Availability and utilization of assistive technologies for sustainable education among visually impaired students in selected colleges of education in Zambia

The study sought to determine the availability and utilization of assistive technologies for sustainable education among students with visual impairments in selected colleges of education in Zambia. The study answered the following research questions: What are the assistive technologies available for students with visual impairments for sustainable education? Are available assistive technologies utilized? What measures should be considered to enhance the utilization of assistive technologies? A case study design was used. The sample size was 20 of which 12 were visually impaired students, and 8 were lecturers. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data and thematic analysis was used to analyze data. The study revealed that a limited number of assistive technologies were available due to the high cost of the devices and difficulty in importation of gadgets from other countries. The study revealed that 65.6% of the visually impaired students used no-tech devices that do not have electronic devices such as braille slate, styluses, cubes, and abacuses, 25% used low-tech devices and 9.4% used high-tech devices (computers, tablets, smart phones, and JAWS software). To enhance learning sustainability, the government and other stakeholders should provide assistive technologies. The study recommends that lecturers should be trained in assistive technology thereby enhancing learning sustainability.