Studying mathematics has always been a great challenge for blind students and consequently, it has affected their performance, motivation to study, and ultimately access to scientific Degrees. The problem is faced by the entire generations of visually impaired people. This issue is of particular importance in the time of Integrated Digital Education (IDE), which requires from the teachers (both in common schools and special institutes) maintaining an effective remote dialogue with the disabled student. To achieve this objective, every teacher has to develop new teaching techniques and prepare personalized digital materials, to be used in combination with the specific methods of distance learning. For this reason, it is necessary to combine the computer aids with valid and tested didactic solutions, which can promote a real inclusion of the blind in the mainstream education and "guarantee everyone equal access to all educational activities" (MIUR). The DDMATH project aims to create adequate resources, developing a new didactic model for IDE, based on information technologies. In the final stage of the project it will be possible to experiment with the new solutions by involving teachers, students and families during the pilot phase in the real school environment. DDMATH will surely have a positive impact both on students who will gain facilitated access to the material and thus obtain better results, and on the new generations of teachers who will be able to acquire new skills in the area of accessible mathematics, through the implementation of new teaching models, based on Braille with the use of new technologies. This will also happen through a collaborative process between schools at the European level. As a secondary objective, the project will launch a trial to test Lambda to the benefit of the users with other disabilities. In the period of lockdown (closure of schools in Italy took place between April and May 2020) a number of suggestions and indications were received from some teachers who are desperately looking for useful solutions which would make them capable of doing mathematics with students who: - are visually impaired (low vision) - have severe motor disability in the upper limbs (being able to use only special keyboards) - are dyscalculic For these categories of disabled people, the following characteristics of Lambda prove to be particularly valuable: - linear lambda coding (usually usable with Braille line, but also on PC monitor), - the Lambda editor for "doing math" equipped with various compensative solutions, - video presentation of the linear code with special glyphs for sighted teachers, - speech synthesis that reads mathematical signs, - Exclusive use of the keyboard (not the mouse), - the visualization of mathematics in the traditional graphic format. Based on their experiences, the consortium intends to verify this new potential of Lambda and create a prototype and a dedicated guide. The consortium includes the following partners: - Association Paccini, which has been engaged for years in proposing Lambda software solutions, for better accessibility of mathematics, for its 2200 students present throughout Europe. - the EKMS association, having a deep knowledge of the needs and requirements of blind users, which will guide the project in the right direction to respond specifically to the users' needs; - the University of Toulouse "INSPE Toulouse Midi-pyrénées ". Its pedagogy department has a printing and Braille transcription centre, which will contribute to develop the didactic proposals for teachers and students; - the company IN2, which for years has been engaged in the specific accessibility sector, will propose a production service of mathematical texts in Braille and conversion modules, which can be used directly from the project portal. - The IC6 Institute, leader of the provincial CTS, is at the forefront of integrating students with disabilities. The institute will be the representative of the world of schools and will be the main users’ interface.
The fundamental objective of the DDMATH project was to create an inclusive learning environment for mathematics, in which blind students can actively participate and reach their full potential. Furthermore: - To realise viable and tested teaching proposals to help blind students tackle mathematical studies so as to achieve real inclusion in school. All this with a view to "guaranteeing everyone equal access to all educational activities". - Disseminate these proposals also in countries where teaching methodologies for blind students are stagnant at a time before the advent of information technology. - Promote 8-point braille writing, which today, with the advent of information technology, is inseparable from the use of PCs. - Create new teaching tools for learning mathematics for the blind
The study of mathematics for the blind has always been considered a difficult problem to solve and has heavily conditioned the good performance, motivation to study, and ultimately access to scientific studies by entire generations of visually disabled people. This issue is combined with the problems of Integrated Digital Didactics, which requires teachers (curricular and support ones, in mainstream and special schools) to maintain an effective distance interaction with the disabled pupil, developing new didactic solutions and creating customised digital materials suited to the specific modalities of distance teaching. The use of computers is now widespread among blind students, who increasingly appreciate its advantages for the study of mathematics as well. However, while some valid solutions have been found with regard to computer codes and tools for 'doing mathematics', the same cannot be said for aspects related to teaching methodologies, to the availability of proposals and work strategies on the various topics of accessible digital mathematics, to guides for teachers and to the production of mathematics texts in Braille.