The second session I'm attending is Read:OutLoud Universal Access...Get IT! Read IT! Learn IT! - Oh the Possibilities. Read about the software here. I didn't realize that it was sponsored by a software company, Don Johnston, so hopefully it will not be a hard sell. Facilitator is Cortnee Snell. I'll receive a free copy of the software, and will be comparing the features to what comes free in Microsoft Office.
You can import files: web pages, pdfs, Word docs, and a few others. It will read word at a time, sentence at a time, or the whole passage. The audio sounds mechanical, but perhaps a bit better than the built in reader in Microsoft Office. You can change the rate, pitch and volume of the voice. You can also use the built-in dictionary for any word in the selection. There are different colored highlighters for identification of main points and supporting details. There is also a note taking tool for paraphrasing and a bibliographer.
The teacher side of the program allows the teacher to assign assignments and look at student work. Sounds like you need the "networked version" to see student work from a different computer than the one used by the student. There's got to be a similar web-based reader available to take away the logistical issues of downloading the program to a limited number of computers and how to conveniently get access to students who need it in many different classrooms while following copyright/licensing restrictions.
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