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Maggie
You might consider making an audio guide. It would need to include vivid descriptions
of rooms/details before the information. You could include different voices if you
wanted to avoid the monovocal tour style (different experts maybe, or get some local
actors to read different historical characters). You could also make another version
for sighted people at the same time, but without the visual description. For limited
use these could be put on high street CD walkmen or mp3 players, but you may need to
consider big buttons and sticking things on them to make it easier to stop and play.
Partially sighted people may be able to cope alone, but blind people will still need
a friend or an assistant (volunteer? FOH straff?) to guide them from room to room.
You can adapt players to take two sets of headphones with a doubling plug, which
allows the assistant to keep track (big headphones are better and more hygenic than
in-ear ones that you get free with the players).
I have evaluated two partially sighted groups on oral history audio trails that I
constructed with the Museum of London for my doctoral thesis (see
www.memoryscape.org.uk )and the response from them was extremely positive.
If you have the time, it is quite possible to create something like this in-house, or
you could do the research in and get a freelance to look after the technical stuff if
you don't feel confident - the skills necessary are trail design,
scriptwriting/interviewing and sound editing.
If you need such help or just a bit of advice, get in touch. The Museums Association
are also planning a training day on creating audio guides for this summer - it is at
the planning stage at the moment. Best wishes
Toby Butler
Memoryscape
[log in to unmask] 01732 366670
-----Original Message-----
From: Social History Curators Group email list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Maggie Wood
Sent: 10 January 2007 11:57
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [SHCG-LIST] Interpretation for sight-impaired visitors
This is an email sent via the SHCG List. If you reply to this message, your message
will be sent to all the people on the list, not just the author of this message.
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Dear All -
As part of a refurbishment project, we want to tell visitors something about the
building our museum is actually in (a Grade 1 Listed Jacobean house - not grand, but
currently very ignored - and it's our biggest object, really!). We would like to
explore a little bit about the architecture and materials it's made from, and to look
at some of the stories of the many wierd and wonderful people who occupied the site.
All this in a very small space!
We need to provide interpretation for all our visitors but are very keen to find ways
of making the building meaningful for those who have difficulty in actually seeing
it. (We will obviously consult and take advice from people with sight impairment).
Does anyone have any experience of doing something similar - and would you be willing
to share your thoughts and ideas? Thanks in advance to anyone who is able to reply!
Best wishes,
Maggie Wood
Keeper of Social History
Warwickshire Museum Service
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