An upgraded, enhanced version of CAST s former product, ULTimate Reader, eReader makes electronic text accessible to readers of all abilities by providing optional spoken voice with synchronized highlighting for digital text, whether on disk or the Internet. Users can customize CAST eReader in a variety of ways to fit their learning needs, including choosing the volume, speed, and pitch of read-aloud voices, and highlighting text by word, line, sentence or paragraph, among many other features.
Learners can also turn off the spoken voice so that they pace themselves with the highlighting.
Because it is universally designed, eReader allows students with different back-grounds, learning styles, and abilities to use the same curricular materials within inclusive classrooms. CAST eReader is the first tool to be released under CAST s ResearchWare line, products that emerge from CAST s ongoing research in Universal Design for Learning . According to Chuck Hitchcock, the director of CAST s Universal Design Laboratory, CAST is just beginning to mine eReader s potential. Access to content is just the foundation, he says. We are now focusing on how to improve learning within supported reading environments.