Students who are blind or have low vision are best positioned for learning when their digital materials are accessible. Within the public school setting, the decisions that general education teachers make when creating and curating digital content have the potential to impact the educational experiences and outcomes of students in their classrooms. This presentation will share preliminary dissertation research findings from a qualitative study that explores the perspectives of students who are blind or have low vision, among other individuals, on the topic of creating accessible digital content, particularly within the general education context. During the first of three phases of the study, the presenter hosted two focus groups via Zoom to interview students who are blind or have low vision. One focus group included high school students attending public school who primarily access digital content non-visually. The second focus group included middle school and high school students attending public school who primarily access digital content visually. Qualitative coding was utilized to analyze transcripts from the recorded focus groups to identify themes in the data.
Presenter
Kerry Lueders
MS, COMS, TVI, CLVT, Associate Professor, Salus at Drexel University
Kerry S. Lueders, MS, COMS, TVI, CLVT, is an Associate Professor at Salus University and has 25 years of experience in the field of blindness and low vision. Ms. Lueders directs the Low Vision Rehabilitation graduate programs and provides low vision therapy services at the William Feinbloom Vision Rehabilitation Center at The Eye Institute in Philadelphia, PA. She is certified in Orientation and Mobility, and Low Vision Therapy through the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals, and she is also a certified Teacher of the Visually Impaired in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Ms. Lueders is a doctoral candidate studying at Indiana University at Bloomington. She is enrolled in the Instructional Systems Technology program within the Department of Learning, Design, and Adult Education. Her dissertation proposal is entitled, "Preparing for Students Who Are Blind or Have Low Vision: The Development of a General Education Teacher Resource for Creating Accessible Digital Content.
