Duxbury Braille Translation Software

Using Word and Duxbury Braille Translation (DBT) Software

Dates / Times

October 2021

Course Description

As part of the BEST Grant’s goals to support the implementation of braille instruction, technology and the production of quality braille materials, BEST is offering a training focused on creating braille materials with Duxbury Braille Translation Software. This training is intended for educators, paraprofessionals, and braille transcribers who produce braille materials for students who are blind or visually impaired. This multi-session training is designed to teach participants how to use SWIFT and the BANA template for Microsoft Word to prepare files for DBT Win. The course consists of four online sessions with five additional assignments to be completed independently.

Prerequisites

Intermediate skill level in Word and DBT is recommended, but not required.

Learning Objectives

  • Configure Microsoft Word (Options, Quick Access Toolbar)
  • Configure DBT (Embosser Setup, Import Options, Word Importer, Formatted Braille Importer)
  • Use SWIFT and the BANA braille template
  • Use styles to efficiently format documents for braille
  • Format print page numbers
  • Format headings
  • Format paragraphs
  • Format basic exercise material
  • Use Word's simple Find and Replace

Free Software for Your School District

The BEST Grant will provide the most recent version of Duxbury Braille Translation Software (DBT) (or will upgrade an older version of the software) to participants who complete all four sessions and additional assignments of the course to use in their school district/agency (one copy per district/agency). A single user license or upgrade of DBT will be emailed to you.

Logistics of the Training

This workshop will be presented online using Zoom, a platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars.

A laptop computer with a second external monitor will be shipped to you at the address of your choice for use in the training sessions. The computer will contain all the needed software and example files for the training. Paper handouts for the training sessions will also be included with the computer.

In order to use the computer, access to the internet through Wi-Fi or through an Ethernet cable is required. The internet connection should have at least 1 MBPS (megabit per second) or greater download capability.

After the training is completed, please pack the laptop, monitor and cords back in the case. An email will be sent to you with information on a UPS pickup date.

Participant Activity Assignments

Before First Session

1. Submit a .docx file you need to prepare for DBT. For example, the source file may be a file run through OCR (such as ABBYY FineReader or OmniPage), teacher prepared, personally typed, etc. NO MATH. Send the corresponding pdf or image file if the source file was prepared from paper copy or another file format (i.e., pdf, .jpg, .png, .tif, etc.).

a. Due Date: Friday, October 16, 2020 (5:00pm)

Four additional activities will be assigned after each session to allow participants time to apply the knowledge and practice the skills learned in each session.

Instructor

Susan Christensen, DBT Specialist. Email: chrn3292@gmail.com

Contact Hours

Fourteen (14) contact hours will be offered for completion of this course.

Registration

  • This workshop is limited to 15 participants
  • Deadline for registration: Coming soon
  • You must have a Lending Library account in order to register and be provided the equipment. By registering you are agreeing to return the equipment in a timely manner and in the condition it was received as well as any additional agreements per the Lending Library registration
  • Registration coming soon!

For more information contact Augusta Fisher at augusta_fisher@ocali.org