The Croatian constitution guarantees equal access to education for all, regardless of disability. The Marrakesh Treaty seeks to improve access and cross-border exchange of accessible educational materials for blind, visually impaired, and print-disabled individuals.
Unfortunately, students with visual impairments often face challenges accessing educational materials in accessible formats.
Adapting literature into a digital format accessible to visually impaired individuals is a complex process. It begins with analysing the book and determining the adaptation method. Next, any added content not part of the original material such as notes, pencil markings, or underlining is removed. The book is then scanned and the digital version is processed using specialist software like ABBYY FineReader. The literature is then exported into an accessible format (e.g., Word) and customised according to user needs (font size, spacing, hyperlinks). A visually impaired person using a screen reader then reviews the adapted book for any remaining errors before it’s delivered to the student and their chosen partner, such as a library.
