Nearly 900,000 people in Argentina have visual difficulties, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec). To facilitate access to information and communication for this population, Braille keyboards are essential to promote digital inclusion. But not all of them are affordable or easy to find. That\u2019s why some Argentine students decided to use their school\u2019s 3D printer to make a Braille keyboard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The project entitled “Innova – Una sociedad inclusiva” (Innova \u2013 An inclusive society<\/em>, in English) was a finalist for Solve for Tomorrow in the country, in 2023. The four students involved were between 16 and 17 years old and were in the fourth year of high school (the penultimate year of compulsory schooling) at the Escuela Secundaria de Innovaci\u00f3n de Misiones<\/em> school, in Posadas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The project\u2019s mediator teacher<\/a>, Samuel Kowalczuk, teaches Robotics and helped the students with the design of the website mainly. But the school has an integrated learning module, where teachers from different curricular areas come together. In this case, teacher Kowalczuk joined the Information technology (IT) Projects teacher, who has a degree in Industrial Design and has an approach based on Design Thinking<\/a>. In addition, the Economics teacher also joined, who brought a vision of Entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2023, the educators decided to take things a step further. \u201cWe said, \u2018Let\u2019s do real projects, go to places that need design solutions, and not just make money, but make a difference for people,\u2019\u201d Kowalczuk recalls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n