Neil McKenzie, Dedicon Multimedia training Packages by EUAIN

Neil McKenzie Multimedia training packages by EUAIN

Multimedia Training Packages by EUAIN Introduction EUAIN Overview EUAIN Training Materials Background and structure of the Training Materials Curricula Modules Resources AIP in Electronic Publishing ProAccess Next Steps.....

11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 Introduction DEDICON international projects department have worked in the area of making information accessible to visually impaired end users on a European Scale for over 10 years. They have participated in European Commission projects which address accessibility in the areas of public libraries, the publishing industry, mathematics, music, graphics, imaging and eLearning. For the past 3 years they have been co-ordinating the EUAIN project which seeks to bring the stakeholders of accessible information processing together in order to improve accessibility in publishing workflows. The presentation presents the major output from the EUAIN network; The EUAIN Training Materials.

EUAIN Project Overview To bring together all the players in the information provision and e- publishing chain in order to achieve the critical mass significantly to enhance the provision of accessible information at a European level. To create a self-sustaining network which can offer the necessary expertise, shared knowledge, technological tools and distribution platforms to all those involved in the provision of accessible information and in particular to provide a collaborative platform for content creators to find information, tools, advice and solutions To raise awareness and stimulate the adoption at local, regional, national and european levels of the emerging formats and standards for the provision of accessible information and to find ways of ensuring that technological protection measures do not inadvertently impede legitimate access to information by people with print impairments To stimulate and support the adoption of new distribution channels and appropriate business solutions in order to help achieve faster, prompter and less expensive production and distribution of accessible information EUAIN Objectives 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training Materials Objectives to establish a training and learning framework that is responsive to industry needs and concerns to create training and learning materials that address the key issues for accessible information processing to encourage and stimulate the uptake of the learning and training materials and to encourage liaison with parallel training and distance learning activities Outcomes Establishment of an online training and learning centre Creation of Sectoral training packages on Accessible Information Processing Forthcoming: Multimedia training materials for use in Learning environments Forthcoming: Exhaustive best practice publication on accessible information processing Objectives and Outcomes 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training materials In order to build up a knowledge base on which to base the EUAIN training materials on a wiki was set up. Interactively created by representatives of stakeholders in Accessible Information processing and the consortium Expected to have a lifespan beyond that of the project. Available at Building up a knowledge base 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training Centre Information in the topics of: Distribution: protecting and distributing accessible content. Standards: relevant standards Guidelines: detailed guides for accessible information processing Case Studies: real-life examples Software: available open source and commercial software Emerging Issues: areas for ongoing collaboration and activity Inside the knowledge base 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 The knowledge in the wiki was built into specific areas of the training materials where, the following elements could be used: Example Curricula, which could be expanded and augmented depending on the needs of specific situations. Modules, which presented all the materials on specific topics of Accessible Information Processing. Resources, which can be used as background materials and extended reading for both the modules and the curricula. This structure is similar to that used in the WAI training resources.

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 By Building up this body of Modular structured data, the EUAIN materials can provide: Practical examples of good practice. Illustrated explanations of good process management for accessible information production. Detailed explanations of approaches, technologies and tools. Detailed explanations and examples of benefits and weaknesses of different formats. Step by step, modular instructions for producing accessible information in different formats.

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 In order to provide the required knowledge to support the decision making chain within industry, the EUAIN materials are aimed at three levels of complexity: Level 1: Descriptive: Should teach actors to think about the issues and finding the solutions for their situation. There will only be simple explanations, and not detailed or over-technical. Level 2 : Decision making: Should teach actors how to make the right decisions to implement accessible information processing. There will only be relatively simple explanations, and not detailed or over- technical. These descriptions will link directly to level 3 detailed information. Level 3 Training packages: At this level, the detailed and more technical information is provided. This level essentially provides the answers to detailed questions and applications.

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 In order to provide the required knowledge to support the decision making chain within industry, the EUAIN materials are aimed at three levels of complexity: Level 1: Descriptive: Should teach actors to think about the issues and finding the solutions for their situation. There will only be simple explanations, and not detailed or over-technical. Level 2 : Decision making: Should teach actors how to make the right decisions to implement accessible information processing. There will only be relatively simple explanations, and not detailed or over- technical. These descriptions will link directly to level 3 detailed information. Level 3 Training packages: At this level, the detailed and more technical information is provided. This level essentially provides the answers to detailed questions and applications.

EUAIN Training materials Curricula 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 The example curricula currently available are: General introduction to Accessible Information Processing(General Audience, 40 Mins) Accessible Information Processing Lecture(University Students, 120 Mins) Workshop on AIP design and markup Context(Content creators and designers, 180 Mins) Conference Workshop on AIP technologies(Technical Conference, 90 mins) In-House Training Day on Accessible Information Processing(Developers and quality assurance testers, 6 hours) Accessible Information Processing Overview for Senior Management(Senior Management, 10 mins)

EUAIN Training materials Modules 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 Each module contains Objectives, Resources, and Learning Outcomes. The modules currently available are: Module 1 – Why Accessible Information Processing is important. Module 2 – Description of Accessible formats with examples of practical use Module 3 – Business case and the Market for Accessibility Module 4 – Implementing Accessible Information Processing Module 5 – Evaluating and incorporating Accessible Information Processing. Module 6 – Accessible Content and Accessible Authoring Tools Module 7 – Promoting Accessible Information Processing

EUAIN Training materials Resources 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07

EUAIN Training materials Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 Many resources are made available in both the wiki and the training materials. These consist of: Descriptions of Formats used in Accessible Information Processing. Process Descriptions of various conversions of these formats A list of relevant standards for Accessible Information Processing Collected guidelines on Accessible Information Processing A collection of Case studies and scenarios presented in terms of Formats, conversions and standards used.

AIP in Electronic Publishing Structure of the Training Materials 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 In the field of electronic publishing, we are positioned at a better starting point in incorporating accessibility, as the source material is digitised. Electronic publishing now incorporates Content and Knowledge management systems which are ideal for accessibility as presentation is more adaptable and separated from content. The EUAIN training materials are useful for working out which formats and procedures can be used in order to integrate accessibility within exisiting personalised systems EUAIN offers demonstration software of a multimodal content conversion system for electronic publishing at

ProAccess 11th Elpub Conference, Vienna>07 DEDICON recently started the ProAccess project. The project builds on the work of EUAIN and brings together the ORMEE network and the EUAIN Network in order that the area of DRM and Accessibility in eLearning materials produced by publihsers accross Europe The project will run for 18 months and look at building descriptions of generic processes in the publishing industry, guidelines for incorporating accessibility and disseminate this accross the networks involved in the project. More Info is available at or from

EUAIN ProAccess provides a very good opportunity to evaluate the work of EUAIN and to ensure that it integrates with other developments in the publishing industry. The work by the EUAIN consortium is ongoing, and in the near future there will be: A full set of Multimedia training materials A book entitled “Best practice in Accessible Information Processing” The First International Accessible Content Processing Conference, in Brussels on the 19th and 20th of September 2007 As part of the project work we are in teh process of establishing the EUAIN network as a legal entity. The EUAIN Network also intend to submit a proposal for an Integrated project to Call 2 within Challenge 7.2 in FP7 that will provide practical implementations of the frameworks described in EUAIN. Next steps..... Pro.Access Workshop Amsterdam >07

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