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Academic Use of Smart Phones for Social Development of Visually Impaired Students of University of Karachi: a Study of Android Smartphone Applications by VI Students

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Academic Use of Smart Phones for Social Development of Visually Impaired Students of University of Karachi: a Study of Android Smartphone Applications by VI Students University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal) Libraries at University of Nebraska-Lincoln September 2019 Academic use of smart phones for social development of visually impaired students of University of Karachi: A study of android Smartphone applications by VI students. Dr. Muhammad waseem muhammad zia university of karachi, [email protected] syeda shireen zehra Miss Iqra University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac Part of the Library and Information Science Commons zia, Dr. Muhammad waseem muhammad and zehra, syeda shireen Miss, "Academic use of smart phones for social development of visually impaired students of University of Karachi: A study of android Smartphone applications by VI students." (2019). Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal). 3026. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/3026 Academic use of smart phones for social development of visually impaired students of University of Karachi: A study of android Smartphone applications by VI students. Syeda Shireen Zahra1 , Muhammad Waseem Zia2 1Department of Library and Information Science University of Karachi [email protected] 2Assistant professor Department of Library and Information Science University of Karachi [email protected] ABSTRACT Smart phones are very common in Pakistan since last 5 years. Smart phone is a mobile phone that performs many of the functions of a computer, typically having a touch screen interface, internet access, and an operating system capable of running downloaded apps. (Woyke,2014) states that the first true smart phone actually made its debut earlier in 1992. Smart phone has now captured the human life at a very large extent. Smart phone has become a part of daily, professional, social and academic life. Students are dependent on smart phones for their academic and social activities. It could be used for dictionary, for browsing and searching a piece of information or interacting with others for social needs. Visually impaired refers to the condition in which a person is partially or completely blind. The VI students have equal information and social needs as sighted people. VI students are a part of society and play an equal role in the social development of a society. Smart phones are helpful in routine academic tasks and social activities of the students. It is difficult task to satisfy their immediate information and social needs using an android Smartphone. The focus of this study is to show the academic use of smart phone for the social development of visually impaired students of faculty of social science and faculty of Education of University of Karachi. There are 24 departments in these faculties and more than 20 VI students are getting education from these departments. This study aims to discuss the Applications of android Smartphone used for academic purpose and their social development. VI students of faculty of social science and education, university of Karachi identify some specific apps during data collection. These applications will be helpful to increase the accessibility of Smartphone among VI students. The study identified that smart phone is very useful for academic and social activities. Keywords: Smart phone, Visually impaired students, Academic use of smart phones, use of smart phone by VI’s, Social development. 1. INTRODUCTION The mobile phones offer not only the standard facilities such as voice and text Smartphone is now a days a necessity for communication, but also advanced human life, every task that was supposed computing and communication capability to be complex is now being done with finger more over most of the newer generation of tips smart phone made it all possible. A smart phones also incorporate other smart phone is a mobile phone that features such as on-board personal performs many of the functions of a management tools, high quality cameras computer, typically having a touch screen and recording devices. (Boulus et al,2011 interface, internet access, and an p.3) operating system capable of running downloaded apps. Smartphone is very helpful for students in equally helpful and important for VI their academic life with all its advance students in their academic tasks. VI capabilities. Whereas Student is a person students can access to the information in a who is formally engaged to a learning very short time with smart phone. VI process and enrolled in an institution. students can satisfy their information Students have different information needs needs and could get help in their academic according to their level of studies some tasks if they properly access a smart phone. needs of which are immediate and others Different types of Smart phones including are long term. Students satisfy their needs Android, Apple iOS, RIM BlackBerry, with different sources and tools. The Symbian, and Windows phone allows concerned students of the study belong to different settings and apps for providing the faculty of Education and Faculty of ease in the usage of smart phone to VI Social sciences University of Karachi. persons. Such as a VI person could enable When students from any institution use screen magnification, enlarge text, adjust smart phones and its features for the color palette and could also customize performing the routine tasks involved in other display settings in order to improve their learning process or for seeking the ability to use a touch screen device. It information is referred as its academic use. is some way helpful for a person with Such as students are now able to search partial visual impairment. A person who is meanings of words through a dictionary app completely blind there are smart phone in their smart phones or browse a needed screen reader apps and other applications piece of information, download books in which runs through the gestures of a different formats and read them on a person. Every smart phone doesn’t support screen of their smart phones easily. every application and not every smart phone enables customization for VI The study focuses on the academic use of persons. These facilities and customization Smart phones by VI students. As about provided by smart phones helped VI visual impairment (World Health students of University of Karachi to rely on Organization WHO, 2006) reports that, smart phone for their academic use and for “There are 4 levels of visual function, seeking information. according to the International Classification of Diseases -10: University of Karachi was established through the parliament as a Federal 1. Normal vision University in 1951. However, through 2. Moderate visual impairment another act of the parliament in 1962 its 3. Severe visual impairment status was redefined as university of the 4. Blindness. province of Sindh. University of Karachi Moderate visual impairment combined with now is the biggest university of the country. severe visual impairment are grouped under the term “low vision”: low vision It comprises eight faculties with which all taken together with blindness represents the colleges of the city are affiliated. The all visual impairment. concern of this study is the Faculty of Education and Faculty of Social Sciences. And further defines impaired vision in five The Faculty of Education, was established categories: in 1970 at the University of Karachi, The Low vision 1 is a best corrected vis Faculty of Education comprised of the ual acuity of 20/70. following three Departments became the Low vision 2 starts at 20/200. part of the Faculty: Blindness 3 is below 20/400. Department of Education Blindness 4 is worse than 5/300 Department of Special Education Blindness 5 is no light perception Department of Teacher Education. at all” Whereas Faculty of social Sciences The use of smart phone having a touch comprises of 21 departments. screen interface by VI students is not as simple as the sighted students but it is Nearly 20 VI students are engaged in their has increased the accessibility of mobile learning process in these departments and phones for VI persons. this study relates to their academic use of The study discussed Foogue which is an smart phones. eye-free interface and recognize audios and gestures for user input and access. 2. LITERATURE REVIEW Foogue doesn’t requires visual interaction (Watanabe, Tetsuya..etal, 2015) Conduct a at all. Information items and applications survey about the difficulty of using a mobile are audibly represented to the user around phone by visually impaired persons. Mobile the 360 degree space. The sound played in phone companies offered some assistive the headphone appears to be originated technologies for the ease of use for VI from different locations. The users choose persons. These technologies include the application or item according to its customization of font sizes, Screen location with the gestures. magnification and screen readers and these The study further discussed the framework facilities were made available in 2000s. of Neff et al.. which was the division of These facilities enabled VI persons to use mobile screen into different portions mobile phones but the limited accessibility representing different icons .The user and choice of models was still a problem. interaction is done with the gestures. The survey discovered that the difference The next discussed interface is the slide in the usage of mobile phones in VI and rule a “talking touch-sensitive” interface print enabled persons is small. The age which is speech based and user interacts group effects the usage of mobile phone through gestures. There is a set of 4 both in VI and print enabled person older gestures (1) One finger scan to slide a finger group age had fewer mobile phone users. down the list and the device keeps reading Mobile phones with pre-installed the list (2) A second finger tap in which the accessibility applications were found more user keeps one finger on the selected item convenient to use for VI persons.
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