assistive technologies

Following the WCAG for learning disabilities can make your content more accessible to the millions of individuals with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other conditions

On 12/01/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, digital learning, elearning, instructional design, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, special needs, by Daniel Christian

Understanding the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for Learning Disabilities — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa
Following the WCAG for learning disabilities can make your content more accessible to the millions of individuals with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other conditions

Excerpt:

Advancements in digital technology have made disseminating information to the masses quick and easy. Unfortunately, your audience might not be as big as you think. For millions of people with learning disabilities, some content may be prohibitively challenging to read. This effectively renders information that many take for granted inaccessible to others.

Luckily, by using simple, common-sense methods, your content can be more approachable for those with learning and other types of disabilities. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) maintains Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to provide guidance on supportive techniques.

How Does WCAG Apply to Learning Disabilities?
While cognitive and learning disabilities are distinct conditions, they can lead to similar accessibility issues. Therefore, WCAG groups them together. WCAG’s cognitive and learning disability guidelines fall into eight main objectives:

All you need to know about Microsoft Immersive Reader [Khan]

On 11/24/2021, in 24x7x365 access, accessibility / UDL, adjunct faculty, assistive technologies, Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, CMS/LMS, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, digital audio, digital learning, education technology, faculty, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), instructional design, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Microsoft, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), online learning, online media, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, reading, remote teaching and learning, special needs, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, vendors, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, writing, by Daniel Christian

All you need to know about Microsoft Immersive Reader — from edtechreview.in by Saniya Khan

Excerpt:

Microsoft Immersive Reader is a highly interactive reading tool specifically designed to help students improve their reading, understanding and grammar skills. It also makes the texts more accessible to students of all levels.

Accessibility features of Windows 11

On 10/06/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, computer science, Michigan, platforms, society, special needs, tools, usability, user experience (UX), user interface design, vendors, by Daniel Christian

Also see:

Making Windows 11 the most inclusively designed version of Windows yet — from blogs.windows.com by Carolina Hernandez

Living With a Learning Disability: Challenges, Helpful Advice & Improvements [Kreisa]

On 09/17/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, Bias | Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), digital audio, digital learning, digital video, education, education reform, engagement / engaging students, homeschooling/homeschoolers, learning, parents/guardians, participation, society, special needs, by Daniel Christian

Living With a Learning Disability: Challenges, Helpful Advice & Improvements — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa

Excerpts:

While it is critical to remember that symptoms, comorbidities, and coping mechanisms vary, we’ll outline some of the challenges individuals with learning disabilities may face and highlight common strategies utilized by community members to address them.

Also see:

Improving Digital Inclusion & Accessibility for Those With Learning Disabilities — from inclusionhub.com by Meredith Kreisa
This comprehensive guide outlines common learning disabilities, associated difficulties, accessibility barriers and best practices, and more.

The Beginner’s Guide to Web Accessibility [deque.com]

On 07/27/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, special needs, by Daniel Christian

The Beginner’s Guide to Web Accessibility — from deque.com

Welcome to the Beginner’s Guide to Accessibility! We’re glad you’re here. This guide is designed to teach you enough about the ins-and-outs of accessibility to get your bearings and to serve as a springboard for deeper investigation into the areas of accessibility that are most relevant to you and your needs.

If you’re completely new to accessibility, we recommend starting at the beginning and reading the sections in order. However, if you aren’t a complete beginner, are pressed for time, or simply prefer to jump around in order of personal interest, each section was written to stand alone as it’s own little module of information.

Table of Contents

10 Best Accessibility Tools For Designers [Hongkiat Lim]

On 06/28/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, design, instructional design, interface design, productivity / tips and tricks, special needs, tools, vendors, web design and production, by Daniel Christian

10 Best Accessibility Tools For Designers — from hongkiat.com by Hongkiat Lim

Excerpt:

Today is the world of inclusive technology – websites, apps, and tech gadgets that are made for people with different kinds of abilities and inabilities. So when you’re designing a website, you include features that make your design accessible to as many people as possible. And this is where accessibility tools come into play.

