Building Strategic Partnerships through Crowdsourced Accessibility and Service- Learning

Medical Model of Disability Traditionally, disability has been seen as an individual “problem” that needs to be cured or accommodated.

Reframing Disability Environment poses barriers that are problematic. Designing inclusive and equitable environments is a matter of social justice. Universal Design

Accessibility Students with disabilities have the right to “…all the educational benefits provided by technology in an equally effective and equally integrated manner.” (Office of Civil Rights, 2011)

Benefits of Captioning Helps all students comprehend material Universal Design Multiple learning styles English language learners Computers without speakers or in loud areas Accommodates students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

What is Crowdsourcing? Tapping into “crowds” of people using online tools to get work done, obtain information, and stimulate action. (from crowdsourcing.org)

Crowdsourcing Accessibility We believe there is much to learn from [the experiences of people with disabilities] that can be either directly applied or adopted into new mainstream crowdsourcing systems. --Bigham & Ladner, 2011

Tools: Captioning Amara Caption and translate YouTube, Vimeo, and HTML5. Syncs with YouTube accounts. dotSub Caption and translate any digital video format

Learn more about Amara

Engaging the Campus Community Through crowdsourcing, accessibility shifts from the purview of one office to the entire campus community As awareness increases across campus, we hope that more media will be “born accessible.”

SLCC Institution Level Outcomes Acquire substantive knowledge in the discipline of their choice sufficient for further study, and/or demonstrate competencies required by employers to be hired and succeed in the workplace. Communicate effectively. Develop quantitative literacies necessary for their chosen field of study. Think critically. Develop the knowledge and skills to be civically engaged, and/or work with others in a professional and constructive manner

Connections to the Curriculum Content Digital Literacy Civic Engagement Accessibility impacts (and can inspire) all areas of the curriculum Service Learning Semester Projects Extra Credit Note Taking / Study Skills

Student Experiences “I have been involved with the Deaf and their community for more than twenty years. I have a passion for their culture and language. I know the rules of communicating with them and so when I approached doing captioning I kept that in mind.” “It was nice that I could reinforce my school learning while I was doing some good for someone else” “I have been working at these videos even after I accumulated my seven hours required for part one of this project. I intend to do these as often as I can. I loved it! I also put a link on my Facebook page inviting others to volunteer their time. It’s immensely rewarding to be able to do this kind of volunteer work while sitting in my pajamas.”

Models Beyond the Curriculum Accessibility Hackathons Disability Awareness Week Faculty Training

Universal Access Committee Key decision makers from across campus Encourages cross-college collaboration to ensure all programs, services, facilities, and technologies are universally accessible to people with disabilities Shared responsibility for accessibility Promotes principles of universal design on a college-wide level

Pros & Cons: DIY Captioning 50 videos free Student workers and other employees can help add captions Faculty can add captions to their own videos Raises awareness of Universal Design Funding for a system- wide approach Administrative burden Faculty perceptions Software compatibility Quality control

Benefits for Student Services Engages the entire campus in conversations on inclusivity Innovative approach to accessibility Builds strategic partnerships college-wide Supports Flipped or Hybrid classes High impact practice that promotes Universal Design

Learn More Bigham, J.P. & Ladner, R.E. (2011). What the disability community can tell us about interactive crowdsourcing. interactions 18(4), Kremer, K. (n.d.) Facilitating accessibility through crowdsourcing. Pearson, R. (2012, 8 Nov). “Crowdsourcing the components of accessibility.” AccessIQ. ng-the-components-of-accessibility ng-the-components-of-accessibility

Contact Us Candida Darling Director, Disability Resource Center Melissa Helquist Associate Professor, English Brittany Stephenson Associate Professor, English