Towards Designing Digital Learning Tools for Students with Cortical/Cerebral Visual Impairments: Leveraging Insights from Teachers of the Visually Impaired

Cortical/cerebral visual impairment (CVI) is a neurological vision impairment that affects the visual processing centers of the brain. Digital learning tools are becoming increasingly popular in schools, but limited research has examined how tools can help students with CVI, who have distinct academic needs. To better understand how tools should be designed to help students with CVI, we interviewed 20 U.S.-based Teachers of the Visually Impaired (TVIs) who worked with students with CVI. We found that our participants analyzed highly specific information about students’ visual, learning, social, and environmental needs to create accommodations for academic materials, most of which they created on their own. Participants shared design critiques of existing digital learning tools and felt that well-designed tools could save them time and improve learning opportunities for their students. We provide design considerations for tools that can be effectively used by students with CVI.