Polski Uniwersytet Wirtualny (PUW)

PUW operates a broad portfolio of academic offerings: from Bachelor’s and Master’s programs to postgraduate studies. All delivered through a robust online platform that supports learning anytime and anywhere. Its courses span disciplines such as informatics, economics, pedagogy, psychology, journalism, graphics, and more, reflecting the diverse aspirations of its student body.

With a student community that often balances studies with work and life responsibilities, PUW’s mission centers on making high-quality education accessible without geographic or time constraints. Its online platform serves thousands of learners each semester, supported by hundreds of faculty and academic staff. 

Why Accessibility Matters at PUW

Accessibility isn’t just a compliance checkbox for PUW, it’s a core part of its educational philosophy. Today’s digital learners expect content that adapts to how they learn, not the other way around. For students juggling jobs, families, or differing abilities, the ability to access content audibly and interactively can make the difference between engagement and frustration.

That’s why PUW prioritizes tools that make learning more inclusive, engaging, and effective. Beyond offering flexibility in time and place, the university focuses on ensuring that the learning experience itself supports concentration and comprehension, two crucial factors in student success in online environments.

The collaboration between PUW, Moodle and ReadSpeaker

One recent step in this direction has been integrating ReadSpeaker’s text-to-speech technology directly within PUW’s Moodle LMS. This seamless integration allows students to simply click and listen to their content anytime. For PUW, this means an almost invisible implementation that doesn’t interrupt the learning journey and really enhances the experience of its students.

Being able to listen to a text while following along with highlighting in real time supports both comprehension and focus, especially important when attention can easily drift in a digital setting. For many learners, this multimodal approach increases reading speed, improves retention, and helps sustain focus in a way that text alone rarely does. In addition, the multiple speech-enhanced learning tools give learners the ability to personalize their learning experience, whether translating texts, downloading audio files to listen to on their phone or using focus aids.

“For PUW, integrating text to speech directly into Moodle was about supporting how our students actually learn. The fact that they can listen while following the text helps them stay focused and move through content more efficiently, especially in a fully online environment. It’s a small change in the interface, but it has a meaningful impact on attention, comprehension, and overall learning experience at PUW,”
Joanna Opoka, Director of the Polish Virtual University

Interview with Joanna Opoka

As Director of the Polish Virtual University, Joanna Opoka shares PUW’s perspective on the adoption and ongoing use of text to speech within its online learning environment. 

What were your primary motivations for adopting text to speech?
In an online environment, the way learners engage with content is just as important as the content provided. PUW wanted a way to support students who benefit from auditory input, students with attention challenges, and simply give everyone more choice in how they engage with the content. Text to speech helps turn reading into an active, dynamic experience, especially when combined with real-time highlighting. So, in the end, it was not only about accessibility, but it was also about the students’ experience.

Why did you decide to choose ReadSpeaker?
PUW looked at several tools, but ReadSpeaker stood out because of how seamlessly it integrates with Moodle. Our students live inside Moodle: assignments, discussions, materials, everything is there. ReadSpeaker’s technology could be embedded directly into the LMS, so we didn’t have to change students’ workflow (nor our systems). The tool feels like part of the system, not an add-on, and that’s important for adoption and actual students’ use.

Who is benefiting from this implementation?
PUW’s students adapted very quickly to this technology, not only those with learning difficulties, but also those who prefer to listen to the content, or directly combine reading with listening. In short, we help those who have difficulties, but we also improve the experience of many students.

Would you recommend ReadSpeaker to others and why?
Absolutely. Any educational institution should consider these tools that improve accessibility for its students, giving everyone the same opportunities.  ReadSpeaker’s integration with Moodle makes deployment easy, but the real value is in how students respond: they use it, enjoy it, and tell us it helps them stay focused in a world full of digital distractions.

Anything else you’d like to note?
At PUW, we’re always looking for ways to support a diverse student body. Online education opens doors, but tools like text to speech help keep students engaged once they’re inside. In today’s environment, where attention is one of the most scarce resources for learners, providing multiple pathways to access content isn’t a luxury, it’s essential.

Find out more about ReadSpeaker solutions for education.