Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to create Accessible Digital Textbooks for Inclusive Learning in Uruguay

• In Event: Making Digital Learning Work from offline servers to AI powered content - lessons from implementation research in humanitarian and development settings

Proposal

Children with disabilities are significantly more likely than their peers to be excluded from education and learning opportunities. Many education systems and schools struggle to provide inclusive educational experiences, where children with and without disabilities can learn together, due to a lack of materials, inadequate capacity and other barriers.

This research project focuses on embedding implementation research into the Accessible Digital Textbooks for All initiative, which aims to develop digital tools with accessibility features to enable all children, with and without disabilities, to learn in the same classroom. Ensuring that educational resources are inclusive is critical for fostering equitable learning environments where every student can thrive.

This paper is the first that explores the use of Artificial Intellegence to support the development of accessible digital content for the project in Uruguay. The research follows the content development together with OpenAI and the government of Uruguay to the contents use in classrooms.

The project seeks to identify best practices for creating and integrating accessible digital textbooks in diverse classroom settings, examining the effectiveness of these digital tools through qualitative and quantitative research methods and focusing on factors such as user engagement, teacher preparedness, and the adaptability of the technology to different educational contexts.

Authors

• Aldo Rodriguez, ANEP

• Marta Carnelli

• Mauro Carballo Rodriguez, Ceibal