My doctoral research interests are in blindness and technology in South Korea. I was wondering whether and how the emphasis on technological innovation in Korean society and policy leads to improve the data accessibility and living convenience of people with disabilities, specifically blind people. I hope to examine in what aspects and why blind people experience difficulties in daily life.
Thanks to the 2021 KI Graduate Summer Research Grant program, I could begin my preliminary research with learning braille. This summer, I learned braille not only through a ‘traditional way such as books, braille pointed stylus and paper but also via an interactive braille learning device, called ‘Taptilo.’ Taptilo is a technological device that offers pre-made curriculums that the braille learners can easily follow, which was invented by a Korean start-up company with governmental funding. The aim of developing this device was to make learning braille easier, and this device has been distributed to schools for blind people. This summer was a great opportunity for me not only to learn braille per se but also to compare how the learning methods by pointed stylus and paper and Taptilo differ. I could also think about how I, as a new braille learner, perceive and practically actualize such differences in my performance.
Upon this summer research experience, I could consolidate the experiential or empirical basis of my research questions and am eager to incorporate the insights I have learned into my future research.