Exploring the Influence of Reading Medium on Braille Learning Outcomes: A Case Series of Six Working-Age and Older Adults

Six adults with no previous knowledge of braille were introduced to braille letters on paper and on a refreshable braille display. The braille display led to slightly better accuracy and speed than learning on paper, especially for older adults with a poorer sense of touch in their finger tips. However, all participants were able to successfully learn symbols on both paper and on the braille display and could transfer what they learned to the opposite format.

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This is an audio summary of the article, Exploring the influence of reading medium on braille learning outcomes: A case series of six working-age and older adults, published in British Journal of Visual Impairment in 2022.

Exploring the Influence of Reading Medium on Braille Learning Outcomes: A Case Series of Six Working-Age and Older Adults

Why does this study matter?

Today, braille can be read on paper and on refreshable braille displays. Braille displays are electronic devices that raise and lower small pins to form braille symbols. Although braille displays are usually expensive, lower cost models now put them in reach of more adult learners. Braille display dots are firmer and stand higher than the braille dots embossed on paper. This might help people who learn braille later in life, when the sense of touch in our finger tips has usually declined. No one had tested this yet with adult learners.

What did we ask?

We asked three questions. First, whether beginners learn to identify braille letters faster and more accurately on a display than on paper. Second, what happens when a learner switches from one format to the other. Third, whether the answer depends on how sensitive a person's fingertips are.

Who took part?

Six adults took part, aged twenty-three to seventy-seven. Three were over sixty-five. None had ever read braille before. We measured how sensitive each person's fingertips were.

What did we do?

Each person came for sessions on two different days. We taught four braille letters at a time. Half the group were introduced to those letters on paper and half read them on a display. Everyone then read the same letters again in the other format. Some lines held single letters and some held letters in pairs. We timed how long it took people to read each line and counted the letters read correctly.

What we found

People read slightly faster on the display than on paper, and slightly more accurately. The difference was small for single letters. It was large for letters in pairs, where reading was about a quarter faster on the display. Switching formats set no one back. People were usually faster and a little more accurate the second time, which makes sense since they already had some practice. The braille display helped most for the older adults whose finger tips were least sensitive. Everyone was able to successfully read on both paper and on the braille display, including the three participants over sixty-five.

What this could mean

For rehabilitation professionals who teach braille to adults, a display may be helpful at the start of learning for older learners with a poorer sense of touch in their fingers. Starting on a display does not appear to make it harder to read on paper later, though both formats are practiced from the start. Paper still matters for everyday tasks like reading braille labels and lists, or for reading a physical braille book. Although some people assume that older learners will struggle with braille on paper because of their sense of touch, this study shows that all participants were able to successfully read braille symbols on both formats, even the older learners with the poorest sense of touch. Companies that develop braille displays should consider the needs and preferences of older learners who may benefit from these tools. As these devices become more available, they can provide motivating access to reading materials during braille literacy instruction for adults.

What happens next?

Not all the letters we used in this study were similar. The second set included letters with more dots, which may make a difference for beginner learners with a poorer sense of touch. We will balance this in future. Real braille instruction takes a few months rather than a few days, and braille reading involves more than identifying individual letters. We need longer studies to explore the possible advantages of a braille display for learners with a poorer sense of touch, and to explore the differences between learning on a braille display and learning on paper. Our sample was small, because the pandemic cut recruitment short. Overall, this study suggests that a braille display can be especially helpful for older learners with a poor sense of touch in their fingers, but that all the adult learners who participated could learn to read letters on both formats.

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Why does this study matter?

Today, braille can be read on paper and on refreshable braille displays. Braille displays are electronic devices that raise and lower small pins to form braille symbols. Although braille displays are usually expensive, lower cost models now put them in reach of more adult learners. Braille display dots are firmer and stand higher than the braille dots embossed on paper. This might help people who learn braille later in life, when the sense of touch in our finger tips has usually declined. No one had tested this yet with adult learners.

What did we ask?

We asked three questions. First, whether beginners learn to identify braille letters faster and more accurately on a display than on paper. Second, what happens when a learner switches from one format to the other. Third, whether the answer depends on how sensitive a person's fingertips are.

Who took part?

Six adults took part, aged twenty-three to seventy-seven. Three were over sixty-five. None had ever read braille before. We measured how sensitive each person's fingertips were.

What did we do?

Each person came for sessions on two different days. We taught four braille letters at a time. Half the group were introduced to those letters on paper and half read them on a display. Everyone then read the same letters again in the other format. Some lines held single letters and some held letters in pairs. We timed how long it took people to read each line and counted the letters read correctly.

What we found

People read slightly faster on the display than on paper, and slightly more accurately. The difference was small for single letters. It was large for letters in pairs, where reading was about a quarter faster on the display. Switching formats set no one back. People were usually faster and a little more accurate the second time, which makes sense since they already had some practice. The braille display helped most for the older adults whose finger tips were least sensitive. Everyone was able to successfully read on both paper and on the braille display, including the three participants over sixty-five.

What this could mean

For rehabilitation professionals who teach braille to adults, a display may be helpful at the start of learning for older learners with a poorer sense of touch in their fingers. Starting on a display does not appear to make it harder to read on paper later, though both formats are practiced from the start. Paper still matters for everyday tasks like reading braille labels and lists, or for reading a physical braille book. Although some people assume that older learners will struggle with braille on paper because of their sense of touch, this study shows that all participants were able to successfully read braille symbols on both formats, even the older learners with the poorest sense of touch. Companies that develop braille displays should consider the needs and preferences of older learners who may benefit from these tools. As these devices become more available, they can provide motivating access to reading materials during braille literacy instruction for adults.

What happens next?

Not all the letters we used in this study were similar. The second set included letters with more dots, which may make a difference for beginner learners with a poorer sense of touch. We will balance this in future. Real braille instruction takes a few months rather than a few days, and braille reading involves more than identifying individual letters. We need longer studies to explore the possible advantages of a braille display for learners with a poorer sense of touch, and to explore the differences between learning on a braille display and learning on paper. Our sample was small, because the pandemic cut recruitment short. Overall, this study suggests that a braille display can be especially helpful for older learners with a poor sense of touch in their fingers, but that all the adult learners who participated could learn to read letters on both formats.