[Athen] Assistive listening devices in online/remote classes

[Melanie P. Thornton]

Hello, Wink!

My thinking is that the purpose of the ALD is to remove the barrier that results from distance and extraneous noise. Those barriers are more within the student’s control when they are joining by computer.

For those who typically use ALDs in such a way that the sound is directed directly into their hearing aid, having a dial in option and using a phone instead of the computer could produce a similar result.

For those who use them with headphones (i.e. do not have hearing aids), then connecting a headphone directly to the computer should give the same result.

If the student is not getting the volume output they need, I wonder if something like Boom 3D could boost their audio.

Of course on the output side, asking the instructor to use a headset with a mic could help improve quality as well.

I can’t really think of a situation where an ALD would be better than simply controlling how the audio is accessed—phone or computer—and increasing the volume.

Hope to hear from others in case there is something I’m missing here.

All the best,
Melanie

________________________________

MELANIE THORNTON, MA, CPACC
coordinator of access and equity outreach
Partners for Inclusive Communities
University of Arkansas

V/T: 501.291.3217

Partners for Inclusive Communities<https://uofapartners.uark.edu/> (Partners) is a program of the University of Arkansas College of Education and Health Professions and is Arkansas' University Center on Disabilities, a member of the nationwide Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD).

Let's stay connected!

[Partners' Facebook Page]<https://www.facebook.com/UofAPartners/> [Partners' Twitter Account] <https://twitter.com/UofAPartners>

Pronouns: she/her/hers


On May 22, 2020 at 7:14:33 PM, Wink Harner (foreigntype at gmail.com<mailto:foreigntype at gmail.com>) wrote:

Hi ATHEN-ites
Apologies for cross-posting.
The question came up in one of my grad student's research projects and I thought I would ask our collective "hive" of experts when or whether we should be providing ALD's or FM systems to our HOH students in the quick switch made to online courses. Is it necessary? Are there alternatives? Are there specific workarounds needed?

Thanks in advance for the wisdom & advice of your collective wisdom.

Wink Harner
Accessibility Consultant/Alternative Text Production
The Foreign Type

Portland OR
foreigntype at gmail.com<mailto:foreigntype at gmail.com>
480-984-0034

This email was dictated using Dragon NaturallySpeaking. Please forgive quirks, misrecognitions, or errata .
_______________________________________________
athen-list mailing list
athen-list at mailman12.u.washington.edu
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__mailman12.u.washington.edu_mailman_listinfo_athen-2Dlist&d=DwICAg&c=7ypwAowFJ8v-mw8AB-SdSueVQgSDL4HiiSaLK01W8HA&r=4xs5XdFl4BYq5E_PfT2ZCA&m=eboZ4JYfoCWWp3Q9Wj5e4xojNKDpdCYgWL8coAcgX4k&s=iKlIN5PSFljIuiMEVjIu5s0WgX1a32Gwx1gyXfLv9GU&e=
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman12.u.washington.edu/pipermail/athen-list/attachments/20200523/1123cfd4/attachment.html>