implementing universal and inclusive design for online learning accessibility
TRANSCRIPT
Implementing Universal & InclusiveDesign for Online Learning Accessibility
Sheryl BurgstahlerDirector of Accessible Technology Services
University of Washington
Howard KramerAccess Specialist
University of Colorado at Boulder
Lily Bond (Moderator)3Play Media
[email protected]: @3playmedia
Implementing Universal and Inclusive Design for Online
Learning AccessibilitySheryl BurgstahlerDirector, Accessible Technology Services; Director, DO-IT Center [email protected]
Howard Kramer, AHEAD, University of Colorado at [email protected]@ahead.org
Agenda Inclusive/Universal Design of Course
Materials & Pedagogy
Overview– Sheryl
Accessibility of Course Materials – Howard
Inclusive Pedagogy – Sheryl
Resources
What do they have in common?
University of Cincinnati • Youngstown State University • University of Colorado-Boulder • University of Montana-
Missoula • UC Berkeley • South Carolina Technical College System • Louisiana Tech University • MIT • Maricopa
Community College District • Florida State University • CSU Fullerton • California Community Colleges • Ohio State
University: University of Kentucky • Harvard University • Miami University in Ohio
What is the legal basis?
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 & its 2008 Amendments
State & local laws
Definition of “accessible”:“Accessible” means a person with a disability is afforded the opportunity to acquire the same information, engage in the same interactions, & enjoy the same services as a person without a disability in an equally effective & equally integrated manner, with substantially equivalent ease of use. The person with a disability must be able to obtain the information as fully, equally & independently as a person without a disability.
Student characteristics:
Consider ability on a continuum:
seehearwalk
read printwrite
communicate verballytune out distraction
learnmanage physical/mental health
Approaches to access:
1. Accommodations
2. Universal design/Inclusive design
Both are important!
Most common accommodationsfor online Learning at the UW: Creating accessible documents (mainly
reformatting PDF files)26,000 pages each quarter
Captioning videos55 hours costing > $10,000 each quarter
Rather than relying on accommodations alone…
Consider designing the course to be more welcoming to, accessible to, & usable by a broad audience.
Proactive approaches to access:
Inclusive design Barrier-free design Accessible design Usable design Design for all Universal design …
Universal Design =“the design of products & environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.”
The Center for Universal Designwww.design.ncsu.edu/cud
In applying UD to online leaning:Provide multiple ways to: gain knowledge interact demonstrate knowledge
Provide multiple means for: representationengagementaction & expression (Center for Applied Special Technology, CAST)
Accessibility of course documents
Ensure that the documents used in your courses are accessible to students with vision, print, mobility & cognitive disabilities.
Accessible PDFs
If you use PDFs in your course, verify that they are not image-only documents. An image-only PDF is, in a sense, a picture of text, and not true computer text.
Selection of text in an image-only PDF will not select across the line.
Use properly formatted heading to structure documents & web pages
Heading options are available from the Word ribbon.
Use properly formatted heading to structure documents & web pages
The title of your document should be a heading 1.
Viewing the heading structureSelect “View,” then “Outline” to see your Word document in outline view.
Select “View,” then “Navigation” to see your Word document in TOC view.
Use properly formatted heading to structure documents & web pages
Headings created properly in Word will transfer when exported to a PDF
Lack of headings, section divisions inhibit scanning and reading
Provide alternative text for images
For every non-text element such as images, charts or graphs, provide a concise (100 characters or less) description of the information conveyed by the image.
For Word, PPT & Excel
Steps Right click on image Select “Properties &
Layout” “Alt Text” Enter alt text into the
“description” field
Using the Accessibility Checker in Office 2013
Accessibility Report
Accessibility Tips for PowerPoint Use the built-in designs & slide layouts Do not add text boxes Use the outline view to check that all the text is visible Provide alt text for images Run the accessibility checker Use high contrast text/background combinations
Avoid using all uppercase text (i.e. “All Caps“)
Provide sufficient color contrast between foreground and background elementsBusy backgrounds can also
undermine the legibility of the foreground text.
Dark gray text on a gray background is common & problematic color combination.
Use descriptive hyperlink text
Caption videos & provide transcripts for audio-only material
Captioning of videos has been shown to increase engagement & attention length for all students.
Caption videos and provide & provide transcripts for audio-only material
Synchronized transcripts can transform multimedia into a searchable library.
A universally designed syllabus:
Is friendly/welcoming Is structured under subheads logically
organized Is in an accessible format Includes key information, e.g., o Instructor informationo Course descriptiono Learning objectives
A universally designed syllabus:
Includes target audience, technical level, OPTIONAL content, expectations
Shares assignments & grading Includes required reading Includes statements regarding (1)
accessibility & (2) disability-related accommodations
Teach using multiple mediums with content relevant to all learners:1. Assume a wide range of
a. language skills (spell acronyms, avoid/define jargon).
b. technology skills (provide training).c. Interests & backgrounds (provide relevant
examples).d. Other characteristics (e.g., gender, age, race,
ethnicity, culture)
2.Provide multiple ways toa. Gain knowledge (e.g., in text, videos,
collaborative activities.b. Communicate &, collaborate (e.g., email,
discussion board)c. Demonstrate learning (e.g., different types
of tests, discussion, essays, presentations)
3. Use clear, consistent organization & layouts of
4. Provide outlines & other scaffolding tools.5. Provide specific feedback on project parts & offer
corrective opportunities.6. Allow adequate time for practice, activities, projects,
tests.7. Make instructions & expectations clear for activities,
projects, readings.8. Make examples & assignments relevant to learners
with a wide variety of characteristics
Resources• Accessibility for Online Course Content
(Portland CC) www.pcc.edu/resources/instructional-support/access/
• Accessibility Tutorials (Tseng College at CSUN) tsengcollege.csun.edu/accessibility/tutorials
• Universal Design & Accessibility for Online Courses webdevgroupcu.org/conted/
Resources continued• Basics of Inclusive Design MOOC (will be on Coursera
platform) - sign up for mailing list at accessinghigherground.org/about
• Accessing Higher Ground 2015 - Virtual Conference & Video archives: accessinghigherground.org
• W3C WAI Easy Checks www.w3.org/WAI/eval/preliminary.html (excellent introduction to web accessibility)
• AccessDL resources & discussion list, DO-ITwww.uw.edu/doit/programs/accessdl
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Howard KramerAccess SpecialistUniversity of Colorado at [email protected]
Sheryl BurgstahlerDirector of Accessible Technology ServicesUniversity of [email protected]
Lily Bond3Play [email protected]
Upcoming Webinars
December 3: How to Implement Accessible Lecture Capture
December 10: Quick Start to Captioning
Register at:http://www.3playmedia.com/webinars/
Q&A