According to the Hearing Loss Association of America, approximately 20 percent of Americans report some degree of hearing loss. There are some very simple ways to ensure your students will hear you. I will list a few below.
Members of the Dutton Learning Design team recently produced the following video, entitled Creating a Welcoming Presentation, for the Online Learning Consortium. This 3-minute video features tips for making sure your presentations are understood and seen by all and that they are inclusive to every member of your audience. As the speaker, you set the tone and help your audience engage!
Every now and again, faculty receive letters from students who have some type of disability. Not all disabilities are physical, some are neurological and require that students be given extra time on quizzes, exams or any other assignment that is timed. The student works with the Office of Disability Services and is given a letter to share with their instructors to receive the accommodation outlined in the letter. Sometimes, you may need to give a student another attempt at an assignment for any number of reasons.
The probability of encountering a student with color deficiency (color blindness) in your online course is higher than you might think. By following accessibility best practices you can eliminate potential issues with image interpretation from the start. However, what about images from outside sources that you require the student to analyze? Are there strategies that you can employ to assist a student with color deficiency? The answer is “yes.”
As I was considering the topic for this month’s accessibility blog, I came across a great article, “Maps That You Can Hear and Touch” by Laura Bliss. Given the College’s emphasis on STEM material and use of all types of maps (GIS maps, Geography maps, weather maps, etc) and the University’s growing interest in 3D printing, I thought this would be the perfect topic.
Please note that using proper headings is one of the MOST IMPORTANT tools for screen reader users.
Videos, narrated screen captures, and audio files need three things to be accessible to all students.
If you have NOT created the content yourself and the original author has not included accurate captions, a transcript will suffice. NOTE: You can NOT rely on YouTube automatic captions.
