Assistive Technology: Access for All in the Library

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Access for all in technology usually is summed up with audiobooks, books in braille or even digital books. However, pouring money into these types of accessible media can make or break a budget of a library, especially if the library is underfunded for reasons such as the area around being low-income. That is why many librarians may find the task of being more inclusive with library media can be difficult.


This is why finding low cost alternatives for books on the shelves is key to any library. There are many ways a librarian can adapt books to suit the needs of all patrons, in fact, librarians have been adapting books since 1854 for blind patrons according to Cathy Galyon. Some of these adapted story books may be in traditional format, but have interactive elements added on each page. Librarians can transform an existing storybook into a digital storybook using software like PowerPoint to add sounds or animation to the story, even adding a narrator’s voice that is reading the story out loud. Squishy books, books with tactile elements to them, are also a great way to adapt a book for a patron that may being seeing impaired.


These are just a few ways in which librarians can adapt books at low-cost to them without excluding others with disabilities. Using these low-cost adaptations can then become the key to having a disabled patron fall in love with reading.


Works Cited

Galyon, Cathy L., et al. “Access for All: Adapted Literacy Through Low-Tech Assistive Technology.” Children & Libraries: The Journal of the Association for Library Service to Children, vol. 21, no. 2, Summer 2023, pp. 22–27. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ezproxy.palomar.edu/10.5860/cal.21.2.22. 

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