Ottobre, 2022

The need for accessible tools and equitable learning environments has become more critical than ever, as the number of students with disabilities is on the rise, including those with specific learning disabilities.

Google for Education uses built-in accessibility features to help support the needs of all students, to help foster inclusive environments so that students can learn individually and as a group. Our accessibility features provide individualized support while giving students the resources they need to learn in a collaborative way.

Captions as a tool across Google products

We aim to build helpful features across all our products. One of those features is captions, which are useful not only for those who are deaf or hard of hearing, but also if a room is loud, or a student just needs additional support focusing, or if someone needs support in a different language. Captions are available in Google Meet in six languages, and you can change the font size and placement on the screen. You can also access and add captions to videos in YouTube, Google Drive and Chrome. For Android users, captions are also available through Live Transcribe.

Building accessibility tools into Chromebooks

Our accessibility features are easy to use and built directly into Chromebooks, like Select-to-Speak, the ChromeVox screen reader and magnification, that enable every individual to do their best work. Now we’ve added more dictation improvements, like the ability to speak into any text field on the Chromebook simply by clicking on the mic icon in the status area. You can also press Search + d to dictate, and you can now edit using just your voice.

More customization options in Google Workspace for Education

We recently announced more customization for accessibility settings in Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drawings, so users can set accessibility settings for each product individually. And soon, we’ll build upon that by consolidating the Docs settings for screen reader and braille support into a single setting, with a single checkbox. We’ll also soon be adding improvements to voice typing in Google Docs, voice typing for speaker notes in Google Slides, and captions in Google Slides, including adding automatic punctuation and the ability to access from all browsers.

For people who are blind or low vision and use screen readers, you can nowtype a keyboard shortcut (ALT + number, 1-7) that verbalizes the content of a Calendar event. This way, Calendar details can be heard on demand, instead of through time-consuming navigation.

Working with partners to expand accessible tools

We’re supporting teachers through our own tools and partnerships with organizations that share our mission. Many of these apps and extensions integrate with Google tools like Classroom, Google Workspace for Education, and Chromebooks.

This includes Texthelp, a company which makes extensions and tools that help people learn, understand and communicate through the use of digital learning and accessibility tools. Students can use tools like Read&Write to help with reading support, and Equatio to help with creating math equations digitally. Created by an occupational therapist, SnapType breaks down the barriers to education by helping students feel more confident and independent. Students challenged by handwriting or visual impairments can keep up in class with their peers by using SnapType to easily take a picture of their assignment and then type or dictate their schoolwork.

We’re also continually working to update our Help Center articles for screen reader users, including how to use a screen reader with Google Calendar, how to use a screen reader with Google Drive, and how to make your document or presentation more accessible. Stay up to date on the latest accessibility features from Google for Education.

In working with journalists and publishers around the world for many years, the question that I’m continually asked is why Google works with the media? The answer is found in our mission: “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.”

Our mission is inextricably linked with the essence of journalism, aiming to provide citizens around the world with access to the information they need to make the best possible decisions about their lives. We all need and want a sustainable and diverse news industry that provides us, and our communities, with high-quality news.

In 2018 we created the Google News Initiative Innovation Challenges, with the goal of empowering news organizations to pioneer new thinking in online journalism, develop new business models and better understand their communities. Since then, we’ve worked with and funded 338 projects in 75 countries. And today, I’m thrilled to share that 30 more media organizations from 12 countries in Latin America are the new recipients in our third iteration of the Challenge in the region.

The third edition in Latin America

This Innovation Challenge in Latin America was open to the entire ecosystem from news publishers to digital-only outlets, news startups, associations or NGOs, academics and independent journalists. Applications ranged from projects focused on increasing reader engagement and/or revenue from readers, developing and diversifying business models, combating misinformation, increasing trust in journalism, reaching new audiences, improving workflow efficiency and exploring new technologies.

We received 353 applicants from 21 countries in the region. All projects were evaluated by a team of experts and a final jury that were impressed by the diversity and the quality of the proposed projects. We saw creative solutions by regional media focusing on the development of inclusive membership models and content distribution for younger people. Others seek to generate resources through technology and collaboration with readers by developing new subscription platforms, capitalizing on the power of blockchain technology, and betting on artificial intelligence to help fight misinformation or increase engagement.

Of the applications we received, more than 31% percent were from regional and local publishers, while 23% were from online-only publishers.

Some highlights include:

• Abril Editorial Match: This project from Brazil seeks to use artificial intelligence to better understand their readers’ behavior across Abril’s brands, engaging them through a predictive experience of relevant articles.
• El Colombiano: This Colombian project, “Loyalty Wall,” seeks to implement a platform for digital subscriptions, which includes a dynamic paywall and loyalty rewards for audiences.
• Promoting information access in Latin America (PIALA): This Mexican platform will enable journalists and researchers to make the most of the freedom of information acts (FOIAs) across the region. Users will be able to create, submit, manage, organize and follow up on all their FOIA requests at the same time in a quick and easy way.

Congratulations to the 2022 Latin America recipients!

• TeleNueve (Argentina)
• Editorial Jornada (Argentina)
• La Gaceta (Argentina)
• El Litoral (Argentina)
• Agencia de Noticias Fides (Bolivia)
• Plural (Brazil)
• Lupa (Brazil)
• A Gazeta (Brazil)
• Poder360 (Brazil)
• Sumaúma (Brazil)
• Mídia Ninja (Brazil)
• Carla Beraldo (Brazil – freelance journalist and researcher)
• Grupo Matinal Jornalismo and Headline News (Brazil)
• Abril (Brazil)
• Ambiental Media (Brazil)
• Diário do Nordeste (Brazil)
• Grupo Copesa (La Tercera) (Chile)
• BioBioChile (Chile)
• Súbela Radio (Chile)
• El Colombiano (Colombia)
• Baudó Agencia Pública (Colombia)
• Confidencial (Costa Rica)
• Fundación El Churo – Wambra Medio Digital Comunitario (Ecuador)
• PIALA (México)
• Grupo Milenio (México)
• Empresa Editora Milenio (Peru)
• Asociación de Periodismo de Investigación Ojo Público (Peru)
• El Faro (El Salvador)
• La Diaria (Uruguay)
• A.C. Contenidos para la información y formación (Cofein) (Venezuela)

Thanks to all who applied and congratulations to all of the selected projects. We hope media initiatives in the region continue their efforts to maintain a sustainable and diverse news ecosystem in Latin America. Only through collaboration is it possible to build new business models that will benefit us all. Our commitment to the news industry stems from our founding mission to build a better-informed world, and quality journalism is as essential today as it’s ever been to democracies around the world.

More information about all the selected projects can be found on our website.