Information Technology, Campus Libraries, and Patrons
with Disabilities:
Reprinted from the Educom Review this article by
Danny Hilton-Chalfen is an excellent introduction to the
opportunities, problems and solutions in providing access to
libraries for persons with disabilities. It discusses
automated catalogs, CD ROMs, Campus Wide Information
Services (CWIS), on-line databases, electronic texts and
reading machines to provide access to print. Many users
with disabilities will require adaptive computer access, and
libraries often provide for patrons, dedicated terminals that
are not adaptable. The article points out the need to use
some microcomputers that can be adapted for alternative
input and output devices. This can make them and the
information they interface with accessible to motor-
impaired users who need special input devices as well as
visually impaired users who require special output in sound,
Braille or large display.
Information Technology, Campus Libraries, and Patrons
with Disabilities:
Emerging Issues and Access Strategies
by Danny Hilton-Chalfen, Ph.D.
Reprinted from the Educom Review, Nov/Dec 1993.
Overview
Today's campus library has a unique opportunity to
play a leading role in providing equal educational and
employment opportunity to students, faculty and staff with
disabilities. This opportunity is due to the convergence of
two evolving trends: the increasing computerization
of library information resources and the enhanced power of
adaptive computing technologies designed to make
computing accessible to people with disabilities.
Historically, library patrons with difficulty reading
due to visual, orthopedic, or learning disabilities have had
to rely on the assistance of others for access to many basic
library resources. Card catalogs, reference materials, books
and journals required readers, or ordering audio tapes
and Braille copies. Indeed, this is still the case with access to
many of the academic resources of college and university
libraries. But the computerization of information enables an
increasing number of these resources to be captured by a
variety of special output devices and "read" to the library
patron who has visual or learning disabilities. Similarly,
the patron with difficulty manipulating printed texts due to
an orthopedic disability can take advantage of computerized
information by accessing it with a wide range of computer
input devices. As library systems at campuses worldwide
computerize their information resources, an unprecedented
window of opportunity opens for patrons with disabilities.
Access to On-line Information
Electronic Card Catalogs
Electronic card catalogs are becoming standard
features of the campus information technology landscape.
Dedicated terminals linked to campus mainframe
computers provide catalog access in many library
public terminal areas. However many of these dedicated
terminals cannot be made accessible through adaptive
computer peripherals. The secret lies in providing access to
the mainframe and electronic catalog via a desktop
microcomputer equipped with these special devices. For
example, a voice synthesizer and "screen-reading" software
allows a blind patron to listen to information on the
microcomputer screen, facilitating on-line searching and
retrieval of bibliographic reference information. For the
reading-impaired person, the empowering nature
of the match between on-line information and specially
adapted computer workstations cannot be overemphasized
(see Coombs, 1992).
CWIS (Campus Wide Information System)
The Campus Wide Information System (CWIS) is one
of the latest developments in campus information
automation. A CWIS may contain the course catalog,
schedule of classes, campus job bulletin, schedule of events,
etc. Many campuses are implementing CWIS through their
existing library on-line system. The ability to search this
database will be a great convenience to all. But consider:
the blind students I work with at UCLA's Disabilities and
Computing Program have never read the course catalog.
These students can, however, independently write term
papers and take exams and class notes on microcomputers
equipped with speech synthesizers. UCLA's developing
CWIS will make accessing a course catalog routine for these
students, like their counterparts at other campuses, as
adapted workstations are linked to the campus CWIS.
CD ROM
Many campus library reference departments offer
database information on CD ROM's. To the extent that the
CD ROM technology is microcomputer-based, adapting it
to the needs of the disabled user becomes a matter of
outfitting the microcomputer with the necessary
peripheral equipment and software. The addition of a
large-print software program, for example, can make a CD
ROM with dissertation abstracts data accessible to a
graduate student researcher with low vision. Take note,
however, that dedicated (turnkey or propriety) CD ROM
systems (vs. standard desktop microcomputers), cannot be
equipped with adaptive equipment. Again, as with access to
on-line systems in general, plan ahead for microcomputer-
based accessibility. This pro-active approach offers the
most flexibility in meeting disability access needs and can
avoid costly retrofitting.
GUI
There is often a lag between the development of
standard computer systems and the adaptations designed to
access them for people with disabilities. A library on-line
interface based on text or ASCII characters may be read by a
blind user with a voice synthesizer and a variety of screen-
reading software programs. When that same on-line
system is based on a graphical user interface (GUI), such as
X-Windows, access can be problematic. At the time of this
writing, GUI access is available for the Macintosh, and is
now becoming available for OS/2 and Windows, with Unix
access being the next hurdle. It will be some time,
however, until the variety of GUI access software available
approaches that of text-based screen reading programs. In
the interim, libraries that provide a text-based interface
alongside a newer GUI will accommodate the widest range
of users with disabilities.
Full Text
In addition, we can look ahead to future library on-
line systems that offer the full text of computerized journals
and books. To the extent that these full-text resources
contain alpha-numeric characters, they will be accessible
via a range of special input and output devices. To the
extent that these electronic texts contain scientific notation
and mathematical symbols, the future is, at present, cloudy.