Instead of creating everything from scratch, here’s a list of cool accessibility tools for designers. From creating color combinations according to WCAG standards to adding different reading modes to your website, these tools are a must-haves for every designer. Take a look at the list to know about each tool in detail.

New accessibility features for students and teachers using Chromebooks [educatorstechnology.com]

On 06/26/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, digital learning, education technology, Google, K-12 related, special needs, student-related, teachers, by Daniel Christian

New accessibility features for students and teachers using Chromebooks — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

After the new Google Meet updates, Google introduced new features in Chromebooks, ones that will definitely enhance the overall usability and accessibility of the device. Starting with the new PIN logins’ feature for education users, students, teachers, and educators will now be able to log in to their assigned devices using a six digit pin code. This new feature will be standard on all new Chromebooks.

Students with special needs will particularly benefit from the introduction of new accessibility features. There is the novel Live Caption functionality which allows students to caption videos. There is also the Switch Access feature which allows users to control their cursor either using the built-in keyboard or through connecting an external USB or Bluetooth.

Apple’s latest accessibility features are for those with limb and vocal differences [Coldewey]

On 06/11/2021, in accessibility / UDL, Apple, assistive technologies, by Daniel Christian

Apple’s latest accessibility features are for those with limb and vocal differences — from techcrunch.com by Devin Coldewey

Excerpt:

Apple announced a batch of accessibility features at WWDC 2021 that cover a wide variety of needs, among them a few for people who can’t touch or speak to their devices in the ordinary way. With Assistive Touch, Sound Control and other improvements, these folks have new options for interacting with an iPhone or Apple Watch.

Technology Made Special Education Parents Better Advocates During the Pandemic [Tamez-Robledo]

On 06/05/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, collaboration, communications, communities of practice, education, education reform, parents/guardians, special needs, by Daniel Christian

Technology Made Special Education Parents Better Advocates During the Pandemic — from edsurge.com by Nadia Tamez-Robledo

Excerpt:

Those are lessons that should stay in place long after our current era of remote learning, says research analyst Lane McKittrick, who focuses on special education and families at the Center on Reinventing Public Education. She recently co-authored a report on how charter schools effectively supported students with disabilities during the pandemic and is blogging about the topic.

McKittrick’s disappointment didn’t just come from her role as a researcher. She’s also a mom to four children, three of whom are deafblind.

The schools that most successfully served their special education groups were those that prioritized communication and learning about families’ needs, McKittrick found in her own analysis.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) 2021 Fundamentals Bootcamp: Recording and Slides

On 06/03/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, society, special needs, by Daniel Christian

The Basic Accessibility Fundamentals Bootcamp!
Use this table of contents to jump to specific chapters of the video:

00:00 Introduction
16:24 Inclusion and Accessibility
43:11 What is Digital Accessibility
53:31 Accessibility User Persona
1:04:26 Accessibility Statistics
1:20:53 Accessibility Laws and Legal Landscape
1:44:08 Screen Reader Demo
2:03:32 Accessibility Demographics
2:33:57 Wrap Up Reflection
2:35:19 Q&A

GAAD 2021 Fundamentals Bootcamp Slides.pdf

Transcript

Recommended Accessibility Books:

Unleash Different – Rich Donovan
Mismatch – Kat Holmes
The End of Average – Todd Rose
Design for Real Life – Eric Meyer & Sara Wachter-Boettcher

Companies like Apple and Spotify are making it easier for people with disabilities to use their products.

On 05/25/2021, in accessibility / UDL, Apple, assistive technologies, Microsoft, platforms, society, special needs, by Daniel Christian

You’ll Soon be Able to Use Your Apple Watch Without Touching the Screen — from wsj.com by Katie Deighton
Companies like Apple and Spotify are making it easier for people with disabilities to use their products. Accessibility advocates hope more follow suit

AssistiveTouch, a new feature coming to the Apple Watch, will let users operate the device without having to touch the screen or controls.

AssistiveTouch, a new feature coming to the Apple Watch, will let users operate the device without having to touch the screen or controls. It was designed with people who have upper-body limb differences in mind.

PHOTO: APPLE INC.

Excerpt:

Later this year, Apple Inc. will introduce features that allow users to control an iPad with their eyes, and its smartwatch with gestures like a pinch or a fist clench.

