Quebec-Made Braille Tablet Offers New Accessibility for Visually Impaired Students
MONTREAL – A newly developed braille tablet, dubbed the Monarch, is generating excitement among accessibility specialists in Quebec, offering a perhaps transformative tool for blind adn partially sighted students and professionals. Created by a Quebec-based company, the device aims to bridge the gap between traditional braille and modern digital technology, providing a more efficient and versatile way to read and write.
while braille literacy rates have declined in recent years,experts emphasize its continued importance for basic skills like spelling and accessing complex details. Currently, approximately sixty primary and secondary students in quebec learn braille, and the Monarch could offer a crucial support for these learners-and those who might benefit from it-by integrating seamlessly with existing digital tools like computers, phones, and tablets.
Janie Lachapelle, a specialist in clinical activities at the Nazareth and Louis-Braille Institute, and a daily braille user herself, affirms the enduring relevance of the tactile reading and writing system. “Braille is still very much alive,” she stated. ”First, it is integrated into digital tools – computers, phones, tablets.And it remains the best way to have access to writing.”
Lachapelle points to the challenges faced by students who forgo braille education, frequently enough struggling with spelling and encountering roadblocks in higher education. She cited the example of a student who found his voice synthesis software inadequate when tackling statistics coursework at university.
The Monarch’s potential affordability and accessibility are further bolstered by the Régie de l’assurance santé du Québec’s visual aid loan program, wich already supports students and workers with assistive devices. Lachapelle suggests the Monarch could eventually be added to the program’s list of loanable aids, especially as the price of braille displays has decreased in recent years.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Janie Lachapelle is blind due to a birthmark on her face.
