Audio on this Guide and other Websites
If you would like to listen to the information on this guide, and on other websites, you can use the Read Aloud: A Text to Speech Voice Reader. It is available within Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome and Firefox. The function is already built in to Microsoft Edge and you can download the extensions for the Google Chrome and Firefox web browsers below:
Apple also have a selection of accessibility features, which include access to the Safari Reader which can be set up on your iPhone, iPad or Mac.
There are many ways to make devices more accessible, see The Digital Student guide for more information:
Audio Books, Journal Articles, Newpapers and Magazines
Audio Books:
The majority of Teesside University Library e-books come from two suppliers called E-book Central and VLeBooks suppliers. However, some audio books can also be found in the O'Reilly database (see the Audio/Visual section of this guide for more information).
These e-books include textbooks for your course as well as fiction and non-fiction books which you can read for pleasure.
To find these e-books you will need to search in Discovery.
To access the e-books from Discovery, click on the title of the book to go into the full item record. You will be able to see which supplier the book is from. To access the book click on the link provided.
VLeBooks:
This is an example of a book from VLeBooks.
VLeBooks has inbuilt text-to-speech, available through the Read Online option which can be used via desktop and mobile views.
The first step is to choose Read Online (underneath the book jacket image)
And then choose Read aloud (the speaker symbol on the top menu bar).
E-books can also be downloaded from VLeBooks to e-Reader software such as Adobe Digital Editions which can be read by most other software such as Read & Write Gold, JAWS and NVDA.
E-Book Central
This is an example of a book from E-Book Central.
You can download e-books from E-Book Central and use them with screen readers such as JAWS, NVDA, and VoiceOver. The Download Book option is underneath the book jacket image on the left hand side.
You can also download a chapter of an e-book as a PDF, which can then be Read Out Loud via Adobe Acrobat Reader.
The Read Out Loud function is available in Adobe Acrobat Reader via the View option on the top menu bar. You may need to activate Read Out Loud.
In Ebook Central, you can also turn on Text Only Mode in the Accessibility Settings. This allows PDF books to be displayed as plain text, which can then be read out when reading the book online. This can be done by updating the options from within the Settings Menu.
This video, from the University of Worcester, explains how to turn on the Text Only Mode in Ebook Central and then how to use a text-to-speech app to listen to this content.
Audio for Journal Articles
The e-journals and e-journal articles we have access to at Teesside University come from a variety of suppliers.
The details of the different suppliers are shown on the full item record in Discovery (when you click on the article title or journal title).
Journals can be accessed via Journal Finder:
Journal articles can be searched for on the main search page. You can see the supplier information when you click on the article title from the results:
The accessibility information can usually be found on the supplier's website. For example:
- Taylor and Francis Online: https://www-tandfonline-com.ezproxy.tees.ac.uk/accessibility#features
- Sage Journals: https://journals-sagepub-com.ezproxy.tees.ac.uk/page/help/accessibility
- Science Direct: https://www-elsevier-com.ezproxy.tees.ac.uk/solutions/sciencedirect/librarian-resource-center/web-accessibility
This means that the tools (including audio options) that are available within the journals and articles may differ.
The databases we have access to at Teesside University also come from a variety of suppliers. Again this will mean that the tools which are available (including audio options) will differ.
The EBSCO platform includes databases such as: Art Full Text, Business Source Ultimate, CINAHL Ultimate, Education Research Complete, Medline , PsycInfo and more. The Listen feature is available within the EBSCO databases when the HTML Full text is included in the record.
You can listen straight away or you can download the mp3 file. You can also choose from an English, American or Australian accent (male or female) depending on your preference.
This Listen function is also available via Taylor and Francis Online
Audio for Newspapers and Magazines
Within Newsbank you can refine your search to show only audio resources, using the Source type filter and choosing Audio.
Alternatively you can search all of the resources and use the Read News Document option when available.
Within PressReader you can choose to Listen to the content of a magazine or newspaper from the home page.
There is more information available on the accessibility features of the University's online resources available via the guide below.
Using Audio with Microsoft Office
There are a range of accessibility features available from Microsoft including:
Podcasts
There are a variety of Podcasts available online covering a wide range of interests. Here are a few examples which you might enjoy. Some for educational purposes and others for relaxation/wider interests.
The Vibe: Teesside University: https://teessideuniversity.podbean.com/
The Vibe is a series of podcasts from Teesside University.
The podcasts provide information on what's going on around campus, the application process (including clearing), what to do in Teesside and much more!
BBC sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds
BBC Sounds provides access to BBC Radio stations, programmes, podcasts, music and more. You will need to create an account with the BBC to access the content. There is more information about that here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/help/questions/signing-in/account-sign-in
You can listen via the BBC sounds website or you can download the app:
University of Oxford: http://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/
This site, from the University of Oxford, is free and includes podcasts and videos on public lectures, teaching material, interviews with academics and more.
Content includes audio and video format.
The full series is available here: http://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/series
JISC: https://www.jisc.ac.uk/podcasts
JISC is the UK's higher education, further education and skills sectors’ not-for-profit organisation for digital services and solutions.
Current podcasts are available here: https://www.jisc.ac.uk/podcasts
Archived podcasts are available here: https://jiscpodcast.libsyn.com/
The Open University (OU): https://podcast.open.ac.uk/
This site provides access to audio and video podcasts from the Open University which cover a range of subject areas.
Prospects: https://www.prospects.ac.uk/podcasts
Prospects provides information, support and advice regarding graduate careers.
Their podcasts include information and advice from employers, careers advisers, students and graduates.
Wellbeing series from Manchester University: https://sites.manchester.ac.uk/pgrwellbeing/podcasts/
‘All Bee-ing Well’ is a student led podcast series from The University of Manchester.
BBC Radio 4
There are a range of BBC Radio 4 Podcasts available https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06qh86j
These include:
- Tim Harford and the More or Less team review the numbers and statistics which surround us in everyday life: More or Less: Behind the Stats
- Michael Moseley provides tips to improve your health and wellbeing: Just One Thing - with Michael Mosley
Audio/Visual Resources
There are many audio visual resources which are available online, depending on your area of interest. Here are a couple which you might find useful for educational and wider interests.
Box of Broadcasts (Bob)
You can access Bob from the A-Z list of databases: https://libguides.tees.ac.uk/az/box-of-broadcasts-bob
Bob is an on demand TV and radio service for education.
You will need to register when you log in to BoB for the first time - remember to complete your registration by clicking on the link in the verification email.
As a Teesside student or member of staff, you can use Bob to record programmes from free-to-air channels as well as search the archive of broadcasts.
There are a selection of 'How to' videos to help you get started with Bob too: https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/how-to-use-bob/
O'Reilly
You can access O'Reilly from the A-Z list of databases: https://libguides.tees.ac.uk/az/oreilly-for-higher-education
O'Reilly for Higher Education provides access to e-books, videos, learning paths, case studies and audio books.
You can limit your search to find audio books or videos using the options on the search screen.
For additional guidance on using O’Reilly please visit their help pages: https://proquest.libguides.com/oreilly/features
YouTube
YouTube is a free video sharing website where you can access content on a range of subject areas. You can search by keyword or you can access the videos via the different channels. You can access YouTube via https://www.youtube.com/
Some example YouTube Channels include:
- Teesside University: https://www.youtube.com/c/TeessideUni
- The Body Coach TV: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheBodyCoachTV
- The Open University: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheOpenUniversity
- EBSCO Tutorials: https://www.youtube.com/c/EBSCOSupportTutorials
- BBC News: https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCNews
- Calm: https://www.youtube.com/c/calm