This study explores the perspectives of teachers of students with visual impairments (TVIs) regarding screen reader instruction and summarizes their experiences teaching screen readers. Survey data were collected online for one month through professional listservs and social networks, and recipients were asked to forward the invitation to others…

Since most worldly phenomena can be expressed via language, language is a crucial medium for transferring information and integrating multiple information sources. For example, humans can describe what they see, hear and feel, and also explain how they move with words. Conversely, humans can imagine scenes, sounds, and feelings, and move their…

Past research has shown that using an online student orientation can decrease anxiety for students taking online classes for the first time. This study focuses on the experience of first-time online students from a community college in South Texas using a multiple regression analysis to determine first-time online student readiness in the areas of…

This study was designed to examine how three different organizational structures (time, topic, and tool) of a course in an LMS affected learners. The signal available relevant accessible (SARA) theory provided a framework to clearly describe the signals (headers) used to differentiate the three organizational structures. Cognitive load theory…

Errors during the course of clinical practice are common and can lead to adverse events in hospitalized patients. Insufficient information and lack of clinician knowledge can serve as major contributing factors to the incidence of errors that occur during patient care. Nurses at the bedside need immediate access to patient specific information, at…

Advances in technology now make it possible to capture detailed multimodal data about real-world everyday activity. Researchers have taken advantage of these advances to address questions about activity in more systematic and precise ways. Along with exciting opportunities to record data in ways that were not possible before, there are also…

Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) such as Moodle, Blackboard, and WebCT are commonly and successfully used in E-education. While they focus on supporting educators in creating and holding online courses, they typically do not consider the individual differences of learners. However, learners have different needs and characteristics such as prior…

This dissertation presents a study of an Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) navigation and coverage hole patching in coordinate-free and localization-free Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). Navigation and coverage maintenance are related problems since coverage hole patching requires effective navigation in the sensor network environment. A…

Identifying topics of a textual document is useful for many purposes. We can organize the documents by topics in digital libraries. Then, we could browse and search for the documents with specific topics. By examining the topics of a document, we can quickly understand what the document is about. To augment the traditional manual way of topic…

Complex navigation (e.g. indoor and outdoor environments) can be studied as a system-of-systems problem. The model is made up of disparate systems that can aid a user in navigating from one location to another, utilizing whatever sensor system or information is available. By using intelligent navigation sensors and techniques (e.g. RFID, Wifi,…

In the modern information age, the quantity and complexity of spatiotemporal data is increasing both rapidly and continuously. Sensor systems with multiple feeds that gather multidimensional spatiotemporal data will result in information clusters and overload, as well as a high cognitive load for users of these systems. To meet future…

In prior ages, alternate worlds are associated with symbolic expressions of storied space, here termed "mythic space." The digital age brings new forms of virtual space that are co-existent with physical space. These virtual spaces may be understood as a contemporary representation of mythic space. This dissertation explores the paths by…

Reading activities in the classroom and workplace occur predominantly on paper. Since existing electronic devices do not support these reading activities as well as paper, users have difficulty taking full advantage of the affordances of electronic documents. This dissertation makes three main contributions toward supporting active reading…

The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility and effectiveness of a scalable concept map based navigation system for a digital textbook. A literature review has been conducted to identify possible methods to promote conceptual understanding in the context of a digital textbook, and these hypothesized solutions will be evaluated through…

Community colleges serve a diverse population of learners including many older students counting on the community college for enhanced skills or personal enrichment. Many of these colleges target this population with programs designed specifically to meet the needs and goals of the older adult but may not consider this population when designing a…