IssieBoard vs INSTRUCT_RERConAAC

IssieBoard is an accessible, fully customizable iOS keyboard, developed by Beit Issie Shapiro Technology Consulting Center in collaboration with SAP Labs, Israel. Designed for individuals with learning disabilities, visual impairments, motor impairments, or cognitive challenges - and for anyone learning to type - IssieBoard puts powerful personalization in the hands of caregivers, educators, and therapists. Setup is quick and simple. After downloading IssieBoard, go to iOS Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards > Add New Keyboard, and add the IssieBoard keyboards you would like to use. Then select one of the IssieBoard keyboards and enable Allow Full Access. Once enabled, IssieBoard is available in any app that uses the keyboard - just tap the globe key to switch to it. POWERFUL CUSTOMIZATION • Key colors - set the color of keys, letters, and background across the entire keyboard • Zone & row styling - apply different colors to rows, or to left/center/right sections • Per-key styling - highlight individual keys with their own color • “Show only” - show only the letters you choose; all others are hidden, perfect for practicing specific words • Font control - choose letter size and font weight for any key group • Word suggestions – turn on intelligent word completion and next-word prediction as you type HEBREW & ARABIC SUPPORT • Full Hebrew keyboard with nikud (diacritics) support - tap a letter to get a pop-up, or use the dedicated nikud top row above the keyboard • Arabic keyboard with harakat support BUILT FOR REAL USE • Works as a standard iOS system keyboard - available in any app across the entire system • Instant live preview of every change you make • Multiple keyboard profiles - create and duplicate keyboards for different users • Share keyboards for easy integration across devices WHO USES ISSIEBOARD? IssieBoard is used by occupational therapists, special education teachers, parents, and individuals themselves. It adapts to a wide range of needs from high contrast and large keys for visual impairments, to limited-letter layouts for early typists.

Create short trainings using research backed teaching methods quickly. The app leads the user through creating a checklist of the steps necessary to complete a task and adding video models for each of those steps. INSTRUCT was built to answer the problem that communication partners are often unfamiliar and untrained in AAC, so they preempt opportunities for communication and participation. Current training approaches for partner training are generally inefficient (e.g. one-on-one training) or ineffective due to not being personalized or limited in scope and reach. Our answer is this user-friendly app for creating partner trainings to teach partners AAC strategies. We do this by prompting the user to break a strategy down into step by step instructions creating a checklist and to add video demonstrations of each step. This app has bene evaluated for usability of the app and effectiveness of the trainings we are prompting users to make. We are still waiting on data for usability, but the trainings have bene shown to significantly increase the partners' strategy use and significantly increase successful interaction with someone who uses AAC. Many of the trainings will be made freely available via an online library currently in progress. URL will be added once the online library design has been finalized. This application was developed under a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR grant number 90REGE0014) to the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Augmentative and Alternative Communication (RERC on AAC). NIDILRR is a Center within the Administration for Community Living (ACL), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). This application does not necessarily represent the policy of NIDILRR, ACL, or HHS, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.