National Center for Accessible Information Technology in Education

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• National Center for Accessible Information
  Technology in Education

Sheryl Burgstahler, Ph. D., Co-Director
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Distance Learning Policies Practices that
Promote Accessible Design

• Sheryl Burgstahler, Ph. D.
• Director, DO-IT, AccessSTEM
• Co-Director, AccessIT University of Washington

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Sponsors of DL Courses

• Postsecondary institutions
• K-12 schools
• Online learning organizations
• Employee training of businesses non-profit
  organizations

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DL Methods Tools

• On-Site Instruction
• Internet-Based Communication
• Printed Materials
• Telephone Conferences
• Video Conferences
• Web Pages
• Video/Multimedia Presentations
• www.washington.edu/doit/Brochures/Technology/dis
  tance.learn.html

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DL has potential advantages for students who

• Are shy, less confident learners
• Are slow readers, learners
• Are poor writers/spellers
• Learn in multiple ways
• Live in rural areas
• Are interested in specialized topics
• Have time, schedule, or location constraints
• Are home-bound
• Are deaf or blind or have low vision

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DL Access Challenges for people with

• Blindness
• Other Visual Impairments
• Specific Learning Disabilities
• Mobility Impairments
• Hearing Impairments
• Speech Impairments
• Seizure Disorders

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Distance Learning Literature

• Disability issues are rarely mentioned.
• Increasing access to educational opportunity, a
  common goal, usually refers to reaching out to
  people who are off-campus, live in remote areas,
  have limited schedules.
• If limitations of access at the user end are
  considered at all, they generally deal with
  computer/network capacity.
• Many DL program websites pose accessibility
  barriers.
• Few programs have policies that address
  disability-related accessibility issues.

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Universal Design

• the design of products and environments to be
  usable by all people, to the greatest extent
  possible, without the need for adaptation or
  specialized design, Ron Mace, Center for
  Universal Design, North Carolina State University

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Problem Solution

• Computer Assistive
• Access technology
• Web Universal
• access design

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Need for

• Universal design (proactive) accommodations
  (reactive)
• Policies procedures that address both

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Web Accessibility

• WAIs Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
• www.w3.org/WAI/
• Access Board (Section 508) Standardswww.access-bo
  ard.gov/ sec508/508standards.htm

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Example Universal Design of Video/Multimedia
Presentation

• Videotaped with captions in mind
• Large, clear captions
• Designed so that key content is spoken as well as
  demonstrated visually
• Audio-described version available
• www.washington.edu/doit/Brochures/Technology/vid_
  sensory.html

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Universal Design of DL Benefits People

• with disabilities
• with differences in attention/perception
• with situational limitations
• whose first language is not the one in which the
  course is taught
• with older equipment
• using different web browsers
• using handheld display units other new
  technology

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Justification for Accessible Design

• unethical to bar some eligible participants from
  program access
• legislation mandates program accessibility
• applying accessible design is a best practice for
  all students
• costly redesign may be required when a student
  with a disability enrolls in an inaccessible
  course

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Examples DL Accessibility Policies

• California Community Colleges, 1999
• Michigan Virtual University Standards for
  Quality Online Courses technology, usability,
  accessibility, instructional design

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Reference (in press)

• Article The Development of Accessibility
  Indicators for Distance Learning Programs
• by Sheryl Burgstahler
• Research in Learning Technology
• ALT-J

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Research Question

• What are program-level policies and practices
  related to delivering courses that are fully
  accessible to students with disabilities and what
  are examples of each?

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Research Steps

• draft list of DLP accessibility indicators
• collect examples of applications of the
  indicators in DL programs
• apply the indicators to UW DL program
• gather input from DL programs to refine
  items on the list, encourage them to adopt
  the indicators.

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DLP Accessibility Indicators for

• Students, potential students (1-5)
• DL designers (6, 7)
• DL instructors (8)
• DL program evaluators (9, 10)

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 1

• The DL home page is accessible to individuals
  with disabilities (e.g., adheres to Section 508,
  WCAG, or institutional accessible-design
  guidelines/standards).
• University of Wisconsin Continuing Education
  Outreach http//www.wisc.edu/wiscinfo/outreach/

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 2

• A statement about the DL program's commit-ment to
  accessible design for all potential students,
  including those with disabilities, is included
  prominently in appropriate publica-tions
  websites, along with contact informa-tion for
  reporting inaccessible design features.
• Virtual Classroom, Mt. San Antonio College
  http//vclass.mtsac.edu/ This page is design-ed
  to be accessible to all users. If you have any
  questions or concerns, please contact

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 3

• A statement about how DL students with
  disabilities can request accommodations is in
  appropriate publications web pages.
• University of South Carolina Student Guidebook
  Policies and Procedures for Distanced Education
  Classes http//www.uscupstate.edu/academics/distan
  ce/guidebook_students.pdf

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 3, cont.

