DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF AN ARABIC BRAILLE SELF-LEARNING WEBSITE
Received: 06th April 2023; Revised: 01st August 2023, 14th August 2023; Accepted: 21st August 2023
Keywords:
Arabic Braille, Assistive Technology, Disability, Blind, Learning Braille, Visually ImpairedAbstract
Blind and visually impaired people have long used assistive technologies, such as Braille, to aid them in their day-to-day lives. Given the importance of communication for these individuals, the ability to self-learn Braille through a specifically designed educational system is crucial for unlocking the ability to communicate while saving time and money. This paper focuses on the "learn-by-my-hand" system used to teach Braille in an Arabic context through an e-dashboard on a self-guided website. The system, which also aids sighted people, is based on content from the Saudi education ministry, allowing users to learn Braille throughout school courses. It is thought to be the first system of its kind designed to be deployed in schools. The future work will focus on conducting a quasi-experiment study involving students with vision impairment in elementary schools, collecting both qualitative and quantitative data to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed website. By addressing usability, user satisfaction, and its impact on academic performance, we aim to comprehensively understand the website's impact on blind students' educational experiences.
References
Abirami, N., Dharsana, K. S., Ragav, R. A., & Chaitanya, K. J. (2018). Braille Learning System for Blind People. International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology, 3(2), 864-867. https://ijisrt.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Braille-Learning-System-for-Blind-People.pdf
Aizawa, F., & Watanabe, T. (2014, October). A Braille writing training device with voice feedback. In Proceedings of the 16th international ACM SIGACCESS conference on Computers & Accessibility (pp. 243-244). https://doi.org/10.1145/2661334.2661390
Allafi, R., & Newbury, P. (2021). Importance of Assistive Mobile Applications for Dyslexic Students in Saudi Arabia. PUPIL: International Journal of Teaching, Education and Learning, 5(3), 01-12. https://doi.org/10.20319/pijtel.2021.53.0112
AlSaleh, W., & Al-Salman, A. (2012). A computer software for teaching sighted people the Braille system. International Conference on ICT in Serving Individuals With Disabilities and Learning Difficulties, Kuwait.
AlSalman, A., Al-Hadhrami, S., & AlSalman, A. (2022). A Review Study on Self-Learning Braille Systems. In The 21st International Conference on e-Learning, e-Business, Enterprise Information Systems, & e-Government (EEE), Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, July 25-28, 2022.
Al-Watban, A., & Al-Salman, A. (2019, May). An Arabic Self-Learning Braille Application for Visually Impaired People. In 2019 2nd International Conference on Computer Applications & Information Security (ICCAIS) (pp. 1-5). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/CAIS.2019.8769570
Araki, M., Shibahara, K., & Mizukami, Y. (2011, July). Spoken dialogue system for learning Braille. In 2011 IEEE 35th Annual Computer Software and Applications Conference (pp. 152-156). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/COMPSAC.2011.27
Avhad, A., Jadhav, R., Arbune, A., & Khainar, K. (2016). E-BRAILLE-A SELF LEARNING BRAILLE DEVICE. International Journal of Infinite Innovations in Technology, 4(3), 1-12.
Brailliac (2018, January 7). Brailliac: Braille Tutor. Brailliac: Braille Tutor. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lukeneedham. Brailletutor&hl=ar&gl=US
Dias, M. B., Dias, M. F., Belousov, S., Rahman, M. K., Sanghvi, S., Fanaswala, I., ... & Menon, S. R. (2009, April). An automated Braille writing tutor with multilingual exercises and educational games. In 2009 International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development (ICTD) (pp. 478-478). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICTD.2009.5426741
Dirgantari, A. S., & Susantiningdyah, H. (2021). Web-based Learning Material for Raising Students' Levels of Awareness and Use of Reading Strategies. PUPIL: International Journal of Teaching, Education and Learning, 4(3), 95-110. https://doi.org/10.20319/pijtel.2021.43.95110
EM, A. S., Nithin, P., & BASKARAN, M. (2021). Self-Learning Braille Application for Visually Impaired People. Ilkogretim Online, 20(1), 5109-5114. https://ilkogretim-online.org/?mno=2625
Jawasreh, Z. H. M., Ashaari, N. S., & Dahnil, D. P. (2020). The acceptance of Braille self-learning device. International Journal on Advanced Science, Engineering and Information Technology. https://doi.org/10.18517/ijaseit.10.1.10263
Joshi, A., & Samasgikar, A. (2016). Braille Tutor: A Gift for the Blind. In Advances in Signal Processing and Intelligent Recognition Systems: Proceedings of Second International Symposium on Signal Processing and Intelligent Recognition Systems (SIRS-2015) December 16-19, 2015, Trivandrum, India (pp. 237-244). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28658-7_20
Kavalgeri, S. A., Chakraborthy, R. V., Naz, S. F., & Chaitanya, K. J. (2019). International Journal of Research in Engineering, Science and Management, 2(2), 131-135.
