[Athen] Exam Reader Pen

Shelley Haven ShelleyHaven at techpotential.net
Fri Feb 8 13:27:04 PST 2019


Hi, Robert!

Here’s my take on helping students use such reader pens (aka scanning pens).

One requirement is that the student have reasonably good fine motor skills. You have to be able to hold the pen at the correct tilted angle, maintain constant pressure, swipe across words or a line of text at an even speed, swipe in a relatively straight line, and be sure not to miss part of the text you're scanning or overshoot and scan parts of other words. If these issues result in a scanning mistake, the student will need to reswipe over the word or phrase more carefully, which can break one’s train of thought or cause frustration (not good when taking tests!).

If the page is not perfectly flat — for example, swiping a large book near the binding — this can be hard for some students. Glossy pages may also cause a scanning problem. (These are probably not issues if just used with printed tests.)

That said, such devices can be quite effective for students who only need a word or single line spoken aloud, a word defined, or a word translated (e.g., ESL student), and who have the requisite fine motor skills. If they need to read multiple lines of text, consider the accessible-PDF-plus-TTS route vs. a reader pen with printed test.

Prior to use with a test, I suggest having the student trial the reader pen with and without a straight edge and provide them with plenty of practice first so they can feel comfortable with it. Also have them use earbuds with the pen so as not to disturb other students.

- Shelley

_____________________________
Shelley Haven ATP, RET
Assistive Technology Consultant
www.TechPotential.net




> On Feb 8, 2019, at 12:47 PM, Robert Spangler <rspangler1 at udayton.edu> wrote:

>

> Hello, we are considering purchasing exam Reader/C-Pens from www.examreader.com <http://www.examreader.com/>. They are multilingual and are helpful for those with dyslexia and other learning disabilities in having test questions read out loud. I am seeking feedback from anyone who has used these. Did your students like them?

>

> If anyone has used these, I would appreciate hearing anything you have to say about them.

>

> Thanks,

> Robert

>

>

> --

> Robert Spangler

> Disability Services Technical Support Specialist

> rspangler1 at udayton.edu <mailto:rspangler1 at udayton.edu>

> Office of Learning Resources (OLR) - RL 023

> Ryan C. Harris Learning & Teaching Center (LTC)

> University of Dayton | 300 College Park | Dayton, Ohio 45469-1302

> Phone: 937-229-2066

> Fax: 937-229-3270

> Ohio Relay: 711 (available for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing)

> Web Site: http://go.udayton.edu/learning <http://go.udayton.edu/learning>

>

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