• Students requiring accommodations for
  disabilities or learning needs are advised to
  contact the Office of Disability Services (864)
  503-5199. The staff works to ensure accessibility
  for all university programs, services,
  activities in compliance with Section 504 of the
  Rehabilitation Act of 1973 the Americans with
  Disabilities Act. Services offered include
  priority registration, test proctoring, classroom
  adaptation, sign language interpreters, readers,
  note takers.

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 4

• A statement about how people can obtain alternate
  formats of printed materials is included in
  publications.
• University of Minnesota Independent and Distance
  Learning Course Catalogue This publication is
  available in alternative formats on request. Call
  One Stop Student Services (800-400-8636) for
  assistance.

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 5

• The online other course materials of DL courses
  are accessible to individuals with disabilities.
• Test compliance with adopted standards, guidelines

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 6

• Publications web pages for DL course design-ers
  include a) a statement of the program's
  commitment to accessibility, b) guidelines/
  standards regarding accessibility, c)
  resources.
• University of Iowas Accessibility Standards for
  Web Resources http//cio.uiowa.edu/Policy/
  WebAccessibility.htm The University of Iowa is
  committed to providing equal access to
  information, programs, activities through its
  technologies, web pages, services resources

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 7

• Accessibility issues are covered in regular DL
  course designer training.
• University of Washington DL designers includes a
  session on legal technical accessibility issues
  and Section 508 standards.

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 8

• Publications web pages for DL instructors
  include a) a statement of the DL program's
  commitment to accessibility, b) guidelines/
  standards regarding accessibility, c)
  resources.
• University of Maryland University Accessibility
  in Distance Education A Resource for Faculty in
  Online Teaching http//www.umuc.edu/ade/ The
  Accessibility in Distance Education (ADE) Web
  site focuses on helping faculty develop
  accessible online learning materials for people
  with disabilities. It is divided into five major
  sections, ...

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 9

• Accessibility issues are covered in training
  sessions for instructors.
• Cal State San Marcos Web Accessibility Applying
  ADA Principles to Online Teaching Learning
  http//www.csusm. edu/ accessibility/onlinecourses
  / includes content resources from a faculty
  training session.

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DLP Accessibility Indicator 10

• A system is in place to monitor the accessibility
  of courses, and, on the basis of this evaluation,
  the program takes actions to improve the
  accessibility of specific courses to update
  information training given to potential
  stu-dents, students, course designers,
  instructors.
• UW applies quality assurance tests to courses
  before delivered. Included is accessibility
  review. Barriers to accessibility recorded
  removed in course updates.

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UW Implementation Goal

• To make distance learning courses at the
  University of Washington accessible to all
  students and instructors.

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UW Project Partners

• Extension Online Learning
• Access Technology Lab (ATL)
• DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities,
  Internetworking and Technology)
• Disabled Student Services

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Campus-wide Efforts

• ATL works with Educational Technology Group to
  promote accessible tools course materials
• ATL stand-alone accessibility presentations
  integration of accessibility into mainstream Web
  other technology courses
• Web accessibility campus Web page established
• AccessWeb discussion list established group
  began meeting

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UW Distance Learning, a Work in Progress

• Distance learning program established 1912 (now
  Online Learning)
• 1995 first course using the Internet
• (Burgstahler Coombs, employed accessible
  design)
• 200 courses serving 10,000 annually

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Initial State

• DL program included policy/ procedures
  statements on website regarding reasonable
  accommodations for students with disabilities

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Technology

• Course delivery system developed with campus
  Computing Communications (CC) suite of
  course tools developed by campus Educational
  Technology Group CC

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Progress with UW DL

• Determined that UW policy of commitment to
  nondiscrimination reasonable accommodation
  (Section 504 ADA) was enough to justify
  development of accessibility guidelines efforts
• Training provided to DL program staff buy-in
  secured at management implementation levels
  responsibility assigned
• Began to systemically change approach from
  accommodation to universal design accommodation

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UW DL Progress, cont.

• Identified places on DL program Web pages to
  reaffirm UW policy
• All but one indicator implemented
• Accessibility content included in DL Certificate
  Program in Introduction to Web publishing
  course (accessible design required in the final
  project)

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UW DL Program Rewards

• Compliance with laws
• Cleaner, better functioning pages
• Improved ease of use for all students and
  instructors

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Challenges

• Faculty education/buy-in
• Resources
• Technology constraints
• Specific courses

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Outreach to 16 DL Programs

• .5 staff, one year
• Beginning 3 DLP indicators implemented per
  school ending 4.1 per school
• Changes at 3 schools accounted for 80 of changes

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Results suggest

• Incorporating accessibility considerations in
  program policies, procedures, communications
• requires efforts related to students, course
  designers, instructors, evaluators
• requires approval implementation at variety of
  levels
• becomes easier once some initial accessibility
  policies, procedures, communications have been
  implemented
• is an ongoing process that may be implemented in
  incremental steps

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Resources

• www.washington.edu/accessit
• QAs, Case Studies, Promising Practices
• AccessDLwww.washington.edu/doit/Resources/
• accessdl.html