The Impact Of Using Assistive Technology On Teaching English As A foreign Language For Students With Visual Impairments a Case Study Of Braille Club At El Oued University And Svi’ School In robbah

Résumé: This study aims to explore the impact of using assistive technology (AT) on teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) to visually impaired students (VIS). Previous studies published limited evidence in teaching reading English for VIS due to a lack of research. In this study, stratified random sampling included six participants from each stratum (n1= 6; n2= 6). They were enrolled at Robbah School for SVI and EL-Oued University for 2020/2021. This research adopted the exploratory sequential approach to address the research questions. On the one hand, the thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews revealed that respondents from Robbah School for SVI lacked resources, knowledge, and training in using AT. In contrast, the VIS of EL-Oued University used various assistive technology tools. Therefore, they experienced accessibility to printed information, minimized over-dependence on sighted students, and had a positive attitude toward using AT for English learning. On the other hand, the pre-test and post-test statistical analysis showed statistical significance. Accordingly, the average reading speed of VIS of El-Oued University participants using an electronic Braille display (M = 64.17, SD = 8.612) was significantly greater than the average reading speed using Braille paper (M = 56.83, SD = 8.495), t(5)= −22.0021, p = 0.000003603. In contrast, the mean reading speed of Robbah School for SVI participants in the post-test (M = 36.33, SD = 13.337) was significantly smaller than the results of the pre-test (M = 51.33, SD = 12.956), t(5)= −5.78, p = 0.00218. Subsequently, both mean populations average was significantly different (μ 2=M = 36.33, SD = 13.337; μ 1 =M = 64.17, SD = 8.612), t(10) = −4.295, p = 0.0016 at the α=0.05). Consequently, pedagogical recommendations were proposed for further research. Keywords: Assistive Technology, Reading Speed, Students with Visual Impairment, Teaching English as a Foreign Language.

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