The common perception of public libraries being quiet houses of books is changing. People have begun to realize that library collections include more than just books, but also DVDs, board games, music, and a variety of magazines and newspapers. As public libraries strive to meet the needs of each person, regardless of age, socio-economic background, race, religion, ability or gender, we are pleased to reveal one of our newest partnerships with the Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA).
CELA offers a variety of accessible reading formats to meet the range of needs expressed by individuals with print disabilities. These formats include audiobooks, braille (contracted and uncontracted, and e-braille – cool eh?), and e-text that can be used with preferred adaptive technologies including a screen reader or magnifier.
This partnership has greatly expanded our collection, providing specialized reading material for individuals with “print disabilities” — a general term that describes a disability that makes it difficult to use traditional print material like a book or newspaper. Print disabilities include: visual disabilities (vision loss or blindness), physical disabilities (that make it difficult to hold or manipulate a book), and learning disabilities (related to comprehension, such as dyslexia).
As each individual’s abilities and preferences vary, CELA offers a variety of accessible reading formats to meet the range of needs expressed by individuals with print disabilities. These formats include audiobooks, braille (contracted and uncontracted, and e-braille – cool eh?), and e-text that can be used with preferred adaptive technologies including a screen reader or magnifier.
If you are not comfortable with computers or tablets, you can order reading material via telephone and have it delivered to your door in the mail or pick it up at your local public library. If you (or a loved one, or caregiver) is comfortable with technology, you can access the entire CELA collection online with access to over 500,000 books (including best sellers), 150 magazines, and 50 newspapers – many of which are in several accessible formats. CELA offers material in both English and French languages.
Do you know someone who might benefit from these services? If you would like more information about these services, please contact the Provincial Resource Library at (709) 737-3955. You can also check out CELA’s website http://iguana.celalibrary.ca or learn more about our accessible collection at https://nlpl.ca/use-the-library/accessible-library-sevices.html. To keep up with what is happening at Newfoundland and Labrador Public Libraries across the province, follow our Twitter handle @NLPubLibraries and visit your local library’s Facebook page frequently.
Website: www.nlpl.ca
Twitter: @NLPubLibraries
