The Impact of Presentation Mode and Technology on Reading Comprehension among Blind and Sighted Individuals

Abstract

SIGNIFICANCE Technological advancements have made distributing reading materials in audio formats more common. Investigating how presentation mode impacts comprehension among sighted and blind individuals will inform the distribution of information to enhance comprehension. PURPOSE The aims were (1) to investigate the hypothesis that reading comprehension is enhanced by increased physical engagement and cognitive effort through text or braille and (2) to explore how assistive technology impacts comprehension for blind individuals. METHODS In a within-subjects design, 31 sighted and 34 blind participants read and listened to scientific passages and verbally answered free-response questions about what they read and heard. For sighted participants, passages were presented in text and human voice actor recordings. For blind participants, passages were presented with hard-copy braille, a refreshable braille display, voice actor recordings, and a screen reader. RESULTS Comprehension scores were analyzed using mixed-effects regression and pairwise comparisons on the estimated marginal means. In study 1, the comprehension difference between text or hard-copy braille and the voice actor formats was assessed to address the first aim. Sighted participants had better comprehension with text (mean, 74.8%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 70.5 to 79.1%) than with a voice actor (mean, 69.7%; 95% CI, 65.4 to 74.0%; P = .02), and blind participants had superior comprehension with hard-copy braille (mean, 70.4%; 95% CI, 63.3 to 77.5%) than with a voice actor (mean, 61.9%; 95% CI, 54.7 to 69.0%; P = .03). In study 2, the comprehension differences among blind participants between the four formats were investigated to address the second aim. Comprehension was better with hard-copy braille (mean, 70.6%; 95% CI, 63.4 to 77.7%) than with a screen reader (mean, 60.7%; 95% CI, 53.5 to 67.9%; P = .02) and better with a braille display (mean, 69.7%; 95% CI, 62.5 to 76.9%) than with a screen reader ( P = .04). CONCLUSIONS Study 1 supports the hypothesis that more physically engaging tasks enhance comprehension, and study 2 suggests that listening to scientific materials using a synthesized voice may reduce comprehension ability compared with hard-copy braille and braille displays.

Visualizing 3D imagery by mouth using candy-like models

“…The importance of visual stimuli in early conceptual development requires a multisensory approach to teaching students with BLV (14,15). Braille, tactile graphics, tactile models, text-to-audio, and other assistive technologies have improved learning in the classroom and laboratory (16)(17)(18)(19). However, the growing use of three-dimensional (3D) imagery in STEM education-especially online learning-is requiring visualization of greater numbers of 3D graphics (20)(21)(22).…”

Accessible Teaching and Learning in the Undergraduate Chemistry Course and Laboratory for Blind and Low-Vision Students

“…Moreover, the tactile drawing and transmission of accessible STEM textbook figures and graphics does not adequately support learning by BLV students. As noted in one study: more physically engaging tasks enhance comprehension, and that listening to scientific materials using a synthesized voice may reduce comprehension ability compared with hard-copy Braille (.brf format) and Braille displays . It is essential to have accessible textbooks for BLV students; without them, these students are excluded from the educational enterprise.…”

Características de los ambientes de aprendizaje enriquecidos con TIC para la comprensión lectora en el ciclo de la Educación Básica

“…Desde una perspectiva diferente, Stepien-Bernabe et al (2019), al comparar la aplicación de recursos tecnológicos digitales con la lectura tradicional en libros o papel, consideran que el Storytelling (referir historias en formato de audio y/o video, con el propósito principal de entretener) favorece la construcción de vocabulario, y el desarrollo de la imaginación de los niños y jóvenes. No obstante, no resulta igual con textos de mayor complejidad como los expositivos y argumentativos, donde al leerlos en el formato tradicional genera mayor comprensión que simplemente escucharlos o verlos en vídeo.…”