BRITE Initiative : Resources - See what I mean? - using images to create inclusive learning resources

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See what I mean? - using images to create inclusive learning resources

Introduction	Symbols	Top Tips from Widgit	Boardmaker
Bonnington Symbol System	Spotlight: Bonnington symbols & interactive whiteboards	Widgit Rebus Symbols	Communicate in Print 2
Digital images	Top Tips for using digital images inclusively	Spotlight: Digital photos in learning materials	Spotlight: JISC Image Engine
		Top Tips from the JISC Image Engine	Useful Contacts & Links

Introduction

With a wealth of inexpensive and simple technology available, there have never been more ways to add diverse and quality images to your learning materials, whether they are printed handouts, presentations or online learning resources.

Using images effectively can enhance the quality of your information, making it more meaningful, tapping different learning styles and creating more inclusive and visually dynamic on-line learning materials.

In this article we will look at some of the techniques you might use to include images in your materials. From symbols to digital photographs, we will:

look at the relevant technology
spotlight examples of good practice
tell you where to get further information and training

Firstly, we will look at symbol systems, taking the examples of Boardmaker, Bonnington Symbols and Widgit Rebus Symbols. You can also learn how symbols can be used with an interactive whiteboard to facilitate inclusive classroom activities.

Then we will consider digital images, particularly photography, but also scanning and digital image banks. You can read about one lecturer’s experiences with using digital photographs and find out about staff development opportunities to support you in getting started with digital photography.

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Symbols

pic: examples of visual symbols

Standardised symbol sets are an effective tool to facilitate communication with students who do not use text, are non-verbal or are developing their literacy skills. You may have seen symbols if you work with students who use communication aids. Adults and young people with learning disabilities also use symbols:

to enable access to reading and writing
to facilitate participation and access to the curriculim
to support independence and self-advocacy

While symbols are mostly used with students who have learning or communication difficulties, they potentially have a wider application. If your college has signage that incorporates symbols as well as text, think how many more people will appreciate this, e.g. visitors who do not speak English, or students with specific reading difficulties.

Developments in technology have extended symbol use both as a means of creating materials for people with communication difficulties and also by them.

The system you choose to use with your students should be guided by the system that they are already familiar with and should be age-appropriate. Also note that symbol systems need to be learned. You don’t have to choose a system and stick to it, symbols from different systems can be used together and digital photographs can also be integrated.

Digital photographs can be used alongside symbols to powerful effect, particularly when referring to a specific person or place. Students who experience difficulty in learning to recognise symbols may prefer photographs. For an example of good practice in using photographs as communication, see the Common Knowledge website.

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Top Tips from Widgit

It is good practice to read any information you produce without the text to make sure that you can gather the essential content and that there are no key concepts missing.
If you are writing for readers who will understand very few symbols then it may be better to adopt a different strategy, such as supporting the whole sentence with a single or few symbol s or image s to convey the most important concepts.
The addition of symbols cannot elucidate a message that is not already clear and so the document must first be written in clear plain language.
Symbols cannot teach a concept, although they may help by supporting teaching.
Effective use of symbols means involvement of managers at all levels in drawing up policies to ensure that materials are used consistently and that training needs are effectively met at levels which are appropriate.
Daily contact with symbols in the form of environmental labels, notices and timetables will build the necessary familiarity to make symbols an acceptable form of communication and will help to raise awareness of staff and carers alike.

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Boardmaker

A popular symbol software in Scotland, Boardmaker is widely used by speech and language therapists. The symbol system used in Boardmaker is PCS (Picture Communication Symbols) which you will often see on communication aids.

Training in the use of Boardmaker software is available from the CALL Centre and KEYCOMM. The CALL Centre website also contains a number of handy quick guides for Boardmaker, including an introduction to the software, where to obtain further resources for Boardmaker and how to use digital images with the software on both Mac and PC.

Boardmaker usually costs around £199 and is available from assistive technology suppliers such as Don Johnson, Possum and Widgit. However, Boardmaker is available at the discounted price of £85 per copy excluding VAT and P&P from Learning and Teaching Scotland.
Contact Kim Conway for further details at K.Conway@LTScotland.org.uk.

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Bonnington Symbol System

Bonnington Symbol Systems (BSS) can design symbols, provide advice on their use, dovetail them with other systems and design symbols based resources. Contact Jill Brennan at jill.brennan@edinburgh.gov.uk for an estimate.

To create your own resources, BSS are available on CD-ROM for PC in clip-art (.wmf) format. The symbols can be copied and pasted into Boardmaker from the folders on the CD. The CD contains nearly 600 symbols in nine categories including Health, Activities, Home, Environments, People and Catering as well as templates and advice. It costs £40 for organisations outside the City of Edinburgh Council but is free to existing users within the council. Charges may be waived for organisations that are providing a service to clients of the Social Work Department. For more information, see the BSS website which contains a useful FAQ section.

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Spotlight: Bonnington Symbols and interactive whiteboards

Rona Perkins, Catering Lecturer, Edinburgh’s Telford College

Rona uses symbols in handouts, on signage and for group activities on a SmartBoard. Jill Brennan at Bonnington Symbols provides the symbols and if one doesn’t already exist for a word or concept, she will create one.

In printed materials, Rona uses symbols on student evaluation sheets and checklists. In the kitchen, she uses a combination of symbols, digital photos and drawings on an interactive SmartBoard. Towards the end of a lesson, often when the food is in the oven, Rona’s students gather around the SmartBoard and demonstrate what they have been doing and evaluate how the session has gone. The students move the symbols and images around the screen by touching and dragging with their fingers, hands or elbows.

