Immersive Reader
Users that have access to the School Management - Features Options page in Schoology will see a new option that allows them to enable/disable Microsoft Immersive Reader, as needed.
Using Immersive Reader in Schoology
Microsoft Immersive Reader is a screen-reader tool that helps students read more effectively by simplifying the user interface and enhancing the learning experience. Immersive Reader has various tools that make the text easier to see and read aloud with visual cues so that students can focus on the content and work at their own pace.
Schoology Learning offers an Immersive Reader integration that enables students to:
- Use the screen reader to read the materials aloud.
- Use the text decoding solutions to assist with reading.
- Use the translation service to read aloud in their chosen language.
Accessing Immersive Reader
To access Immersive Reader, click the Immersive Reader button in one of the following locations:
- Assignments
- Page profile
- Folder description
- Google Drive Assignment description
- OneDrive Assignment description
- Updates
- Course Updates
- District Updates
- Messages
- Discussions
Using Immersive Reader
Once Immersive Reader is launched, the student view becomes a more simplified experience that opens in full-screen mode.
Click the Play button to start the reader and read the text aloud.
Students can adjust the speed, voice, text size, and other visual preferences from the following settings.
Voice Settings
Students can adjust the voice speed and select a voice preference. Click the speaker icon next to Play to access Voice Settings and adjust as needed.
Text Preferences
Text Preferences enable students to adjust the text size, spacing, font, and themes.
Enlarge the text to shorten the line length and increase letter spacing to help improve reading, reduce visual distraction, and assist students with visual impairments.
Adjust Themes to change the background color.
Grammar Options
Grammar Options enable students to break words into syllables to make words easier to sound out.
Students can also highlight the different parts of speech, with or without labels.
The labels help students learn the parts of speech and assist those who may not be able to see the colors.
Reading References
Reading References enable students to adjust Line Focus, Picture Dictionary, and translate text into other languages.
Line Focus enables students to focus on up to 5 lines at a time and helps reduce distractions as they scroll down the page.
Picture Dictionary enables students to click any word on the page to display a graphical representation of its meaning. They can also opt to read the word aloud and hear the pronunciation.
Use Translate to access more than 60 languages for instant translation. Students can translate an entire document or one word to see the original and its translation side-by-side. Students can easily toggle between the translation and the original.
Review the interactive guide for more information on Immersive Reader.
Disabling Immersive Reader
Teachers can choose to activate Immersive Reader at the course level in school districts that have activated Enable Immersive Reader at the district level.
At the course level, Immersive Reader is enabled as the default setting. However, from Course Options, teachers can select Disable Immersive Reader in the Edit Privacy/Course View Settings section.
After Immersive Reader is disabled, the Immersive Reader option is no longer available at the course level.
If Immersive Reader is disabled at the course level, but is enabled for other areas, Updates will still show the Immersive Reader button.
Google Drive and OneDrive Assignments
Immersive Reader can be utilized with both Google Drive and OneDrive to interact with the description text.
Google Drive Assignments
The Immersive Reader button is found on the Assignment tab, and can be used to interact with the description of a Google Drive Assignment. The Immersive Reader functionality will not interact with text from: Assignments, In Progress, Submissions, or file attachment text.
OneDrive Assignments
The Immersive Reader button is found on the Assignment tab, and can be used to interact with the description of a OneDrive Assignment. The Immersive Reader functionality will not interact with text from: Assignments, In Progress, Submissions, or file attachment text.