Kella Mohan Sandeep Kumar (2021, March 29). Blind Helper. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sanson.blindHelper&hl=ar&gl=US
Khidri, S. A., Memon, S. H., & Jameel, A. (2014). Blind aid: A self-learning Braille system for visually impaired. Journal of Engineering Research and General Science, 2, 641-647. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Blind-Aid%3A-A-Self-Learning-Braille-System-for-Khidri-Memon/6fb4c82b4d547fe9da028b72b6645b927ad1e9a1
Kim, H. N. (2018). User experience of mainstream and assistive technologies for people with visual impairments. Technology and Disability, 30(3), 127-133. https://doi.org/10.3233/TAD-180191
Learn and train touch reading Xiang Dong (n.d.). Braille Academy: Play & Learn. Braille Academy: Play & Learn. Last updated Oct. 2020, Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ Braille-academy-play-learn/id1561530189
Lee, L. W., Mohamed, A. R., & Altamimi, A. A. (2015). Design, development, and evaluation of an automated e-learning tutorial system to instruct pre-service special educators in the Malay Braille code. *The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher*, 24, 481-494. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-014-0219-9
Lopes, R., & Rebelo, F. (2017). BrailleTouch: An accessible soft keyboard for visually impaired people. Journal of Accessibility and Design for All, 7(2), 118-135.
Mario Ugedo (2020, November 11). Aprende Braille. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from *Google Play Store*: [Aprende Braille] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sanson.blindHelper&hl=ar&gl=US
Ministry of Education. (2002). Improved Arabic Braille system book نظام برايل العربي المطور.
Ministry of Education. (2021). My Language لغتي, Level 1, elementary school textbook.
Montasser, M. (n.d.). Learn Braille with Nouf, Apple store. مع نوف Braille تعلم. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from *Apple App Store*: [مع نوف Braille تعلم] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/%D9%85%D8%B9-%D9%86%D9%88%D9%81-braill-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%85/id1508153898
Qatar Computing Research Institute (2020, February 27). BrailleEasy. BrailleEasy. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from *Apple App Store*: [BrailleEasy] https://apps.apple.com/qa/app/ Brailleeasy/id1124391970
R. & A. (n.d.). Touch Braille, Apple Store. Touch Braille. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from *Apple App Store*: [Touch Braille] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch- Braille/id1199928789
Šepić, B., Ghanem, A., & Vogel, S. (2015). BrailleEasy: one-handed Braille keyboard for smartphones. In *Assistive Technology* (pp. 1030-1035). IOS Press. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26294606/
Smart Braille education OHFA Tech, Inc. (n.d.). Taptilo U. Last updated Oct. 6, 2018. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from *Apple App Store*: [Taptilo U] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/taptilo-u/id1520169375
Smart Braille education OHFA Tech, Inc. (n.d.). Taptilo+. Last updated Nov. 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from *Apple App Store*: [Taptilo+] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/taptilo/id1434384498
Takaoka, Y., Ohta, M., Sugano, A., Oda, T., Maeda, E., Hanaoka, S., & Matsuura, M. (2011). E-Learning Program with Voice Assistance for a Tactile Braille. International Journal of Educational and Pedagogical Sciences, 5(10), 1273-1276. https://publications.waset.org/11439/e-learning-program-with-voice-assistance-for-a-tactile- Braille
Tang, J. (2013). Using ontology and RFID to develop a new Chinese Braille learning platform for blind students. *Expert Systems with Applications*, 40(8), 2817-2827. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2012.11.023
USEFUL APPS (2018, June 10). Learn Braille. A Beginners Gui. Learn Braille. A Beginners Gui. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tresors86.learn Brailleabeginnersguide&hl=ar&gl=US
Useful Apps. (2018, June 10). Learn Braille. A Beginners Gui. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tresors86.learn Brailleabeginnersguide&hl=ar&gl=US
Wagh, P., Prajapati, U., Shinde, M., Salunke, P., Chaskar, V., Telavane, S., & Yadav, V. (2016, March). E-Braille-a self-learning Braille device. In the 2016 Twenty Second National Conference on Communication (NCC) (pp. 1-6). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/NCC.2016.7561162
Wicaksono, M. F., & Kurniawan, R. H. I. (2019, November). Development of Independent Learning System Arabic Letters For Blind People. In *IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering* (Vol. 662, No. 2, p. 022110). IOP Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/662/2/022110
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Abdulmalik Al-Salman, Amani Al-Salman, Shier Al-Hadhrami
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
