Group items tagged

Disability Rights Wisconsin is an advocacy and protection group for individuals with disabilities (http://www.disabilityrightswi.org). The aims of the group are outlined clearly on the "About Us" page. In addition to providing these services, it also aims to provide access to services through advocacy and legal expertise. It achieves these goals by providing information that is easily accessed on the website such as resources and a direct link to access services from Disability Rights Wisconsin. The information available through the website is relevant and provides answers to common questions by outlining priority issues that DRW staff can assist with, program list, who to contact and how to contact them, and types of issues that the agency is not able to help with. The information on the website appears to all come from credible sources such as from laws, government, and overlooked by staff and board members. There are links provided to additional resources on the "Links" page for further reading and information. The website is maintained and updated on a regular basis, and new information is posted on the home page. Overall, the website does appear to meet quality standards in accordance to the Discern instrument, as well as the Hoss-Hanson article.

The Disability.gov website is the federal government web portal whose purpose is to provide comprehensive information on disability programs and services nationwide in order to connect people of all abilities to the resources they need to fully participate in their communities. It achieves this purpose by providing over 14,000 links to federal, state, and local government agencies, academic institutions, and nonprofit organizations. The Disability.gov website is managed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) which reviews web content and links voluntarily. I found Disability.gov to be a valuable website full of reliable and unbiased information in the areas of benefits, civil rights, community life, education, emergency preparedness, employment, health, housing, technology, and transportation for individuals with disabilities, their families, Veterans, caregivers, employers, educators, and others. The Disability.gov website scored a strong "5" on the Discern Instrument and also performed well on the Hoss and Hansen (2008) website review.

The National Center for Learning Disabilities, www.ncld.org, provides information for children and adults with disabilities. There is information specific to LD, however, there are also links provided for the rights of students with a learning disability and parents with a child with a learning disability. It continues to provide information for adults as they continue in life with a learning disability.

This website if for Tobii ATI which is an international assistive technology company that provides communication programs/applications for consumers with disabilities. The programs they produce are meant to provide a speaking device that tracks eye movement when it looks at a certain phrase on a screen. This mission is apparent with the tagline "Independence with an Eye" which is right next to the company logo in the middle of the homepage. The website it set up to provide information about all of the Tobii products and is meant to group their information into various links or tabs that a consumer would have to click through. However the website is very structured and neat it could provide too much information for a consumer. Tobii organizes the website to have a consumer move simultaneously through the tabs near the top to get a better understanding of their products and how it could assist a person with a disability. The Products tab is the clearest on the website since it group every product into a nice group and explains it's function. This is the section that could be the most appealing to a consumer because it shows the product logo, name, and functionality. This tab is best suited to show the consumer the basics of the product they are researching. As a whole the website is very expansive and fitting of an international company. If a consumer is hoping that a Tobii product can help them with an assistive technology need this website would provide lots of information but might not address specific, personal questions. It is a well designed website that provides a wealth of information that could be helpful to some consumers and overwhelming to others.

The FCTD is a resource designed to help those that work with children or adults with disabilities or families of loved ones with disabilities. In the resource section there are over 1000 reviews of products and websites that pertain to AT. The FCTD operates entirely through program support from the Department of Education'sOffice of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and it is managed by a partnership of organizations, including Adirondack Accessibility, Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights (PACER) and the Center on Disability at the Public Health Institute. Their Board of Advisors are many well-known names that specialize in AT, including David Edyburn and Joe Zabala.