[Athen] adaptive technology & IPads

[Wink Harner]

Hi all,

Our center for teaching & learning along with our IT department have a beta
project planned for spring 2012 that involves the development of learning
spaces. In this mix, they've applied for and received a grant to purchase a
bevy (am not sure how many IPads constitute a bevy) of these computers for
interactive classroom use (student use) and for instructors to use for
creation & delivery of classroom materials.

Our department (Disability Resources) does not have any Apple products
because the majority of our adaptive technology works in the IBM/PC
environment, and so I am unfamiliar with what technology is native to the
Apple environment that addresses the large font/high contrast, screen
reading, reading & writing support (such as Read Write Gold), or any other
possible technology apps that might work or substitute for a variety of
common disabilities.

The IT department (of course!) is absolutely saying that Apple is 100%
accessible for adaptive technology, and I shrink from absolutes like that!
Being a skeptic, I would like to find out from you, my esteemed and
knowledgeable colleagues, what apps are built in on IPads, are there
additional apps which we could procure & install ahead of time or know where
to find them should the need arise.

What I would like NOT to happen is to enroll a student in one of these
learning environment classes (a classroom with modular furniture and some
slick technology) and find out that access for our SWDs does not exist! Nor
will the classes be flagged as a learning environment class so we will be in
the dark about enrollment until the students are already in the classes.

Advice, recommendations, directions (flee, flee!) would be helpful.

Thank you in advance for your thoughtful assistance,

Wink