Important Tools for Teaching People with Disabilities

One may claim that the content is in the center of learning. However, this idea may be falling out of favor if we checked the latest developments in education. The pandemic showcases that the design of that content delivery is critical in ensuring effective learning and teaching for high school and university students.  

What is a better design of learning materials to uptake the information and a more inclusive design that enables an even broader audience to use them and benefit? 

Here in Go Transcript, we are proud to enable many teaching institutions to adapt their methods with closed captions. The captions are the most apparent learning facilitation for the deaf or hard of hearing people. However, there are more opportunities to address communication challenges for people with such conditions as autism, dyslexia, or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). 

Autistic people may be sensitive to noises and various noise triggers. These people may experience this discomfort in their surrounding environment and the audio track from the video content. In some cases watching an educational video on mute may be a solution, and closed captioning would bridge the gap between the learning/education material and its use by such a person. 

Individuals having dyslexia may suffer from various degrees of reading disability. Also, they sometimes are associated with difficulties in understanding complex ideas. However, they may be helped if a process of understanding is designed to address their needs. For example, listening to a text instead of reading or watching a video with the captions in the same language as the audio track may significantly facilitate their information uptake. 

People are the most effective at uptake information when it is delivered visually, orally, and textually at the same time. This triple approach especially may be beneficial for people that are suffering from ADHD. It is quite widespread to experience a lack of focus, being hyperactive, etc. Fortunately, once the information simultaneously reaches our brains in the three ways above, it helps to focus a bit more and absorb the information provided. 

Transcriptions and captioning is not the only way to help people with diverse challenges to learn easier. However, it is a powerful tool with significant importance in the teaching toolbox.