Acquiring Accessible Instructional Materials: What Districts Need to Know Gail Gibbard, Oregon Textbook and Media Center Drew Hinds, Oregon Department of Education Sam Ko, Oregon Department of Education Shar Powell, Oregon Technology Access Program Diana Roberts, Oregon Technology Access Program

AIM: Accessible Instructional Materials Textbooks Core Instructional Materials Provided in specialized formats To support access to the general curriculum To enable students with print disabilities to gain the information they need to complete tasks, master IEP goals, and reach curricular standards

AIM: What’s in it for students? Independence Access to the Curriculum FAPE Enhanced Achievement

Accessible Formats Braille Large Print Audio Digital text

OAR Accessible Materials (2) School districts must ensure the timely provision of instructional materials in accessible formats to children who need instructional materials in accessible formats… Stat. Auth.: ORS , [AIM Fact Sheet #1]

“Children who need Accessible Instructional Materials” are students who cannot gain information from traditional print materials.

Timely Manner (4) shall be available in a timely manner… A timely manner means the materials are available at the same time materials are available for students who do not need materials in alternate formats. OAR [AIM Fact Sheet #2]

Accessible Instructional Materials in Textbook Adoption As part of any print instructional materials adoption process… the Department of Education enters into a written contract with the publisher of the print instructional materials to require the publisher to…provide …electronic files…using the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS). OAR

National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standards (NIMAS) Standard file format Part of IDEA 2004 NIMAS-compliant files available from the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Center, NIMAC

National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) IDEA 2004 mandates the establishment of the NIMAC a national repository for electronic files of textbooks and core related instructional materials in the NIMAS file format. a division of the American Printing House for the Blind, Inc. (APH) in Louisville, Kentucky.

Purpose of NIMAS To help increase the availability and timely delivery of print instructional materials in accessible formats to blind or other students with print disabilities in elementary and secondary schools.

Access to Instructional Materials (1)The state must adopt the NIMAS standard…for the purpose of providing instructional materials to blind persons or other persons with print disabilities in a timely manner… after July 19, IDEA 2004: CFR (e)(1)(iii)

Authorized Users Only a state’s Authorized Users may request NIMAS files directly from the NIMAC. ODE has appointed OTMC, OTAP and Bookshare as the Authorized Users for Oregon AU’s are designated to download source files from the NIMAC for eligible students in Oregon. [AIM Fact Sheet #2]

NIMAS Files for Provision of AIM (1)School districts must ensure the timely provision of print instructional materials, including textbooks, that comply with the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standards (NIMAS) for students who are blind or print disabled, in accordance with OAR OAR

Eligibility for NIMAS Students on IEP’s, And who have: – Blindness – Vision Impairment – Physical Limitations – Print Disability due to Organic Dysfunction [AIM Fact Sheet #3]

NIMAS Eligibility must be established by Competent Authority Definition of Competent Authority: “In cases of blindness, visual disability, or physical limitations… doctors… ophthalmologists, optometrists, RN’s, therapists, professional staff of hospitals, institutions and public or welfare agencies, (e.g. social workers, case workers, counselors, rehabilitation teachers, and superintendants).” 36 CFR 701.6(b)(2)

Competent Authority, cont’d “…In the case of a reading disability from organic dysfunction, competent authority is defined to include doctors of medicine who may consult with colleagues in associated disciplines.” 36 CFR 701.6(b)(2)

Documentation of Eligibility School districts should keep on file, Documentation of students’ eligibility to use NIMAS files, Certified by a Competent Authority. [AIM Process Sheet #2: Verification of Eligibility Sample Form]

OAR Accessible Materials (2) School districts must ensure the timely provision of instructional materials in accessible formats to children who need instructional materials in accessible formats, including those who are not blind or print disabled. Stat. Auth.: ORS ,

IEP Team Process: [Aim Process sheet #1] 1.Determine Student’s Need for AIM 2.Identify Appropriate Specialized Formats 3.Determine services, AT and training needed 4.Identify individual(s) responsible for providing AIM 5.Determine settings in which AIM is needed 6.Implement AIM 7.Evaluate AIM

NIMAS Source files are not ready for student use. NIMAS files must be converted into accessible, student-ready formats

Oregon Textbook and Media Center for Visually Impaired Provides services to children who are visually impaired Age birth to 21 and on an IEP Provide textbooks in braille, large print and digital formats Provide educational aids and equipment Authorized user of NIMAC Accessible Media Producer Provide support to the teachers of the visually impaired

Converting NIMAS Files Set of files: title page - text – images Not student ready Large files can be more than 1 gigabyte Publisher files vary in format Conversion software doesn’t always work 2007 copyright and later

NIMAS xml Converted Text Blast Off! Theme 4 Dream Big - Contents - Comprehension Strategies Theme 4 Opener Vocabulary Build Robust Vocabulary enchanting cozy instead thrilled review celebrate How to Be a Poet I like the way a poem makes a picture with words. That’s why I want to write a poem of my own. I want it to soundenchanting when I read it to my parents. Now I have to think of something to write about. I’ll settle into a soft, cozychair near a window. I’ll look out at my snowy backyard. I might see a rabbit hopping across the snow. I’ll write a word picture of what I see.

