As part of our Malawi feasibility work we are also exploring two schools serving blind and low-vision students, alongside our deaf school deployment. Sharing some findings in case they help others working in this space.
What we tested:
We ran NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access), the leading free screen reader for Windows, against RACHEL Plus content. NVDA reads web content through a virtual buffer and relies on semantic structure like headings, landmarks, and navigation markers, to allow a blind user to orient within a page.
RACHEL Plus content currently renders as continuous unstructured text in NVDA. A blind student can hear the content read aloud but has no way to navigate within it or find what they are looking for. This is not a criticism of RACHEL, it reflects how most web content is built, and adding semantic accessibility to a content library of this scale is a significant undertaking.
We understand World Possible is working toward multilingual support and broader content improvements, and we hope accessibility is part of that roadmap. We would love to see RACHEL become a tool for blind learners; the offline model is exactly what these schools need.
Our current approach for the blind schools:
We are using EPUB format content delivered via the Paperback app directly from laptop hard drives. EPUB provides the heading structure and navigation NVDA needs. Malawi has ratified the Marrakesh Treaty, which enables legal conversion of Ministry of Education textbooks to accessible EPUB format.
Happy to share more about this approach for anyone working with visually impaired students in low-connectivity environments.
Lastly, we would love to see World Possible expand into accessible content for blind and deaf learners when the funding comes together. The offline model is exactly what these students need, and WildTech would be glad to contribute what we are learning to that effort.
Thank you to World Possible for all they do!
Steven Popovich
International Development Director