Staff training in the use of interactive whiteboards and further support was provided by the JISC RSC North and East. Rona is happy to share ideas and to invite interested lecturers to classes where she uses Bonnington Symbols and the SmartBoard. If you would like to get in touch, she can be contacted at rona.perkins@ed-coll.ac.uk.

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Widgit Rebus Symbols

The Rebus symbol system from Widgit is an alternative that some find is more appropriate for adult learners. The system designed to assist literacy learning and to enable students to create their own work in an accessible format.

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Communicate in Print 2 in colour - symbol desk top publishing

Communicate in Print 2 forms the ‘hub’ of Widgit’s software series for creating learning resources and providing access to IT for students who are developing their literacy skills. For more information about the add-ons available, visit the Widgit website.

CiP2 can automatically add symbols to your writing as you type. This can be used to support literacy and to create differentiated learning materials. Use the software to easily create professional-looking books, worksheets, timetables, communication aids, newsletters and posters.

pic: example of CIP2 symbols

Options:

Use full colour or black and white symbols
Alter skin tone for accuracy and inclusion
Customise the appearance and meaning of symbols
Choose the level of symbols appropriate for your students
Import other symbol systems, pictures and digital photographs
Many of the symbols are appropriate for use throughout the curriculum, e.g. symbols for maths and science

This flexibility is important. You will know what works for your students and will want to customise materials to suit individual preferences.

BRITE can provide training sessions and quick start user guides for Communicate in Print 2 in colour, Communicate: By Choice and Communicate: Webwide. Printable resources and on-line news in Rebus symbols can be accessed at the SymbolWorld website.

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Digital Images

There are three main ways of obtaining digital images to use in your learning resources:

Scan them into your computer using a flatbed scanner – make sure you have copyright permission to do this!
Digital image libraries - provide banks of archived quality image which are already copyright-cleared. Usually your institution subscribes to a service and sometimes a fee is payable. For examples, see Education Media Online (free but requires registration) or SCRAN.
Take original digital photographs – this avoids many of the copyright issues and allows you to create images that suit your specific context.

What follows are two examples of how staff in FE are developing their skills in creating their own digital images independently. Firstly, we’ll hear from a lecturer who decided to use digital photographs to make her learning materials more dynamic and accessible to all her learners. Next is an outline of JISC’s exciting Image Engine project, which aims to develop the skills of FE staff in creating image-rich interactive learning materials.

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Top Tips for using digital images inclusively

Before spotlighting these case studies, here are some things to bear in mind when getting started with using digital images in your learning materials:

Keep accessibility in mind! While images enhance the accessibility of your materials for students who are visual learners or who have literacy difficulties, remember that not everyone will see them! However, accessibility is about using more, not less ways of getting information across, so just ensure that you add alternative text tags to online images and include a description in the text of what the picture is representing. Not only will this include students who are blind or have low vision, but it will also reinforce the message to all readers. See WebAIM for tips on creating accessible online materials.
When taking photographs of people, ensure that you have sought permission first. Asking subjects to sign a release form is good practice.
Do your images reflect the community? Ensure that you represent all groups of people who come to your college equally.
Ensure that there is a c lear link between your image and the accompanying text (it shouldn’t just be “eye candy!”)

For more detailed help TASI, the Technical Advisor Service for Images, provides lots of advice on the issues of:

Creating digital images (for beginners to advanced)
Delivering digital images to users
Using digital images to support teaching, learning and research
Managing both small and large scale digitisation projects
Advice on preparing an image collection or archive for your institution

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Spotlight: Digital Photos in learning materials

Kirstie Barton, Sport and Fitness Lecturer, Cardonald College, Glasgow

Kirstie became interested in using digital photos in her learning materials when she participated in the Quality and Equality in Learning and Teaching Materials project (QELTM). The first stage of the project saw Kirstie perform an audit of existing teaching packs delivered within the Sport and Fitness section. The audit involved an analysis of the quality, equality and accessibility of the learning and materials.

Stage two involved selecting one unit to develop as an exemplar pack. Kirstie chose the HN unit, Fitness Testing for Sport. She digitised all the materials, then inserted the photographs and finally put the material on to web pages and posted it on the college virtual learning handbook. Saving your materials as web pages (.html) makes the content optimally accessible for students who use assistive technology.

Kirstie says that she found the process of inserting the digital photos relatively straightforward. She arranged with a number of students for her to take their photos while carrying out a series of fitness tests. These photos were then downloaded from the camera onto pc and the most suitable ones were selected. Then she simply copied and pasted them into her work and “it was as easy as that.”

Click here to see examples of the materials that Kirstie created (note: opens in a new window).

For further information about the QELTM project, contact Chris Bradshaw at cbradshaw@stevenson.ac.uk.

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Spotlight: JISC Image Engine

The JISC Image Engine is an intensive training course for staff in FE to learn how to use images and other interactive resources effectively in teaching.

Participants design an image-rich learning sequence for a specific area of the curriculum. At the end of the training, these new resources will be used in the participant’s institution and can be made available to the sector via the JISC Regional Support Centre. A small number of Image Engine materials will also be available through COLEG’s bank of open learning materials.

The training includes an introduction to mind mapping, digital photography and Photoshop Elements. The relationship between the sequence and the learner are considered, including the areas of interactivity, assessment and accessibility.

In the new year, JISC plan to produce a handbook for FE staff and to offer shorter seminars to further support the skills of FE staff using digital images. If you are interested in accessing these resources contact Hugh Dailly at Hugh.Dailly@ed-coll.ac.uk

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