Join us to learn about assistive technology research and why it might be important. Dive into the applications of how it can be used in conjunction with students’ other academic activities. Experience a hands-on approach with different types of text-to-speech applications on commonly used devices. Pair these tools with commonly use readings to see how it can be used with learners in your classroom or at home!
About the Speaker
Sarah Wood received her doctorate degree in Developmental Psychology from Florida State University. Sarah's research is focused on reading comprehension and assistive technology (i.e text-to-speech/read-aloud tools). Specifically, she enjoys researching dyslexia and exploring how assistive technology can help students with reading comprehension. Assistive technology tools are advancing and are increasingly used in classrooms; however, research on these tools lags behind their implementation. Questions, such as which assistive technology tools are most useful to struggling readers and why, and for whom are the most effective, are questions that fascinate her. Additionally, helping to improve models of reading disability (c.f., dyslexia) in hopes of contributing to a more useful and accurate dyslexia diagnosis is a lifelong goal of hers.