Cynthia Curry and Joy Zabala AEM Center Nicole Gaines NIMAC So You’re an AEM State Contact/ NIMAC Coordinator Series Part 3: What Do You Need to Know about Digital Materials? Cynthia Curry and Joy Zabala AEM Center Nicole Gaines NIMAC

Big Ideas Rationale for accessibility Meaning of “accessible” Accessibility in digital materials and technologies Assistive technology and accessibility Guidance for SEA and LEA procurement processes Supportive tools and resources

Rationale for Accessibility

Why Accessibility Matters NOTE-TAKING GUIDE: SETTing the Stage for Technology-Supported Student Achievement Why Accessibility Matters “Social justice is the equitable distribution of resources and opportunities, in which outside factors that categorize people are irrelevant.” © Joy Smiley Zabala (2006). For permission to use contact by email joy@joyzabala.com. For further information, visit http://www.joyzabala.com

IDEA Fed. Reg. Section 300.172 Provisions require state and local education agencies to ensure that printed textbooks and related core instructional materials are provided to learners with print disabilities in specialized formats in a timely manner. Legal requirement is placed on state and local education agencies. IDEA cannot place requirements on publishers

Accessible Materials and Technologies - 2015 “Accessible educational materials” means print- and technology-based educational materials, including printed and electronic textbooks and related core materials that are required by SEAs and LEAs for use by all students… CFDA 84.327Z, Footnote #10

Other Applicable Federal Legislation Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA)

Materials are Materials Instructional ? Educational? Learning? ALL materials have to be ACCESSIBLE and so do the technologies that render them!

The Meaning of “Accessible”

Functional Definition of Accessibility Joint Dear Colleague Letter June 29, 2010 Department of Justice and Department of Education

Is it Accessible? It Depends… Accessibility is not one thing or set of things Accessibility is a moving target Accessible to whom? Accessible where? Accessible for what?

“Accessibility” Is Not a Single Solution

The Disability Approach Increasing accessibility for a student who… Is deaf or hard of Hearing Has low vision or blindness Has Physical limitations Has Learning Disabilities Has Autism Has Cognitive Disabilities And on and on…

A Functional Approach Increasing accessibility for a student who… Needs an alternative for visual information Needs an alternative for auditory information Needs support for physical interaction or manipulation Needs support for processing and understanding Prefers different options for different tasks in different environments And on and on

Accessible Materials and Technologies

Lesson Learned… When thinking about accessible materials, it is important to understand that the content and the delivery technology are two sides of the AEM coin and both require careful consideration and selection.

Accessible Content Materials that are designed or enhanced in a way that makes them usable by the widest possible range of student variability regardless of format (print, digital, graphical, audio, video) Content may be “designed to be used as print” (born print) and require retrofitting Content may be “designed to be used digitally” (born digital) and difficult to retrofit if not accessible from the start

Two Sides of the AEM Coin… The information is the content Accessible technology is the delivery system that the student uses to perceive and interact with the content

Accessible Technologies Any device, hardware, software or handheld equipment that provides access to life's activities Can be used by people with a wide range of abilities and disabilities.   Directly usable without assistive technology or Compatible and made usable with assistive technology  Adapted from AccessibleTech.org’s What is Accessible Electronic and Information Technology?

Center for Online Learning Teacher Resources “Accessibility problems can be eliminated and the ‘‘playing field leveled’’ when [digital] course content is delivered using various and redundant modes such as speech, text, and graphics…These modes make it possible to deliver content based not only on disabilities, but also on learner preferences.”

Redundancy as a GOOD thing In general, we learn that redundancy is something to be avoided - superfluous, unneeded or too much. In accessibility, we learn that redundancy is critical so that if one feature or format does is not useful to an individual, another feature or format is available to convey the same information or provide the same interactivity.

Lesson Learned: Increased Accessibility Accessibility is increased when Design includes multiple options that can be turned off and on depending upon individual needs or preferences All involved know what the options are, can participate in the selection of options and know how to manipulate the options

Guidance for SEA and LEA Procurement Processes

Purchase Accessible Learning Materials - PALM PALM includes Draft purchase order and contract language Best practices for publishers and developers Action steps for Purchasers Educators Families Advocates

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA International standard for making digital materials accessible Developed by the World Wide Web Consortium/Web Accessibility Initiative

From WCAG 2.0 Comes POUR Perceivable To make sure learners can see and hear the information presented Operable To make sure learners can interact with information using a variety of tools Understandable To make sure learners can understand the information in a predictable way Robust To make sure digital materials work well with current and future technologies

Social Media Accessibility Designing for Accessibility with POUR on the AEM Center Website

Buy Accessible - Five Things (1-4) Require that all educational materials and technologies be accessible. Without this stance, some learners will continue to experience access barriers. Incorporate accessibility into your procurement practices. Align your criteria with Section 508/WCAG 2.0 AA conformance. Include accessibility language in contracts and purchase orders. The AEM Center has samples for both digital and print materials. Ask vendors for Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPAT). If the information provided is questionable or incomplete, ask why.

Buy Accessible - Five Things (5) Recruit students with unique access and learning needs to test products prior to purchase.  Assistive technology users will be especially helpful.  Give students an authentic task and observe them while they interact with the product.  Ask them about their user experience, using questions related to the purpose of the product.  Will students with unique access and learning needs be able to use the product in an equally effective and equally integrated manner, with substantially equivalent ease of use? 

Supportive Tools and Resources

AEM Center Homepage http://aem.cast.org

Simply Said: Understanding Accessibility in Digital Learning Materials Sharing with Others Simply Said: Understanding Accessibility in Digital Learning Materials

SETDA’s DMAPS

Q & A

Coming up next in our series Bookshare for AEM State Contacts and NIMAC Coordinators Tuesday, March 27 3:00-4:00 PM ET Learning Ally for AEM State Contacts and NIMAC Coordinators Thursday, April 5 2:00-3:00 PM ET American Printing House for AEM State Contacts and NIMAC Coordinators Wednesday, May 9 1:00-2:00 PM ET

Contact the AEM Center or the NIMAC Website: http://aem.cast.org Email: aem@cast.org Telephone: 781-245-2212 NIMAC Website: http://nimac.us Email: nimac@aph.org Telephone: 502-899-2230 or 1-877-526- 4622 (1-877-52-NIMAC)