Procedures of acquiring and employing assistive technology to offer electronic information services for people with visual disabilities in the library of dr. Ahmed Ourwa at Amir Abdelkader University for Islamic Sciences, Constantine

Abstract

This study aims to uncover the methods of acquiring and using assistive technology for persons with visual disabilities in Dr. Ahmed Erwa central Library at Amir Abdelkader University for Islamic Sciences in Constantine. We followed the case study, and we used the interview, the observation, and the questionnaire to collect the data.

The study population included of the central library administrator, visually impaired students, and professors, who were estimated at 12 individuals, in addition to the technical Specialist, and the permanent volunteer in the office of the blind located in the central library.

Among the most important results of the study are the following, the central library offers some free and proprietary assistive technologies, but without using them effectively in providing electronic information services. The acquisition of this technology follows most of the procedures adopted in many countries of the world.

Unfortunately, it has ignored to study the needs of the beneficiaries even though it is a basic stage and affects the degree of use of this technology by this category, Both the technical Specialist and volunteers work to assist users in using this technology. But his happens in the absence of a librarian to provide services and train them to access information. This library also supports the idea of cooperating with central libraries in the field of providing information services. As for students and professors, they want to obtain basic electronic information services, and take advantage of available technologies in a systematic way that enables them to access scientific information available in both traditional and electronic environments.