Standards will need to be developed before such texts can be
fully accessible in a variety of modes (Braille, voice
synthesis, etc.) for users with disabilities (See Jones, 1992,
for a discussion of issues and strategies regarding access to
texts with mathematical and scientific notation.).
Distributed Campus Access
Where should access to library on-line information
resources be placed? This will depend on the structure and
resources of both the library and campus computing
services. But there are some considerations that will apply
broadly. When implementing any accessibility technologies,
think "mainstream." Students, staff and faculty with
disabilities should have access to the same resources, in the
same locations, as their peers. This may mean the public
terminal and reference sections of a library.
However, local area, enterprise-wide and
international computer networks increasingly make remote
access to on-line databases possible. CD-ROM's can be
shared through network file servers. Campus backbone
networks can allow access to library on-line information
from public access microcomputer labs and individual office
workstations. At UCLA, new student residence hall micro
labs are being designed with computer accessibility in mind.
Mobility-impaired students, for example, will be able to
check on the availability of library books on-line
across the campus backbone network, without first making
the hilly trek across campus from dorm to library.
In some instances, specialized campus libraries will
have accounts with on-line services that are not made
available to the general campus population. The UCLA Law
Library has accounts with the Westlaw and Lexus on-line
database services. In this instance, a special microcomputer
with speech access was set up in the law library so that
law students who are blind or have low vision can gain
access to these databases. Other accommodations (a text
reading machine and large monitor) are available on site.
Law students can also dial in to these electronic
resources from home via modem. For one law student who
is blind, remote login from home was especially important.
She used her home computer with voice synthesizer to
access the on-line databases, complete her assignments, and
study for the bar.
Other Considerations
Printed Text Materials
While electronic text access is the main focus of this
article, mention must be made of accessibility to printed text
materials, including books, journals, reference materials,
and library on-line computer user documentation. Patrons
with disability-related difficulty reading can be
accommodated through a number of assistive
technologies. Closed circuit television camera displays
(CCTV, or more recently, CCD technology) magnify any
printed material for people with low vision. Optical
Character Recognition (OCR) technology can be
combined with a voice synthesizer to convert printed
material into speech. These "reading machines" have
become a major breakthrough technology for people with
visual and learning disabilities.
Physical Access to Public Areas
Public access computers in libraries or elsewhere on
campus need to be physically accessible. Height-adjustable
tables, single power switches up front, and monitor stands
are among the simple accommodations that will enable the
broadest access to people with a range of disabilities.
Indeed, most library computer users in general will
find these ergonomic modifications to be equally beneficial.
(See Berliss, 1992 for a discussion of this "electronic curb-
cuts" philosophy and an excellent checklist of library
computing accommodations.)
Staff Resources
As important as computer modifications are, full
accessibility to library information resources depends on
dedicated, permanent staff support. Each campus must
develop its own staffing strategy for people with
disabilities. Ideally, a successful approach begins with a
campus-wide task force or committee with representatives
from key departments. These may include library services,
academic and administrative computing services, disabled
student services, and campus disability advisory groups.
The task force may recommend to the campus
administration appropriate staffing levels, equipment
resources and a home base for the program, based on each
campus's
unique needs. (See EDUCOM's Project EASI, 1992, and
Murphy, 1992, for campus implementation models.) Library
information access, both on-site and distributed on and off-
campus, can be a natural product of a comprehensive
campus-wide computer and information access strategy.
Author: Dr. Danny Hilton-Chalfen, coordinator,
Disabilities and Computing Program, UCLA Office of
Academic Computing. 5628 MSA,
405 Hilgard Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024-1557.
Readings
Berliss, Jane
"Checklist for Making Library Automation
Accessible to Disabled Patrons."
Trace Research and
Development Center, 1992.
Coombs, Norman
"Liberation Technology."
EDU
Magazine, Spring 1991 pp. 6-9
"Computers and Students with Disabilities: New
Challenges for Higher Education."
EDUCOM's Project
EASI, 1992. EDUCOM, EUIT Program.
Jones, Richard "
The Future of Braille Access to Math and
Scientific Notation."
Educom Review, July-August 1992,
Vol. 27 No. 4. pp. 48-49.
Library High Tech Journal, ,
1993
Special Issue on Adaptive
Computing Technology in Libraries, In Press.
Mates, Barbara
"Library Technology for Visually and
Physically Impaired."
Mecker, 1991.
Murphy, Harry "
The Impact of Exemplary Technology-
Support Programs on Students with Disabilities."
National
Council on Disability, 1991.
Organizations
Adaptive Technology Interest Group of the Library and
Information Technology Association, a division of the
American Library Association. 1992-93 Chair of ATIG,
Christopher G. Lewis, The American University Libraries,
4400 Massachusetts Avenue N.W., Washington, DC 20016-
8046 202-885-3257; clewis@american.edu
EASI (Equal Access to Software and Information)
C/O AAHE
One Dupont Circle
Washington DC