The Kindle Costs and Our message to Amazon.
Q: What did the Kindle Experience cost the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Group ?
A: Money, time and willingness to take risks.
To readers of this blog who might think, “Our aphasia group could never do something like this, it’s too difficult!”, the CVAG says, “We’ve learned to make a plan and try it!” If there is motivation, interest and cooperation,a project such as this is achieveable and beneficial.
Here are our costs: Kindle 2 -$ 359.00 Kindle cover $29.99, shipping $7.97, 2 year warranty $68.58. (Total $465.64) Books and newspapers purchased thus far: $310.00. Kindle Coaching hours: 54 hours. These are volunteer hours. They are non-reimbursed but invaluable to the process. Kindle Coaches rate this experience as personally valuable and clinically useful. The Coaches met to discuss methods for interacting with test drivers and ways to facilitate adult learning. Our planning time allowed us to consider important concepts of motivation, physical effort, complexity in learning and social connection. Time for these discussions was carved from our daily, evening and weekend schedules. When we develop the next project, we will attempt to capture some funding for training and data management.
Q- What are some new ideas that have come from this project ?
A- Make a plan and work together.
The Kindle test drive experience allowed people with aphasia to sample a new technology. The CVAG and staff worked together to provide financial resources and human support. The process was inspiring because it revealed that a small community of motivated individuals can accomplish much. The CVAG developed an action plan to raise funds. Kindle Test Drivers made individual action plans to define their work with this reading machine. At the end of each action plan was a question and a statement:
“What new ideas do you have ?” and “I’d like to try….” the Kindle Test Drivers new ideas are summarized below:
1. Consider personal purchases of the Kindle
2. Use the Kindle in a book club
3. Improve the text to speech function
4. Compile a list of books and aphasia friendly topic lists for CVAG
5. Spell out how to get free books for a Kindle for CVAG
6. Use the dictionary feature more in Kindle training
7. Use Wikipedia more in Kindle training
8. Write a letter to Amazon.
Clinical ideas, listed by the Kindle Coaches are summarized below:
1. Working together on a ‘project of interest’ generates great topics of conversation
2. CVAG members and Staff should consider writing reviews of books read and making booklist suggestions. The Kindle Coaches have completed searches on free books / public domain books and we are in the process of building booklists. This task seems necessary, but overwhelming.
3. Kindle Coaching could help improve participation in book clubs
4. Action Plans, collaboratively built around a topic of strong motivational interest, really work!
5. Sending PDF’s to the Kindle Test Drivers was a great way to encourage language practice.
6. New technology should be available to our Aphasia Group members. Exploring and using it could be managed with a Kindle Coaching approach.
Jeff Bezos emailed this to purchasers of the Kindle on 4-16-2009
“Our top design objective was for Kindle to disappear in your hands – to get out of the way—so you can enjoy reading. We hope you’ll quickly forget you’re reading on an advanced wireless device and instead be transported into that mental realm readers love, where the outside world dissolves, leaving only the author’s stories, words and ideas.”
P.S. Please do share your thoughts and comments with us. You can send them to the Kindle team at Kindle-feedback@amazon.com — we’d very much love to hear what you think.”
Dear Jeff Bezos.
When the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Group purchased the Kindle2, you sent a welcoming email. You said that you wanted the Kindle to “disappear in your hands – to get out of the way—so you can enjoy reading.” Those words were inspiring. Technology should not put barriers between the user and the purpose for which it is being used. Our Aphasia Group wants to thank you for Amazon’s efforts to make reading more accessible. We think that with some design modifications, the Kindle will help reading be more enjoyable and accessible for everyone.
First of all, the text to speech needs a better voice with more intonation control. The rate of speech also needs to be more finely adjusted. When speech was slower, our test drivers did not require as many repetitions to understand the information. We would also suggest that readers be given the option have text highlighted as it was being read.
The text to speech engine needs to be smarter. When reading Reader’s digest, the spaces between lines were at times marked with asterisks. The present speech engine read these asterisks aloud: “asterisk,asterisk,asterisk”. This was annoying, but also disruptive. One cannot concentrate on reading if their auditory processing is disrupted by needless noise.
Button navigation did not appear difficult for our Kindle test drivers. Our test drivers were able to change font size, activate text-to-speech and drive from the home page to the menu to the bookstore with minimal assistance. The 5 way controller presented a few challenges, but with a little help each test driver mastered it. Our test drivers were uncertain if a touch screen would be needed. We wonder, and we would be glad to try out a Kindle with a touch screen if you are developing one.
Finally, we want to say that using the Kindle was very enjoyable. All test drivers said that the downloading of books into the Kindle was a “dream come true”. We want to thank you for offering this new way to access reading.
The Kindle that the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Group purchased will be used on a sign out basis for group members to explore alone or with a Kindle Coach.
All the best
The Chippewa Valley Aphasia Group
