210 likes | 308 Views
Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad GPS?. A Curriculum for GPS Assisted Travel With BrailleNote . Who is in the audience?. Who are we? Teachers at the California School for the Blind Maya Delgado Greenberg, Orientation & Mobility Specialist Jerry Kuns, Technology Teacher.
E N D
Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad GPS? A Curriculum for GPS Assisted Travel With BrailleNote
Who are we? Teachers at the California School for the Blind Maya Delgado Greenberg, Orientation & Mobility Specialist Jerry Kuns, Technology Teacher
How did we become a BrailleNote (BN) GPS team? • Started working together in Fall of 2004 • Decided to write and pilot a curriculum at CSB • Realized that most O&M instructors will • “co-learn” with their students
What is the BrailleNote GPS? Video from Sendero Group
What can the BN GPS do for you? Not just for advanced travelers! Can be used with students of all ages and abilities
Six major functions of the BN GPS • Points of Interest (POI) • Navigation functions • Destination Travel • Automatic Routes • Manual Routes • Virtual Mode
Points of Interest (POIs) • POIs are location names marked with longitude/latitude coordinates. • Organized into categories: i.e. restaurants, lodging, and transit stops. • Search for POI by name or category in concentric • circles around a selected point in space. • POI can aid with familiarization to a new area. • Gives children and adults an understanding of breadth and depth of information available through print signs in the environment.
Navigation Functions • Real-time information about the world around you • current street name and address • name of and distance to the next intersection • compass heading on your path of travel. • These functions can be used to gather information and problem solve while traveling.
Destination Travel • You can set a POI, address or intersection as a destination • The BrailleNote will provide information about • direction, • relative position and • distance to the chosen point. • Can be used to introduce and reinforce following verbal and written directions for travelers of all skill levels.
Automatic Routes • Similar to the popular website Mapquest. • Enter an address/POI to create a pedestrian or vehicle route from current location to destination. • Preview the route before travel, getting information about street names, distance, and turns. • Travel the route getting directions and prompts, culminating with an "arrived at your destination" announcement.
Manual Routes • Manual routes are user-created customized routes that do not rely on street maps. • To create a manual route: • move along a route, • record a beginning, • program in intermediate points called “waypoints” along the route, • mark an end destination. • For travel off the street grid, such as school campuses, rural settings, or parks. • To create customized routes to point out environmental features, turns, or intersection information. • A great tool for students with memory problems who need frequent reminders of where they are going and how to get there.
Virtual Mode Enables a traveler to explore the POI and maps of an environment without being in the selected area. For example, if traveling to a hotel in another state, can set the address of that hotel as the virtual location. Use BN GPS functions to explore the area around the hotel as if you were there. This is a relatively complex function that requires good mental mapping skills and a practical understanding of how the BN GPS works.
Review of our Curriculum • Strategy of redundancy • Chunked related information together • Does not include everything-this is not a user’s manual! • We assume that instructors will co-learn with students
How to get your hands on a BN GPS • Work with your agency/school district: • Ask your supervisor (i.e. sample letter of justification) • Write it into an IEP • Look into grants Work with your rehab counselor The old-fashioned method of saving up and buying one
Troubleshooting: General strategies • Take it slow • Do drill and practice • Make cheat-sheets • Don’t be afraid to use technical support • Use Intellikeys Washington School for the Blind overlays
Troubleshooting: Specific strategies • Turn off the thumb keys • → • Space E if you think you pressed the wrong thing • If you are feeling totally lost, try going back to the main menu and starting over • If the machine is acting weird, try reset
Any Questions? • See the resource list or • Contact us at the California School for the Blind • Jerry Kuns, (510) 794-3800 x 226 • Maya Delgado Greenberg, x 326