Kids Like Me Bookshelf improves self-determination skills for students with a vision impairment via role-model stories cowritten by generative AI. - The goals of this project are (1) to harness a Generative AI–assisted “Kids Like Me Bookshelf” (KLMB) to improve self-determination skills (self-esteem, self-efficacy, and self-empowerment) for an underserved population—specifically middle and high school students with a vision impairment (VI)—and (2) to provide actionable feedback to their instructors so they can deliver more targeted support. The objectives include: (1) building a web-based GenAI “ghostwriting” tool that enables adults with a disability (VI role models) to co-author inspiring stories reflecting their lived experiences, (2) automatically refining these stories to multiple reading levels and creating teacher-ready comprehension questions, (3) constructing an online KLMB library that is universally accessible (audio, large-print, braille display) for students to read on any device, and (4) measuring the acceptability and usefulness of KLMB with actual VI students from a cross-section of schools to assess gains in self-determination skills. Anticipated outcomes are marked improvements in students’ self-esteem, self-efficacy, and self-empowerment—combined with an instructor’s heightened ability to guide and encourage these students through individualized social-emotional learning. The expected product is a system that VI students can use under teacher supervision, giving them access to a rich collection of authentic role-model stories. By strengthening their self-determination skills, more of these students will be on track for greater success in school, enhanced college and career readiness, and ultimately increased access to job opportunities, financial stability, and personal growth.
