Armenianow.com
July 16, 2004
Sound for Sight: Armenian computer program opens doors for visually impaired
By Julia Hakobyan ArmeniaNow reporter
Recently Hayk Papikyan has developed a passion for his computer, scanner and
a program called “AREV” and is eager to show off the way by which the
combination of the three are making his life more enjoyable.
“Look here,” he says carefully grouping the keys. “I am scanning the page of
the book, then launch AREV and that’s it. It reads for me.”
Hayk Papikyan and his tools for “seeing”.
AREV is a recently developed, unprecedented audio program in Armenian
language for the visually impaired. The brainchild of scientists of the
Yerevan Computer Research and Development Institute (YCRDI), the program
allows the blind to use Armenian websites, communicate via e-mail or listen
to books or other information written in Microsoft Word.
Hayk, age 22, is one of 18 who completed AREV lessons organized by the
YCRDI. He lost his sight when he was 14, after complications with influenza.
Despite the unexpected problems, he strongly decided to continue his
education.
Hayk moved from the ninth grade of his school to a Yerevan boarding school
for blind children, where he learned the Braille system. Upon finishing
school he successfully passed three university exams and now he is at the
second course of the history faculty at Yerevan State University.
Hayk writes down the lessons in a Braille notebook or records them on tape
recorder.
But apart from learning those lessons he needs to become familiar with more
extensive literature, including the classics and professional literature.
His mother has been helping him, by reading literature and university books
for him.
But since completing a course in how use AREV last week he has pinned great
hopes on the AREV program’s use in helping him finish his degree
“The AREV system tremendously helps me with my university homework,” he
says. “I don’t need my mother to read books or lectures as I scan them and
hear a reading. Besides, I can type the essays and then hear what I wrote
and edit it.”
Arman Kuchukyan, creator of AREV and the Technical Director of the YCRDI
says that it took two and a half years for his group to develope the
program. Kuchukyan says he does not diminish the value of Braille system. He
says it has been a perfect aide, but it now outdated.
“Only few books are available in Braille in Armenian or in Russia. It is
unfair that blind people were deprived of an opportunity of reading other
books. The systems like AREV are available in West for a long time, and I am
happy that we managed to make the similar program for Armenians,” he says.
Kuchukyan, 73, has worked at the YCRDI for 51 years and says that AREV is
one of the institute’s best achievements. He is inspired by AREV, but is
unsure about its future.
“We organized the computer lessons for the blind people free of charge and
gave AREV programs also free of charge to those few who had computers at
home. What about those who do not have computers? They will forget soon what
they learned,” he says.
Kuchukyan applied to the Parliament asking to assist in providing computers
the school graduators.
Kuchukyan says a lot of Armenians can benefit from the program.
“Annually there are about 20-25 graduates of the boarding school for blind
children,” he says. “So many people can help those young ones by giving them
computers which were in use. Imagine, how the life of a young person will
change if he gets a computer, so many opportunities will be available for
them.”
But Kuchukyan’s good intentions were not favorably met by government.
We did not get a single dram from the government for this program,”
Kuchukyan says. “Eight people worked hard on the program to install about
10,000 Armenian sounds into the program. AREV is not perfect and we need
sponsorship to continue our research on its improvement, but all our efforts
will be in vain if people for whom we develop the program will not have
chance to take advantage on it for the simple reason of a lack of
computers.”
The All Armenian Fund “Hayastan” has allocated six computers to the boarding
school for the blind children N 14 and AREV program was installed in those
and other computers there.
“About three years ago scientists from the YCRDI came to our school and
asked if children need the program which will read the Armenian fonts,” says
Alexan Aharonyan, the director of the school. “Of course we said ‘yes, we
need it urgently’, because the government does not sponsor the production of
the Braille books, and each time when we want to issue the book we apply to
the Armenian Society for blind people. Besides Braille books have a short
life and it is hard to read when it is not new.”
Currently there are 120 students studying at the school from grades 1-11. It
is the only school of its kind in Armenia, except for the school for the
children with poor eyesight. In all there are 4,000 blind people in Armenia
and most of them are involved in production of electronic houseware.
Hayk Papikyan who completed massage courses at the boarding school says that
before entering university he tried to find a job of a masseur, but he could
not find any vacancy.
The education that the blind people get at the school is not enough to find
a job,” he says. “For others it is hard to continue education at the
university. I hope that AREV will open many doors for many people who will
have a chance to get education by correspondence, to meet in chat rooms, to
get letters by e-mail and read them without anyone’s help. In other words to
escape the limits we have by getting more privacy and self-dependency.”