[Nfb-science] Fwd: Visually Impaired Students Study Math Using Innovative Software

[David Andrews]

>
>04 December 2007
>
>
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>Visually Impaired Students Study Math Using Innovative Software
>
>Sighted kids also benefit from hearing equations via MathTrax program
>math graph
>
>MathTrax allows visually impaired students to
>"hear" complex math graphs like this one. (Courtesy NASA)
>
>By Jeffrey Thomas
>USINFO Staff Writer
>
>Washington * Until recently, blind and visually
>impaired students found it extremely difficult to
>study certain subjects and pursue careers in
>science and technology because they could not see
>graphs and other visual representations. But now,
>a team at NASA has created easy-to-use software
>that allows students to graph equations, interact
>with the data and understand it all through text, tones and spoken language.
>
>The program, MathTrax, transforms graphs and
>equations in real-time into words, so students
>have multiple ways to process complex
>information. "For blind and low vision kids ...
>MathTrax provides a tool for them to work along
>with their sighted peers in their math and
>science classes," says Robert Shelton, a blind
>NASA mathematician who worked with Terry Hodgson
>and Stephanie Smith on the development of MathTrax.
>
>Shelton realized that "even now, when modern
>assistive technology should be opening doors to
>STEM [science, technology, engineering and math]
>careers, many otherwise capable blind students
>are steered away from the math and science
>courses which could provide the basis for further
>education, employment and independence."
>
>His team at NASA had "a long history of
>developing innovative educational technology
>applications such as games, simulations and
>knowledge discovery tools, and we saw the
>development of an accessible math tool as a way
>that our efforts could make a large difference
>for an otherwise underserved population."
>
>NASA management "absolutely loved the idea" when
>Shelton's team proposed it, he said. "NASA's core
>business is very different from what we do, but
>it is generally understood that enlarging the
>STEM pipeline is critical, not only to NASA's
>mission, but to the long-term security and prosperity of our civilization."
>
>"Like all other educational technology projects
>at NASA, we have to compete for resources and we
>operate on a shoestring [budget], but NASA has a
>proud history of trying innovative ideas that
>work, and MathTrax is definitely one of those," Shelton said.
>
>At a NASA science camp for students with vision
>impairments called "Rocket On," students used
>MathTrax for dealing with rocketry for mission
>planning, trajectory planning and data analysis.
>
>"There was no other tool on the planet that would
>have let them do that rocket camp without an
>engineer helping them," Shelton said in a NASA
>article on the camp. "And this year the kids did it [on their own]."
>
>Besides analyzing rocket launches, kids also can
>use MathTrax to do things like study ozone
>change, illustrate air and sea interactions,
>study rainfall distribution, forecast ecosystem
>changes, investigate the nature of black holes,
>explore the expansion of space, estimate solar
>activity, model solar wind, compare body
>adaptations to microgravity, track the effects of
>space radiation and represent and model scientific information.
>
>MathTrax received an education award from the
>Tech Museum of Innovation at a ceremony November
>7 in San Jose, California. The award was based on
>the recommendation of an international panel of
>judges. In 2006, MathTrax was the runner-up for NASA Software of the Year.
>
>MATHTRAX ALSO VALUABLE FOR SIGHTED STUDENTS
>
>MathTrax can be helpful to, and deepen the
>mathematical understanding of, all types of
>students. In fact, "we have a wealth of anecdotal
>evidence that the majority of our users are
>sighted," Shelton told USINFO. "We are over
>100,000 downloads now, and I'm pretty sure that
>most of those people can see. Failure to complete
>basic algebra is a multibillion a year problem in
>the United States and a tool like MathTrax can
>make a difference to anyone who has issues with graphical concepts."
>
>Most math students are familiar with graphing
>calculators, which turn mathematical equations
>into visual forms. MathTrax presents the equation
>in additional ways, providing a text description
>and an audio version of the graph, with sounds
>that correlate to the visual image.
>
>One of the most fascinating aspects of the
>software is that a student actually can hear the
>music of certain equations. "They'll see how
>equations look if they're looking at it,"
>according to Shelton. "They'll hear how they sound if they're 
>listening to it."
>
>"MathTrax demonstrates how graphing software can
>be made more accessible to everyone.  We've made
>the technology available, worldwide, with the
>Open Source release of the Math Description
>Engine Software Development Kit.  We hope that
>industry and researchers will build on the
>technology and apply it as widely as possible."
>
>There is a proposal pending to produce a
>Spanish-language version of MathTrax, Shelton said.
>
><http://prime.jsc.nasa.gov/mathtrax>MathTrax can
>be downloaded for free from the NASA Web site.
>
>(USINFO is produced by the Bureau of
>International Information Programs, U.S.
>Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
>

David Andrews and white cane Harry.
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