INDEPENDENT LABORATORY ACCESS FOR THE BLIND (ILAB): Talking Tools That Enable Blind Students to Pursue Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Careers ILAB intends to raise the expectations of blind and visually impaired (VI) high school and college students, as well as educators of these students, with the goal of encouraging them to consider careers in STEM professions.

Laboratory tools and techniques are being developed at Penn State, Truman State, and at the Indiana School for the Blind (ISB).

The ILAB project applies existing adaptive tools to the general chemistry laboratory and is also developing new ones. The software interface Logger Pro, which interfaces to commonly used laboratory probes is being used in conjunction with a PC along with the speech output software package JAWS. These existing laboratory tools assist students in identifying and manipulating chemicals and glassware, weighing samples, and recording data from laboratory instruments. In adapting the ISB chemistry laboratory curriculum, several new tools are being developed that will enable students to "see" chemical reactions. One is a talking color identifier, based on a cellular phone camera. Another is a immersible light sensor that can be used to monitor the formation of precipitates and color changes in real time. Our emphasis is on inexpensive, general purpose tools that can be made from readily accessible components.