Susan Semancik
The final testing was about to begin. This would ultimately determine the success of our months of work in preparing the package of programs using the Manual Alphabet Tutorial on the PET computer (See COMPUTE Issue #3). Who could better judge the usefulness and effectiveness of a computerized signing program than the coordinators and students involved in a summer session to teach handicapped honor high school students from all over the country about marine biology?
Members of the Delmarva Computer Club had been at the Marine Science Center the summer before when the signers there had helped to review the original drawings of the handshapes used to form the letters of the alphabet for the deaf on the PET computer's screen. But, this would be the signers' First opportunity to see the signs incorporated into computerized teaching programs and to evaluate the finished product. Dr. Ed Keller, director of the handicapped program, invited the Club to participate in their communication's workshop. One of the goals of the workshop was to help the students who were non-signers to communicate with those who were signers. This was no small feat when you consider the students' handicaps included blindness, deafness, orthopedic handicaps, and in some cases, multiple handicaps.
So, it was with a mixture of anticipation and reservation that we carried our equipment and programs into the workshop on that summer evening. As can be seen in the pictures, handicapped students, Club members and their families, all enjoyed the variety of computer programs demonstrated during the workshop. We were especially pleased with the students' responses to the programs in the Manual Alphabet Tutorial package, which are designed to teach and strengthen fingerspelling skills from several different approaches: learning all 26 signs together, learning them in groups of five with cumulative or separate tests, learning them in groups of user determined size and starting letter, learning them in groups of five with cumulative or separate tests, learning them in groups of five with cumulative or separate tests, learning them in groups of user determined letter combinations, and recognizing the fingerspelling of words at user determined rates.
Different students had preferences for different approaches and the variety available seemed to satisfy the needs of the students at the workshop. We knew our programs would not be able to be used by all students at the Center. For instance, the blind would not be able to see the signs on the PET's screen, and those with crippled hands would not be able to form the signs. None of the Club members participating in the demonstration could believe the enthusiasm, comraderie and concentration exhibited by the students in either learning to sign the alphabet or helping those who were just starting to learn. Even those students who have been signing for many years enjoyed seeing how fast they could make the computer fingerspell words while they still maintained comprehension. One young man attained an almost unbelievable speed where we could no longer distinguish the individual signs and yet he was able to identify the words perfectly and typed them confidently into the computer. It was a joy for all of us to see such positive reactions! Even those instructors with doubts as to how fingerspelling could flow naturally enough from a computer for rapid recognition soon had no reservations in the face of such apparent success.
This completed package of seven programs using the Manual Alphabet Tutorial on either an Old or New ROM 8K PET is also being tested by independent groups who will be reporting on the reactions of students and clients in their own applications of the programs.
We welcome any suggestions for improvements or expansion of the programs and will update free anyone's copy of the program who is first to suggest changes that we implement in future editions. All inquiries and suggestions should be made through Jean Trafford, Secretary, P.O. Box 36, Wallops Island, VA 23337.
The Delmarva Computer Club is marketing the complete package for $49.95, with proceeds being used to fund other Club projects. The package also includes documentation, a sample word file to be used with the fingerspelling program, and a DA TA MAKER program that enables people without programming experience to easily create their own word files.
C. Marshall Curtis, program chairman for the Dclmarva Club, helped to coordinate these activities. He provides some personal impressions and observations:
As we drove in to the Marine Science Center which is located next door to NASA, Wallops Flight Center, 1 was more than a lillle apprehensive. I'd heard that each summer they hold classes for handicapped students. Of course I'd seen blind students, deaf students, and students in wheelchairs and on crutches, but all in one classroom, never! "I'll have to be careful", I thought. "In any case, Susan has been here before and she'll know what to do."
What to do first was to unload our CBM PET and some peripheral equipment and start setting it up. About this time, Bob Hinds, executive director of the Marine Science Center and treasurer of the Dclmarva Computer Club, walked in with his PET. Susan loaded the Manual Alphabet Tutorial in both PETs and the "kids" gathered around full of curiosity and questions. David, who is blind, stuck his hand in a box and announced, "Here are some cassette tapes for your computer!"
Soon some of the deaf students were passing the test at the end of the tutorial, A deaf boy who had never learned "finger spelling" and a student in a wheelchair we're busy looking first at the signs on the PET screen and then forming the same letters with their own fingers.
What to do next was sit back in amazement as I began to see deaf students forming letters on the hands of blind students and the blind kids signing back to them. What I had not expected was the way they would be helping each other, their obvious sense of humor, and their eagerness to learn about computer hardware and programming as well as the manual alphabet and marine science.
By the time we were setting up for our third visit with the physically handicapped students at the Marine Science Center I felt quite at home. I also had learned that the official name is The Marine Science Consortium Inc. (TMSC). It's a non-profit corporation which was incorporated in 1971. The member institutions are twelve state colleges in Pennsylvania, American University and Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and West Virginia University. The Consortium's facilities include classrooms, laboratories, dormitories, cafeteria, library, recreation rooms, and two research vessels.
Dr. Ed Keller was there, as usual, and 1 noticed that he had a special way with the students. This time, a wheelchair bandit made off with Dr. Keller's crutch. In addition to being a friend to the students, Dr. Keller is professor of biology at West Virginia University and director of this summer program in marine science for outstanding handicapped students. Each year during the month of July, llih and 12th grade students meet to learn from each other, from college instructors, and from field trips and laboratory sessions. They study marsh and beach ecology, shipboard techniques, physical oceanography, marine biology, etc.
Most of these kids arc more familiar with the mountains, plains, and cities of the United Slates than with salt marshes and salt water. Here they have a chance to explore the marshes, bays, sand dunes and beaches around Wallops Island, Chincoteague Island, and the Assateague Island National Seashore Park.
Yes, these kids are physically handicapped, but they have a lot of fun and learn a lot.I'm sure those of us who had an opportunity to interact with them enjoyed it and learned much from them, too. _
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