Microsoft Immersive Reader (Cult of Pedagogy)

     This is a highlight post from Cult of Pedagogy Blog by Jennifer Gonzalez, which discusses Microsoft Learning Tools, such as Immersive Reader. Microsoft has shifted towards an environment of inclusiveness, which is extremely exciting. In 2014, Satya Nadella became CEO of Microsoft and is committed to creating greater access for all people, due to her first born son having special needs. Now, Microsoft has created a learning tool, called Immersive Reader, whose intent is to help students with reading disabilities, such as dyslexia. Within the classroom, this tool allows for quality differentiation and personalized learning experiences for all students. This is done through various features, such as text size, spacing, narrowing line display, highlighting parts of speech, breaking words into syllables, changing the background color, text read aloud, and the picture dictionary.

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     It is possible to upload any PDF into OneNote, so that it can be read on Immersive Reader. Once the file is uploaded, the settings can be changed to fit the individual's preferences. As I've mentioned before, the text size and color can be changed. I have a student that is blind in one eye, so a bigger text size would be beneficial for him. I love this feature! In the picture below, the text was made larger and the background was changed to black. On the side of the picture, you can see the different color and size options.

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     The other feature I really like, is that the lines shown can be narrowed down to three, two, or one line. This is very beneficial for students who get overwhelmed when trying to read an entire page of text. My students with ADHD would benefit from this because they would be able to focus on one line at a time. 

     Finally, Immersive Reader has a picture dictionary. This feature allows the user to hover their cursor over a word, and a picture will show up and the word can be read aloud. This is a great feature for students who struggle with decoding words because it will show them a picture that goes with the word to help them figure it out. 

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     I was not aware the strides that Microsoft was making to ensure that technology and education are more inclusive for all students. I really love Immersive Reader from Microsoft and plan on using in my classroom, especially with my students who struggle a little more with reading. If you want to watch a tutorial about Immersive Reader click below!