Webinars for Professional Learning
Posted by Shirley Lawson on the 13th January, 2017
Our webinars are the perfect way to learn something new and to use this knowledge practically to support your students with additional support needs. They are specifically designed to be short (20-30 minutes) and timetabled for 4pm to allow teachers to not be overloaded at the end of a busy school d...
Bookbug Picture Book Prize winner announced!
Posted by Joanna Courtney on the 12th January, 2017
The winner of the first Bookbug Picture Book Prize 2017 is Shark in the Park on a Windy Day by Nick Sharratt. Well done to Nick! Around 19,000 children across Scotland voted in the competition and the three nominated books were gifted to every p1 child in Scotland in the Bookbug P1 Family Bag d...
Claire Harrison joins the CALL Scotland Team
Posted by Claire Harrison on the 12th January, 2017
I have just joined the CALL Scotland team to take up the post of Development Officer for Assistive Technology and Complex Additional Support Needs. I graduated from the University of Strathclyde in 1997 with a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) and have spent the last 15 years teaching lea...
ATbar, text-to-speech software for Windows
Posted by Craig Mill on the 11th January, 2017
ATbar is a new text-to-speech program for Windows. ATbar is free and works with the Scottish voices. A benefit of ATbar is that it does not need to be installed and can be run from a USB stick/drive, providing a portable text reader. ATbar has a clean, minimal interface with a Windows 10 look ...
Read&Write - Text to Speech for Microsoft Edge
Posted by Craig Mill on the 9th January, 2017
Microsoft Edge, the default browser for Windows 10, has recently started to incorporate browser extensions, similar to Google Chrome. A browser extension is a plug-in or add-in that provides additional functionality to a browser. Some extensions can help to modify or simplify the layout and col...
ICT to Support Learners with Dyslexia
Posted by Craig Mill on the 9th January, 2017
Technology to support learners with literacy difficulties such as dyslexia can make a big difference. Using free resources provided by CALL Scotland such as WordTalk, the Scottish Voices, Books for All, combined with a range of Windows built-in tools, free downloads and commercial software, support...
Talking in Exams project - Final Report out now!
Posted by Shirley Lawson on the 4th January, 2017
Has speech recognition software advanced to the point where students with additional support needs can rely on it to dictate answers into an SQA exam answer box or booklet? Is it about the software working efficiently or more about the training, support and school IT infrastructure that makes i...
Text to Speech webinar on 11th January 2017
Posted by Shirley Lawson on the 20th December, 2016
Allan Wilson will present our first webinar of 2017 on Wednesday 11th January. The subject will be 'Free Windows Text to Speech Software for People with Dyslexia'. Text to speech software is one of the most useful tools available to support learners with dyslexia / reading&n...
Getting back to basics - making the most of keyboard shortcuts
Posted by Craig Mill on the 13th December, 2016
I’m a big fan of keyboard shortcuts, not only do they make computing more efficient and faster, keyboard shortcuts are the key to accessibility offering access to visually impaired and blind users, who might otherwise be unable to use a computer. Keyboard shortcuts are a standard a...
Using a mouse more effectively for a pupil with motor difficulties
Posted by Craig Mill on the 9th December, 2016
This week I answered two phone queries from different people about pupils who are having difficulties using a standard mouse. Both pupils are doing media related subjects which require intensive use of the mouse, particularly navigating the mouse, single and double clicking, holding and dragging ite...
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