Conversion Software CAST Free Download XML filesets into leveled XML files and/or into leveled HTML files that can be opened and viewed in a browser. Good for reading on a computer. TechAdapt Free Download convert DAISY 2005 and NIMAS files into Rich Text Format and to HTML-based books which require no additional software to open and use. Good for printing, reading on a computer, and audio. Dolphin Easy Converter Available for purchase priced from $1,500 to $2,500 EasyConverter quickly creates Large Print, MP3, DAISY and Braille versions of learning materials that can either be scanned from paper, or input from Word, PDF, HTML, NIMAS, DAISY Xml, text or image files. Good for printing, reading on a computer, and audio. Converts from any source.

Selected AIM Formats Braille brf Braille Ready File A braille-ready file is a data file in a special format that can be read on a braille display or transmitted to a braille embosser. The braille codes in braille-ready files allow blind people to read electronic documents from computer disks or from the Internet. ( abt megConversion tools for transcribing text dxbfiles into braille Print txtplain text with no formatting. rtfRich Text Format; used by word processing programs xmlExtreme Markup Language; publisher’s files Audio mp3compressed audio format audAudio file with natural human voice wavuncompressed audio format wmaWindows Media audio format dsyDigital Accessible Information System, or DAISY; talking book format Digital Htmlformat used by the internet, read by browser software PdfPortable Document File: scanned document Jpeg, tiffdigital photograph formats

Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act A waiver to the copyright law Allows authorized entities to reproduce or distribute copies of published non-dramatic literary works into specialized formats To be used exclusively by persons who are blind or have other print disabilities

Resources for Acquiring AIM for students who are Blind or Vision Impaired Oregon Textbook and Media Center. Willamette ESD, Salem

Resources for Acquiring AIM for Students with Print Disabilities Bookshare at Free to eligible students Available for a fee to others Other AMPs Recordings for Blind and Dyslexic Publishers Fee-based resources

31 What is Bookshare™? Bookshare is an online library of accessible media for readers with print disabilities. – Over 60,000 Members – Over 7,700 schools and other organizations – Over 50,000 titles – Over a thousand new books added every month Bookshare believes that people with print disabilities should have the same ease of access to books and periodicals that people without disabilities enjoy. Funded by an award from OSEP, the Office of Special Education Programs in the U.S. Department of Education. as of 9/2/09

What Does Bookshare Offer? Digital books for individuals with print disabilities FREE memberships for qualified U.S. students through OSEP award FREE assistive technology software 24/7 access to books

Bookshare as Oregon AU Use one-step search Bookshare gets books ready for students and sends Teacher downloads book for qualified student Average turnaround: 1 week or less Get Book Search Request Teacher Bookshare Teacher Bookshare is now an AU for CA, CO, KS, MA, MD, ME, MN, MO, MT, NH, NY, OR, TN, VT, and Guam as of 9/2/09

AIM Resources for non-NIMAS-eligible students OR for non-NIMAS instructional materials May be obtained by – Purchasing from other sources – Purchasing from publisher – Free resource – Web-based materials – Teacher-created electronic files

Public Domain Books Creative work that is not protected by copyright and freely used by everyone. Usually books that are older than 70 years.

Public Domain Sites Project Gutenberg is the largest collection of free eBooks. The Franklin Free library of thousands of searchable titles. Kidsclick Web search for kids by librarian. Knowledge Rush a catalog of free books available on the internet.

Talking Word Processors or Text to Speech Programs Write Outloud talking word processing program. Microsoft Reader with Speech Free ebook Reader NaturalReader a professional text to speech program that converts any written text into spoken words.

Resources for AIM in Oregon Oregon Textbook and Media Center (OTMC) Bookshare www. Bookshare.orgwww. Bookshare.org Oregon Technology Access Program (OTAP)

Resources for Information about AIM National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC): CAST Center for Universal Design for Learning: American Foundation for the Blind, NIMAS Overview: 5&DocumentID= &DocumentID=3139 CAST AIM Consortium: