With the advent of digital technologies, k12 schools, colleges, and universities are adopting new ways to deliver an optimal educational experience for all students, including those who are deaf or hard-of-hearing (deaf/HH). However, there are several challenges in creating a successful learning environment for Deaf/HH students. Some of these challenges include: access to available and qualified sign language interpreters and captioners, lack of note-taking services, and the physical layouts of classrooms that create issues for the student to see their interpreter or captions while remaining engaged with instructor and peers. This lack of qualified and specialized resources not only hinders the educational journey of Deaf/HH students but also makes it difficult for educational institutions to maintain compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

To address these challenges, SignGlasses, a Utah-based company, offers schools a patented technology that enables students to access live sign language interpretation and captioning services through a pair of smart glasses and other mobile devices. They also offer the ability for students to record and replay their lectures with an overlay of the sign language interpretation or captions at a later time. Interestingly, students can bookmark and search notes taken during their classes.

By providing a package that comprises a pair of smart glasses, tablet, and microphones that are integrated with a web-based platform, SignGlasses streams the interpretation and captioning of the lecture to the students’ chosen mobile devices. Administrators and coordinators, on the other hand, can easily manage the logistics associated with the provision of these services through a centralized dashboard. This integrated offering solves the longstanding logistical challenges of coordinating these services, overcomes the historical lack of available and qualified interpreters and captioners, and provides easier access to practitioners with specialized skill sets.

“Our clients, which include schools and businesses across the nation, appreciate the simple login, click and go option to start their sign language interpretation and captioning sessions,” says Brandon Arthur, CEO of SignGlasses. “Users can quickly place a service request on the platform at any time day or night. Requests are quickly booked by one of the many credentialed service providers connected to the platform.”