A model Center of Excellence in Low Vision and Vision Rehabilitation was created in a health care setting in China utilizing an inter-institutional relationship with a United States optometric institution. Accomplishments of, limitations to, and stimuli to the provision of low vision and vision rehabilitation services are shared.

User input is an important component to help guide designers in producing a more usable product. Evaluation of prototypes is one method of obtaining this input, but methods for evaluating assistive technology prototypes during design have not been adequately described or evaluated. This project aimed to compare different methods of evaluating…

This study evaluated a protocol that was developed to assess how beneficial electronic travel aids are for persons who are visually impaired. Twenty persons with visual impairments used an electronic travel device (Trekker) for six weeks to conform to the protocol, which proved useful in identifying successful users of the device. (Contains 2…

In ropes course activities, an inclusive attitude and accompanying actions convey that everyone is welcome, respected, and able to contribute. Adventure leaders can facilitate inclusion by building options and adaptations into an activity's design. Examples illustrate how variations in the design variables of goal, structure, scenario, equipment,…

For most hard of hearing students, and for some who are deaf, hearing aids and related sound amplification devices are of great benefit in their communication and learning. Technology has more recently produced an additional array of electronic devices which benefit many hard of hearing students. This report will deal primarily with the relatively…

Learning disabilities is the theme of the latest issue of "Focus on Basics," the World Education publication that brings together research, policy, and practice in adult basic education. Starting with an update on research on neurobiology and dyslexia, this issue also examines how the adult basic education system supports students with…

Providing Access to the Visual Environment (Project PAVE) is a statewide multidisciplinary project that provides low vision services to children ages 3-21 in Tennessee. This article describes the project's administrative, direct service, and research components and the philosophy on which it is based. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

This final report discusses the activities and outcomes of the Navajo Assistive Bank of Loanable Equipment (Navajo-ABLE), a federally funded program designed to provide assistive technology (AT) devices, services, technical information, funding information, and training for Navajo children and youth with disabilities. The program was operated and…

This report analyzes the first year of the Federal Alternative Financing Program (AFP), a program designed to help individuals with disabilities who need to purchase assistive technology (AT) find a way to pay for the equipment. The program receives funding under Title III of the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 and provides low-cost financing for…