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Once a school team has determined that a student needs instructional materials in specialized formats, and has selected the specific format(s) needed (i.e., Braille, digital text, audio or large print), the next step is to determine how to acquire the materials. Because of unique characteristics of the systems available, the best way to approach the acquisition of AIM is systematically.
Addressing the following questions is a good way to begin the process of acquiring AIM for a student.
Is the material:
With the answers to questions such as these, the IEP team can determine the appropriate acquisition system from the following options:
The choice of method for acquiring AIM will depend on several factors:
| Type of Educational Plan | Possible Sources of AIM |
|---|---|
Students with Print Disability and with an IEP |
Accessible Media Producers |
Student with Print Disability and with a Section 504 Plan |
Accessible Media Producers |
Student with IEP or Section 504 Plan but NOT identified as have a Print Disability |
Maine State Library |
* ESBVIC services only for student with blindness or visual impairment
Ideally, schools would be able to purchase - directly from publishers - copyrighted materials in specialized formats (Braille, digital text, audio, or large print). With few exceptions, that is not yet the norm. Accessible Media Producers (AMPs), however, apply a 1996 amendment to the original copyright law to convert copyrighted materials for use by people with print disabilities. Numerous AMPs are in existence today, and each specializes in particular formats.
It is important to note that if a school makes a formal request to one of Maine NIMAC Authorized Users (AU) to acquire AIM through the NIMAC, a complete list of AMPs will be provided to the school.
Here is a limited selection of the major Accessible Media Producers:
produces books and periodicals in Braille, human-recorded audio, large print, and digital text on disc. provides books and periodicals in digital text (includes DAISY, ASCII, HTML, and Braille Digital Format). Currently, Bookshare memberships for U.S. schools and qualifying U.S. students of all ages are free. offers books and periodicals in Braille and human-recorded audio on disc and cassette formats. provides human-recorded audio on disc format.Some publishers of instructional materials are now making their materials available in digital format. Unfortunately there is no central clearinghouse listing who these publishers are. Schools are encouraged to ask sales staff from these companies for lists of AIM that they can purchase.
If a publisher has a specialized format of a copyrighted material, such as a textbook or contemporary novel, available for sale, it can be purchased and used by any student. That is, it doesn't have to be reserved for the sole use of a student with a print disability. To date, publishers have been slow to market copyrighted works in specialized formats, so it’s important to ask. Repeated requests send a message to publishers that there is a demand for AIM, thus pushing the “market model” that will ultimately result in multiple formats of a material being offered alongside its standard print version. So, ask the publisher - and keep asking!
A work in the public domain is not protected by copyright and is freely usable by everyone - not just students with disabilities.
Public domain works may be freely copied, used, and redistributed. As a result, the World Wide Web has become a voluminous host to public domain works, particularly classics of literature. Students can access this content on the Web in multiple ways, such as customizing the appearance (font, size, contrast) or having the text read aloud via speech synthesis.
A list of popular digital text and audio book libraries and portals is provided below:
New digital libraries are continually introduced on the Web. Maine’s AIM list will grow over time.
If the specialized format of a copyrighted work is not available from the publisher nor from an AMP, scanning is an option as long as the process is consistent with the copyright law as amended. For example, if a textbook is several years old and no longer available from the publisher nor by an AMP, pages can be scanned for the exclusive use by a student with a print disability (not distributed further), with the original copyright information, and a notice of protection of copyright included in the scanned version of the material. The scanned version is a digital text file, which can be converted to any of the other three specialized formats (audio, Braille, or large print).
Under the US laws, schools may not scan or otherwise duplicate copyrighted materials with permission of the copyright holder unless the student meets the eligibility criteria of a Print Disability. If no other options are available, schools are permitted to scan and copy these materials only for the student with the print disability.
[More information coming about how to scan documents]
The National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) is an acquisition system for specialized formats of textbooks and related core instructional materials sold after July 18, 2006. The NIMAC is a national repository of electronic files of textbooks and core instructional materials that are submitted directly by publishers.
The use of the NIMAC is only for educators working with students who meet eligibility criteria.
Read additional information about the NIMAC
Education Services for Blind and Visually Impaired Children (ESBVIC) is a program of Catholic Charities Maine provided through funding from Maine's Division for the Blind and Visually Impaired. ESBVIC serves children with vision loss and covers the ages from birth to completion of high school. Sixteen teachers of blind and visually impaired children (TVI) cover the entire state and serve children in public or private schools as well as in home and/or pre-school settings.
The Instructional Materials Center (IMC) at ESBVIC provides some Braille and large print textbooks and researches the APH files for books and provides specialty teaching materials for TVIs.
Please noted that applications for Braille materials - particularly those for science and math books may take many months to produce. Please place orders no later than March 1st for the following fall semester.
Education Services for Blind and Visually Impaired Children
Augusta Instructional Materials Center
St. Paul Center
136 State Street
P.O. Box 2028
Augusta, ME 04338-2028
207.620.3220 or
207.621.8520 x 5420
207.622.9781 Fax
Bangor
1066 Kenduskeag Ave.
Bangor, ME 04401
207.299.1933
Talking books on cassette and digital formats, large print books. A small collection of "twin-vision" Braille. Cassette and digital players. Access to the National Library Service materials.
MSL's Talking Book / Large Print catalog
How does a teacher know how to use AIM in their classroom?