Technical and Pedagogical Strategies March 2016 Melissa Messina Instructional Designer A growing problem Agonizing and overwhelming barriers to access for college students today ID: 524298
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Slide1
Online Course Accessibility
Technical and Pedagogical Strategies
March 2016Melissa Messina, Instructional DesignerSlide2
A growing problemSlide3
Agonizing
and overwhelming barriers to access for college students
today.“
”
– Eve Hill, US DOJ
, Civil
Rights
DivisionSlide4
Legal requirements
§ 1194.22 of Section 508
: Federal agencies must make electronic information accessibleApplies to schools that receive federal fundingIncludes PDFs, Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and any other files hosted on the website, not just the website
itself
Upcoming “refresh” = stricter rules
based on
WCAG 2.0
Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Title II prohibits discrimination by public entities
Title III applies to “public accommodations” broadened to include online programs at schoolsSlide5
Paradigm shiftSlide6
Accessible design is good design
– Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO 2000-2014
Provides an improved experience for all users:
Speakers of other languages
Old technology, slow connections
Small devices, handhelds
Scripts and captions create searchable audio/videoSlide7
Accessibility challenges
Technical
Lack of skills or time to build in accessibilityNature of online instruction, esp text-based discussion boards
Pedagogical
Audio presentation of screen readers is linear and continual; learning is not
Meaningful adaption of content requires significant effort
Source:
Moore, 2014Slide8
How does a screen reader work?
Screen Reader Reading Different Table Layouts (< 2 min)
Introduction to the Screen Reader (7 min)Slide9
Technical strategies
Provide digital texts in HTML, structured Word docs, or tagged PDF formats
Use alt text for imagesWatch your color contrast Flatten navigational structures (i.e., single scrollable folder or file)Chunk videos and name the chunks
Caption all videos
Create human-readable links
Source:
Moore, 2014Slide10
Pedagogical strategies
Cut extraneous materialWrite clearly and
succinctlyProvide accessible alternatives to inaccessible materials or activitiesAnnotate links meaningfullyUniquely identify and annotate all figures and illustrations
Source:
Moore, 2014Slide11
Microsoft Word
Benefits
Defined structure and navigationInformation in multiple formatsImproved readability
and
comprehension
Conversion
to other file
formats
Access Barriers
Improperly formatted headings, tables, lists,
etc.
Missing alt
text
Detailed or "busy" page backgrounds or
watermarks
URLs
as
linksSlide12
Word best
practices
Heading, list, and paragraph stylesAlt text for imagesTrue columnsTrue listsMeaningful descriptive text for linksClear table structure and headers
Accessibility Checker toolSlide13
Save Word as PDF
Export correctly: File > Save As
Check setting: Acrobat tab > Create PDF > Options > Enable Accessibility and Reflow Slide14
Microsoft PowerPoint
Benefits
Pre-set, accessible slide layoutsAccommodation of visual learning styles
Information in multiple
formats
Conversion to other file formats
Access Barriers
Content within a text
box
Images, animations, or videos without alt
text
Low contrast or patterned
backgrounds
Slide transitions and
animations
URLs
as
linksSlide15
Best Practices
Structure and Images
Pre-set slide templatesUnique heading titlesLogical reading
order
Charts
, tables, graphs via slide layout or Insert
menu
Alt text for all
images
Extended descriptions for charts and other
graphics
Content
Sans-serif
fonts
Appropriate punctuation at the end of each bullet
point
Template text
boxes
Color contrast between text and
background
Captioned
videoSlide16
Adding placeholders
On
the View tab, in the Master Layout group, click on Slide Master.Click the layout to which the Content Placeholder is to be added.
In
the Master Layout Group, click Insert
Placeholder.
Choose
the type of Content Placeholder
needed.
Choose
a location on the slide, and position the new
Placeholder.
In
Edit Master Group, Rename the
layout.
In
the Slide Master tab, Click on Close Master
View.Slide17
Reading order
To verify the order of slide elements:
Go to the Home tab.Select the Arrange icon to see a drop-down list of commandsChoose Selection Pane (PowerPoint 2013 for Windows) or Reorder Objects (PowerPoint 2011 for Mac)Use the tools to place items in correct reading
order
.
Windows
: The
bottom-most
item is in the Arrange panel read first.
Macintosh: Item #1 in the Rearrange panel is read last.Slide18
Save PowerPoint as PDF
File
> Save AsOR:Select Create PDF from Acrobat ribbonSlide19
Resources and Training
Free accessibility workshops at UMKC: http://online.umkc.edu/faculty
/Accessibility in Microsoft Office 2013: https://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/office2013/#create
Creating Accessible
PowerPoint Presentations:
https://
support.office.com/en-us/article/Creating-accessible-PowerPoint-presentations-6f7772b2-2f33-4bd2-8ca7-dae3b2b3ef25
WebAIM
Color
Contrast Checker:
http://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker
/