About me: I study how multimodal engagements with data through improved access to the core aspects of working with data can facilitate data literacy and data visualization literacy. I have a focus on non-visual learners, including blind and visually impaired learners, who have unique sensory and neuro-diversities and aim to enhance blind and visually impaired learners’ ability to access and understand the information displayed in digital formats in order to increase learning abilities and goals in highly visual fields such as STEAM. My research interests are inspired by my career working with blind and visually impaired young adults as a Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist. I am currently a second-year student in the Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education between UC Berkeley and San Francisco State. In addition to being a doctoral student, I am also working to obtain my Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI) credential and am an Adjunct Lecturer at San Francisco State in the Orientation and Mobility Program.
Research interests: Accessible educational materials, non-visual access, sensory and neuro-diverse learners, Universal Design for Learning, design-based research, multimodal learning, embodied cognition, learning sciences, access technology.
Hobbies: When time permits, I enjoy writing in the Fantasy and SciFi genres, camping with my partner and dog, and being outdoors as much as possible, including taking my yellow lab on daily walks.
Contact: erinfoley (at) berkeley (dot) edu