The company announced the moves this week as part of Global Accessibility Awareness Day on May 20, an event established in 2011. Other big tech players revealed initiatives and commitments of their own, from automatic podcast transcriptions by Spotify Technology S.A to the updated design of a specific virtual block in Microsoft Corp.’s “Minecraft” to make it more visible to colorblind players.

Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day!

On 05/20/2021, in accessibility / UDL, Apple, assistive technologies, society, special needs, by Daniel Christian

Global Accessibility Awareness Day is today!
Help us celebrate the tenth Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD)! The purpose of GAAD is to get everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital access and inclusion, and the more than One Billion people with disabilities/impairments.

Also see:

Professional Development for Digital Accessibility: A Needs Assessment — from qualitymatters.org

As the EdTech article, “Improving Accessibility for Students and Faculty with Disabilities,” points out, the approach to accommodations for many institutions is still reactive instead of proactive.

So what can institutions do to become more proactive in their approach to digital accessibility? A 2019 survey of Higher Education Quality Matters Coordinators conducted by Barbara Frey, D.Ed., Point Park University, and Rae Mancilla, Ed.D., the University of Pittsburgh, identified the need for more professional development on the topic. Now, in the final white paper from their three-part series on digital accessibility, Drs. Frey and Mancilla provide a summary and analysis of the survey data on digital accessibility professional development needs.

Highlights include:

- The key training areas that course developers can focus on to help faculty
- How administrators can address common barriers to participation in digital accessibility training
- How faculty can contribute to a meaningful accessibility training curriculum

Also see:

Apple previews powerful software updates designed for people with disabilities
New SignTime service launches Thursday, May 20, to connect Apple Store and Apple Support customers with on-demand sign language interpreters.

7 good apps for learning spelling [educatorstechnology.com] plus 2 items to check if having issues

On 05/15/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, education, education technology, Microsoft, special needs, student-related, teachers, writing, by Daniel Christian

7 good apps for learning spelling — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

We have curated for you this collection of carefully vetted apps to use with your kids, students and anyone else keen on learning and improving their spelling skills. The apps provide guided practice, interactive games, lessons, quizzes, puzzles, and several other materials to make learning spelling a fun and engaging task. We invite you to check them out and share with us if you have other suggestions to add to the list.

From DSC:
If you or someone you know is having significant issues with spelling, you/they may want to do some investigative work around:

Also, Microsoft’s Immersive Reader might come in handy.

Designing Accessible IoT Experiences [Be My Eyes]

On 05/15/2021, in accessibility / UDL, assistive technologies, internet, machine-to-machine communications, society, special needs, by Daniel Christian

Designing Accessible IoT Experiences — from inclusionhub.com by Be My Eyes
While not every IoT product is designed with accessibility in mind, it has the potential to enable people with disabilities to communicate with and through technologies in ways that were previously unavailable

Excerpt:

As we have seen, the proliferation of both devices and tools to make devices smarter can have major benefits for people with disabilities. However, when these users are not considered during the creation of products and apps, these technologies can end up widening the accessibility gap, rather than closing it.

The key to providing accessible experiences for as wide a range of users as possible is to include a variety of stakeholders in the design and testing phases of any device. By inviting people with disabilities–including visual, hearing, cognitive and other–into the process, designers can ensure that their needs are met up front, rather than having to backfill or find work-around solutions post-launch.

Learning Ecosystems

Following the WCAG for learning disabilities can make your content more accessible to the millions of individuals with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other conditions

Accessibility features of Windows 11

Living With a Learning Disability: Challenges, Helpful Advice & Improvements [Kreisa]

The Beginner’s Guide to Web Accessibility [deque.com]

10 Best Accessibility Tools For Designers [Hongkiat Lim]

Apple’s latest accessibility features are for those with limb and vocal differences [Coldewey]

Technology Made Special Education Parents Better Advocates During the Pandemic [Tamez-Robledo]

Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) 2021 Fundamentals Bootcamp: Recording and Slides

Companies like Apple and Spotify are making it easier for people with disabilities to use their products.

Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day!

Designing Accessible IoT Experiences [Be My Eyes]

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