Archive for October, 2009

Computers Learn To Identify Signs In TV Footage

Monday, October 26th, 2009

Three PhD candidates in the Netherlands have spent the last few years developing technology to recognise sign language in real-time. One researcher, Jeroen Arendsen, said, “Very little is known about the perception of sign language. The aim of this research was to expand our knowledge of human observation of signing. For ...

Study: Video, Games Improve Preschooler Literacy

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

Word-rich TV shows, online games and hands-on resources improve preschoolers’ literacy,  a new study by the Corporation of Broadcasting in the United States has found. Media resources in the program improve literacy in kids aged 2 to 8. For this study, 400 students in up to 80 classes from 47 different ...

Low-Cost Internet Video Streaming For Educators

Monday, October 19th, 2009

A low-cost way of video-streaming to use and distribute information online has been described in the US by Thomas McNeal Jr. and Landon Kearns. The article, “Using Video Streaming: Setting up a Cheap System for Distributing Information to Teachers and Students” explores how to set up a streaming system, using tools ...

Teacher’s Story: Deaf Students In Adult Education

Wednesday, October 14th, 2009

More and more deaf students are being taught in third-level classes, some mainstream and others not. Here, Sinead Quealy, from Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT), recounts her experience of teaching a group of adult deaf students. Her experience may help lecturers who teach deaf students. I taught adults for three ...

Family Options To Feature In ‘Hands On’ TV Show

Friday, October 9th, 2009

Hands On is the TV programme on RTÉ 1 devoted to issues related to deafness and the deaf and hard of hearing communities. The producer, Anne Heffernan, has contacted IDK about a new programme in the pipeline, for which input is being sought from parents of deaf children. As Heffernan explains, “it ...

“A Birthday For Ben” During Social Inclusion Week

Tuesday, October 6th, 2009

Dunlaoghaire-Rathdown’s Social Inclusion Week, which runs from October 12-17 was yesterday launched at Marlay House in Dublin with guests from local organisations and a speech by An Cathaoirleach, Cllr Marie Baker. During the week a series of events will be held including a reading of IDK’s “A Birthday for Ben” book ...

Tutorial Captioning Benefits Deaf Students’ Access

Monday, October 5th, 2009

Premier Captioning Wicklow are proud to advise that they are working with a deaf student at Trinity College Dublin to provide support in group tutorials where students are asked to discuss questions or issues raised by the tutor. The service is remote, which means the transcriber does not have to be ...

TV Subtitling Explained - Interview With RTE

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

RTE, Ireland’s national TV broadcaster, aims to subtitle all its shows by 2014, with the help of digital tools. For now, here’s an outline of the work involved, as discovered by Miriam Walsh, IDK’s journalist intern. It may be hard to believe - but subtitles don’t just magically pop up ...