Briefly speaking: Tools aid learning

Challenging course work can be daunting at times for any student. For those with visual or learning disabilities, some may seem insurmountable. But the Student Disability Center at UC Davis offers tools to make learning easier and help those students get the most from their college experience.

The center serves about 600 students a year, including those with mobility, medical or visual disabilities, and students who are deaf and hard-of-hearing. Nearly half of those registered for services have some form of learning disability.

Accessing textbooks

Jennifer Gibson, program director and psychologist at the Student Disability Center, said the largest demand for technical assistance is for E-text, a service that converts a textbook into an electronic audible format.

"Having the textbook presented in an audible format can be a much better way for students with visual or learning disabilities to learn," Gibson said.

A disability specialist determines student need and eligibility for the service. About 45 students use E-text each quarter.

Braille is another form of assisted technology available through the center. Both Braille and E-text are known as conversion services, which take the written form and put it into a more accessible format. Other students use various software programs, including JAWS, which can read the text aloud from a Web site.

There is no cost to students for E-text or any other accommodation through the disability center.

Students take the books that they want converted into E-text along with proof of purchase required by publishers. The disability center cuts the binding from the textbook to scan the pages and then converts the electronic text into an alternative format such as a Word document or an Mp3 file.

A 'level playing field'

"Such services help place students with disabilities on a level playing field with students without disabilities," Gibson said. "It gives them access to all written information."

The center determines a student's eligibility for services based on medical or professional documentation.

Staffed by professional disability specialists, the center offers disability management counseling; coordinates academic support; provides interpreting, captioning, note-taking and reader services; authorizes test-taking accommodations; loans out specialized equipment; and operates a shuttle service for students with temporary mobility impairments.