This grant proposal sets out to research the feasibility of modifying apprentice training programs in industrial operations, maintenance, and repair for secondary and postsecondary young adults who are visually disabled. The research will focus on employer-driven systems which match employment training for persons with visual disabilities directly with employer needs. Phase I activities will involve industrial job analysis with task identification to determine what adaptations would be needed for each task. Research will be carried out through construction and evaluation of gear drive, bearing, coupling, and precision measuring prototype training modules. Hardware training components using real equipment will be built with the modifications necessary for use by trainees who are visually disabled. Courseware training materials will also be modified to include adapted text, lab manuals, and a manager's guide. All training material prototypes will be field tested to ensure accuracy and utility as well as to determine the technical merit of adapting the full range of industrial plant-floor simulators for apprenticeship training with the targeted population.Anticipated Results and Implications:By utilizing custom training materials based on the equipment typical of real-world industrial environments, trainees will develop specific experience and skills with the components they will encounter in an actual job situation. The resultant training systems will include performance-based skills development and a direct link to placement activities in the workplace. Completion of Phase II will cover 908 of the tasks that exist as part of typical electrical and mechanical work opportunities within the manufacturing industry.
Keywords: Modifying Industrial Apprentice Training Programs for the Visually Disabled.
