Bookshare.org is making literature available in a variety of formats for children with special needs.
Inspired by Napster, the music-sharing service, Bookshare turns books into a format that can be read aloud by computers, magnified, and spaced differently so that students with vision problems or learning disabilities can read them. They’re even available at the same time new releases reach bookstore shelves, unlike typical audiobooks.
Its services are an example of how e-book technology, taking off with consumers, has powerful potential for students who previously relied on more cumbersome and more difficult-to-obtain alternatives to the traditional book.
For schoolchildren, Bookshare is free, underwritten by a $32 million infusion from the U.S. Department of Education four years ago that’s led to 150,000 student Bookshare memberships across the nation.
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