World record holder and discus champion gifts life-changing assistive tech to Boldmere Junior School

Local hero, four-times World Masters Discus Champion and multiple world record holder Kevin Brown has donated a life-changing gift to the pupils at Boldmere Junior School, in Sutton Coldfield. Kevin has given the school an OrCam Learn, a clever pen-sized assistive technology device that helps people with learning challenges, including dyslexia, to build classroom confidence and support reading and learning.

Kevin, an ambassador for assistive technology innovator OrCam Technologies, has experienced first-hand the challenges of navigating education with a learning difficulty, after being severely bullied in the classroom and left with no support to improve his reading and writing. Being an experienced user of the OrCam Learn himself, he is now a strong advocate of the value it brings to individuals with learning challenges, at any stage of their lives.

Kevin hid his challenges for most of his life and was not identified as having dyslexia until the age of 41. He is very passionate about helping children who are experiencing similar struggles in their learning, whether from dyslexia or other learning challenges.

Kevin Brown, World Masters Discus Champion, said: “I’m delighted that by donating the OrCam Learn to Boldmere Junior School, it will give its pupils more confidence and independence, something I never had at school myself.

I’m really happy that the pupils can benefit from the learning solution – which is user-friendly and helpful following just a brief tutorial – at the earlier stages of their educational journey. For me, the OrCam Learn is like your best friend by your side. It has been a massive game-changer in my life and it has allowed me to be myself and who I want to be as an individual and never held back by my dyslexia.”

Matthew Sadler, Head of Boldmere Junior School, said: “We are thrilled that Kevin has donated the OrCam Learn to our pupils. It is a fantastic learning solution, very easy to use, and most importantly it puts all of our pupils on a level playing field regardless of their learning challenges.”

Becky Jones, SENDCO at Boldmere Junior School, commented: “The children are really excited to use the OrCam Learn. You literally just point the device at a piece of text and it will read it to you. That same device will then read text off a computer screen, or even printed text from a poster on a wall. It is going to make a huge difference to the progress of children with learning challenges.”

The OrCam Learn is a wireless, compact, handheld solution with an intuitive point-and-click operation that “captures” and immediately reads out loud a full page, paragraph, or single word of text – from books, digital screens, or handouts. It enables individuals to explore their full potential – as the learning solution offers vital, practical reading support that includes interactivity with the user reading and the device providing real-time feedback, as well as comprehensive analysis and reporting of the student’s progress for teachers and parents to review and tailor the learning process accordingly.