA

April 3-5, 2014
AOTA 2014;
Baltimore, MD

April 9-12, 2014
CEC 2014 Annual Convention & Expo;
Philadelphia, PA

APH Winter Wonderland Sale

Load up a world of savings on selected APH products with APH’s Winter Wonderland Sale 2014, January 1—March 31. As always, first come, first served.

archive.aph.org/sale/

New Downloadable Manuals Available

Get the manual you need instantly! APH offers a selected list of product manuals available for free download (archive.aph.org/manuals/). You may print or emboss these as needed. We will continue to package hard copies of these manuals with their products and sell hard copy replacements.

Newly added manuals include:

• DNA-RNA Kit Guidebook, braille edition (61-358-018)
• DNA-RNA Kit Guidebook, HTML edition (61-358-018)

NEW! DNA/RNA Kit

1-08979-00 — $99.00

The DNA-RNA Kit is an accessible interactive model that demonstrates introductory molecular biology concepts, including the formation of single and double strands of DNA, DNA replication, and transcription of DNA to messenger RNA. The model consists of interlocking jigsaw puzzle-like pieces that represent nucleotides, which are the subunits of DNA and RNA. These subunits are accessible to all students and have color, large print, braille, and tactile indicators for the phosphate, sugar, and base (A, C, G, T, and U) components of all nucleotides.

Use the DNA-RNA Kit for classroom demonstration, student-student interaction, and testing and assessment activities.

DNA-RNA Kit Includes:

• 32 interlocking DNA subunits
• 32 interlocking RNA subunits
• Large print guidebook
• Storage/carry-box
• Accessible HTML and BRF versions of the guidebook are available for download through the APH website.

NEW! U.S. & Canada Tactile/Print Atlas

1-01920-00 — $119.00

Get to know the United States and our northern neighbor better!

The U.S. & Canada Tactile/Print Atlas is a reference volume of thematic maps for use in geography, history, or social studies classes in middle grades or higher, or for general informational use outside the classroom.

Each page spread has a combined braille and print key paired with a print map in contrasting colors and a clear tactile overlay. The maps are held in a three-ring binder, so pages can easily be removed as needed. The page size is 11.5 x 11 inches, with some larger maps presented as foldouts.

Included Maps

• North America
• Canada & the U.S. – Major Cities
• Canada & the U.S. – Land Regions
• Canada & the U.S. – Elevation
• Canada & the U.S. – Climate
• Canada
• Canada – Western Provinces
• Canada – Eastern Provinces
• The Unites States (foldout)
• Northeastern United States
• U.S. – Rivers (foldout)
• U.S. – Economy (foldout)
• U.S. – Northwest (two pages)
• U.S. – Southwest (two pages)
• U.S. – Midwest and Great Plains (two pages)
• U.S. – South (two pages)
• U.S. – Middle Atlantic
• U.S. – Middle Atlantic Coast
• U.S. – Northeast
• U.S. – New England Coast
• U.S. – Alaska
• U.S. – Hawaii

Recommended ages: 11 years and up.

NEW! Spangle Tangle: Play and Explore

1-08755-00 — $119.00

Replacement Item

Spangle Tangle Guidebook, Large Print with CD-ROM: 7-08755-00 — $20.00

Related Product

Tangle Toy and Tangle Book Kit: 1-08750-00 — $51.00

Spangle Tangle provides opportunities for learners to improve visual and tactile attention, communication, and creativity. Through specially designed activities, the learner develops motor, problem-solving, cognitive, self-care, social, and pre-braille skills. Plus, they get to have FUN!

Anyone can learn and have fun with the Spangle Tangle, but it is designed specifically for children who are blind and experience difficulty grasping and holding objects. The product includes the Tangle Stand, which is a support stand that allows learners to explore and play with the toy without it falling off a wheelchair tray, and three Tube Stands to use to play games and create sculptures. The Spangle Tangle is especially designed for children for whom haptic exploration may be their best–and perhaps only—way to gain information about their world.

Spangle Tangle Kit Includes

• 36 Spangle Tangle segments (4 bumps, 4 spirals, 4 tire treads, 4 alligator, and 20 smooth)
• 3 Plastic Tubes – short, medium, and tall
• 3 Tube Stands
• 1 Tangle Stand
• Spangle Tangle Guidebook, Large Print with CD-ROM (HTML, BRF, TXT, DTB)

Recommended ages: 5 years and up.

WARNING: Choking Hazard–Small Parts. Not intended for children ages 5 and under without adult supervision.

NEW! Flip-Over Concept Books: TEXTURES

1-08829-00 — $89.00

Related Products

Flip-Over Concept Books: LINE PATHS: 1-08831-00 — $50.00

Flip-Over Concept Books: PARTS OF A WHOLE: 1-08832-00 — $50.00