Technology's Imprint

Braille is a tactile, symbol-based imprinted language. In grade one Braille, the symbols are made up of an a systematic arrangement of six dots arranged in various cells. These dots are imprinted on paper for the blind or visually impaired individual to read. Braille was created nearly 200 years ago and it was a revolutionary invention changing the lives of the blind and visually impaired forever.

The power of technology is evident all around us. It permeates every aspect of our life. It has revolutionized many parts of our daily lives, for instance, nearly instantaneous communication with family members and loved ones half a world away. From my perspective, in the realm of public education, while the benefits of technology are ever evident, acquisition of technology has occurred at a snail's pace.

Computers and email have greatly benefited the transmission of information between the internal and external stakeholders. Teachers are notified in real-time when changes to daily schedules are necessary. State and federally required paperwork creation and transmission has been streamlined thanks to state-mandated, monitored, and regulated databases. All of which helps make educating children with multiple disabilities a little easier.

In the classroom, SmartBoards, closed circuit televisions, and table-side computerized magnifiers are beneficial for students with blindness and visual impairments. Additional computer software that read and magnify the visual output of computers are available. Also, available are computerized note takers that utilize braille-like input and output. All are great technological developments.

The problem is the cost of these technological advancements. Because these items benefit only a small group of individuals, the cost of these devices and software is astronomical. For public schools relying on limited public-generated revenues, this a very big problem and the biggest reason why the implementation of technology for students with visual impairments has moved at a snail's pace.

To keep the imprint of technology available for everyone, there must be a way to remedy this problem? Maybe technology holds the answer? 

Knowledge is Power?

Francis Bacon is famous for saying, "knowledge is power." This is quite evident in that individuals, entities, companies, and even countries fight to control the flow and access to knowledge (see China). Knowledge is indeed precious. Before the technological age, knowledge was scarce and more often than not pertinent. After the invention of the Internet, knowledge became more plentiful. To further complicate things was the social media boom. Social media has made everyday mundane errands 'news.' Today there is an (almost) over-saturation of knowledge and the majority of it is unimportant.

What exactly does this mean for organizations where knowledge is free flowing and so crucial for business? Well, organizations want knowledge to flow internally. The free flow of experiential knowledge can help an organization run smoother and products to be developed and produced more efficiently. The job of the knowledge manager is to make sure this knowledge is transferred in a useable, manageable way. In a large organization too much knowledge transferred haphazardly means that the pertinent knowledge 'falls through the cracks.' The responsibility of the knowledge manager is to make sure knowledge is transferred timely and efficiently through work groups. Maybe through the creation of small group emails or bulletin boards or blogs where the knowledge manager culls through the information and passes it along to her or his manager.

The 'publish-then-filter' phenomenon is an interesting one. While an asset during the recent Egyptian revolution where there was so much data it could not be filtered out by the government. It can be the death knell for an organization who may not want its secrets and operational strategies to made public. It is the knowledge manager's responsibility to maintain organizational policies to make sure company secrets are securely kept within the aforementioned email network, bulletin boards, or blogs. Security is the key here. There must be the implementation of a security network for keeping company knowledge in-house. Because this type of knowledge is where the true power of an organization lies.

Accessibility for All

Traditionally, the blind and visually impaired have depended on expensive accessibility software for using computers and other technologies. Software such as JAWS and WindowEyes are screen-reading software the blind and visually impaired use for reading and interpreting what is displayed on computer screens. The software essential reads what is read on the screen and then the information is presented to the user through either text-to-speech or Braille or both.

Apple, primarily through its operating system used on all of its devices including the revolutionary iPad, has made accessibility not only easier, but also very affordable. The current retail price for the standard version of JAWS is nearly $900 and historically WindowsEyes is just as expensive. In contrast, screen-reading software comes integrated in iOS, Apple’s operating system. There are no additional costs for blind and visually impaired users to access the full capabilities of an iPad, iPhone, or iPod.

In an interesting twist, and in an effort to keep pace with or at the very least take a bigger portion out of Apple’s market share, Microsoft now offers screen reading software available with newer versions of their Microsoft Office software. Beginning in early 2014 GW Micro, the creator of WindowEyes, and Microsoft collaborated to offer WindowEyes free of charge to Microsoft Office 2010 and 2013 users. However, this still cannot compete with the functionality and integration of the iOS accessibility software on the iPad, iPhone, and iPod.

In addition, there are dozens of applications (or apps) available (and being developed almost daily) on Apple’s App Store used on iOS devices, including the iPad, iPhone, and iPod to further accessibility options of these devices. Such apps include ViA, an app developed by Braille Institute. ViA identifies other apps that can be used by individuals who are blind or visually impaired or possess other types of disabilities. Apps benefiting individuals with other types of disabilities include Verbally by Intuary. Verbally is a communication app used with augmentative and alternative communication devices (such as a switch or communication board) giving speech to children and adults who may not normally possess discernible communication skills at all? Most of these accessibility apps are free or low-cost.

In this current era, where boundaries seem nigh near boundless, it is time to make technology accessible to all!

Hills and Valleys

I do not believe Friedman and Florida’s beliefs are mutually exclusive of one another. While the world is becoming flatter, the technological and financial impetus of the flatness is becoming more disparate.

First, the world is flat. Technology is everywhere. Through, the Internet, Facebook, Twitter, etc. news and information is instantaneous. Instead of information being centralized it is now decentralized. For instance, in education student data and information used to be located in one central location: the central office. Now, while hard copies of that information may still be located in the central office, technology has allowed that information to be accessed in the classroom and even at home by students’ parents.

Secondly, the world is spiky. On a more global scale, the centers for economic and technological advancement are still centralized. While an innovation may originate in one of the ‘valleys’ Florida discussed, the innovator still must travel to one of the ‘mountains’ to get her or his vision realized. While the benefits ‘trickle down’ into the valley eventually, the unintended consequences of the current system is the widening disparity between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots.’ This situation is not going to change and indeed Florida is right, this is the biggest challenge ahead.

Amidst all of this, is the participatory culture that has been created due to the emergence of technology (even in the ‘valleys’). Technology and participatory technology has a direct impact in manufacturing. For instance, when Oreo created the rainbow filled cookie ad. Social media went nuts!

Anyway, that is my take on technology for the week!

My very first post!

This is my first post to my brand new blog. As part of my doctoral program at Creighton University I have created this blog. I hope that you will enjoy my weekly ramblings...