This article connects designing inclusive online courses to guidelines like Universal Design For Learning and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. It highlights the principles of both guidelines and provides specific examples related to making online courses more accessible. #accessibility
meryl.net
This article highlights the importance of making digital accessibility part of your role. It provides specific examples and tips about how to advocate for accessibility across different roles. #accessibility
Captions are the curb cut of digital media. This article highlights the benefits of closed captions and how they can benefit a wide range of students. #accessibility
blog.pope.tech
This article explains why it is important to screen the accessibility of third party vendors. It provides tips like asking the vendor for a VPAT and to provide examples of how they are complaint with WCAG. The article also provides an email template that can be used. #accessibility
dl.acm.org
This article explores the experiences of people using Gen AI with different disabilities. It highlights the strengths and weakness of GenAI and provides a host of different accessibility strategies for using GenAI. #accessibility
This talk highlights how accessibility can foster inclusion. It provides a variety of examples of why digital accessibility is important and potential implementations. #accessibility
www.forbes.com
Apple Music and Podcasts now provide transcripts that sync with the content. The FDA is approving Apple's Airpods Pro 2 as hearing aids. They are also releasing a hearing test designed to be used with the device. A new accessibility feature in iOS 18 is Music Haptics, which uses synced vibrations to convey the musical experience. These devices and features have the potential to make a significant impact for people with hearing loss or who are deaf. #accessibility
www.tdrlaw.com
This article highlights how a conservative Supreme Court could weaken the ADA. The ADA requires plaintiffs to prove intentional discrimination. Currently, there is a circuit split on what the burden of proof is. Some districts say that only deliberate indifference is required while other districts are arguing that the plaintiff must show discriminatory animus to be awarded damages. Adopting the discriminatory animus standard would seriously weaken the ADA. #accessibility
arstechnica.com
There is a circuit split on whether the ADA applies to websites. This creates ambiguity because each district is different. For example, Winn-Dixie originally lost its case but won its appeal because the judges felt the ADA could not be applied to websites. However, this deprives people using assistive technologies from being able to place an order online. If the Supreme Court takes this case in the future they should extend ADA protections to web content. #accessibility
digital.gov
This article profiles how the U.S. General Services Administration is working to make its digital content more accessible. They are making digital accessibility part of their design process. They also prioritize using a consistent user-centered design, easy-to-understand language, and mobile/tablet testing. #accessibility
digital.gov
This article highlights why digital accessibility is important. It provides a summary of the legal landscape, universal design, the lived experience of people with disabilities, accessibility testing methods, and the screen reading software available. It also provides a host of resources to explore the topic further. #accessibility
This Conference Paper reviews the history of digital accessibility research. It found that a majority of studies have focused on web accessibility and media accessibility. There is a lack of studies including people with disabilities and utilizing interdisciplinary collaboration. There are fewer studies on subjects like kiosks, virtual reality, and mobile. We need diverse researchers and studies to explore all the different facets of digital accessibility. #accessibility
adrianroselli.com
This is an interesting talk highlighting some of the issues that can occur on a website when an accessibility overlay is used. #accessibility
www.asroma.com
Today is International Sign Language Day. There are approximately 300 different sign languages and French Sign Language is thought to be the oldest, which dates back to 1771. Sign language interpreting should be part of press conferences, and live events. Sign language interpreting promotes inclusion and diversity. #accessibility
er.educause.edu
This article highlights a study showing that only 7% of people with disabilities feel there is adequate representation of their community and 87% would be willing to provide user feedback. The article highlights AI advancements in digital accessibility like audio and image descriptions. #accessibility
This resolution between the Office of Civil Rights and California State University Stanislaus regards kiosk accessibility. Kiosks are often used to offload providing support staff. However, this resolution requires the university to make support staff available upon request. It will be interesting to see how this space develops in the future. #accessibility
www.princeton.edu
Princeton University is using WayFinding technology to create accessible maps that highlight accessibility features for each building on campus. This makes it easy to create an accessible route to buildings on campus. Check out the full article for more details. #accessibility
This dissertation explores Generative AI for Web Accessibility. It found that software developers who view AI as an ethical responsibility rather than a technical requirement are more likely to be skeptical of AI. Developers surveyed with more experience appeared more likely to have a negative view of AI than developers with less experience. Gen AI presents risks related to accuracy, overreliance, and biases, which can cause skewed outputs. #accessibility
I appreciate the different accessibility tools this article highlights. I also like Sean Dougherty's suggestion that AI can be helpful for people who use screen reading software by providing quick summaries of web pages. This can help someone find information faster and determine if it is worth reading the article. One aspect that I think the article misses is that accurate alternative text is still going to be very important. AI has a hard time determining the author's intention. AI tools can help to find more information about a picture when there is no alternative text but authors should add alt text to their images. Authors can also use alt text as a base that they can edit from similar to how auto-generated captions are edited today. #accessibility
adrianroselli.com
This article highlights using attributes like the legend and fieldset attributes to create an accessible form. It also provides examples that show how these attributes can be implemented. #accessibility
Thinker33 Now • 100%
Arizona State University is the first higher education institution to have a partnership with OpenAI. I think this is related to that deal. I don't know how long it will stay free.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
Ableist is defined as discrimination or prejudice against people with disabilities, especially physical disabilities. Supporting people of all different races and trying to end systemic racism would be about being anti-racist. Feminism is a little too broad for me to define but it would probably align with providing men and women equal rights. The goal is to unite people not divide. The issue is that most of the web is inaccessible and cannot be accessed by people with disabilities. Excluding a group of people from a building because of their gender, race, or disability is against the law. Yet, people with disabilities are excluded or lack access to information on publicly available websites each day. This type of change requires people to be anti-ableist and to do the work necessary to make their website accessible.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
Unfortunately, most academic journals still publish only PDFs. I couldn't find an HTML version.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
Thank you for sharing. Glad it is helpful 😀
Thinker33 Now • 100%
100% agree. This is why adding short but descriptive audio prompts for everything is very important. In this example they forget to add an audio prompt for when an object is grabbed, which immediately became an accessibility barrier. In addition, creating an intuitive way to navigate the audio prompts similar to screen reader navigation is needed.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
You can print your own paper if you have an inkjet printer. I'm not sure how well it works. Most users buy their journals. The journals make it easier to store your notes and you can group them by subject.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
This is a demo video I made a while back on how to use the original Echo Smartpen.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
No it isn’t. Most of the webinars from well known vendors (Deque University, Level Access, 3 Play Media) are very focused on the topic. They may spam your email with some product stuff but you can always unsubscribe.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
This study on Zoom camera use found that students turn off their cameras because of personal appearance, people being in the background, and slow internet connection. A Stanford study identified constant camera use as a cause for Zoom fatigue and recommended audio-only breaks. Educause on equitable camera use highlights best practices at the end of the article like a flexible policy, using icebreakers, and providing alternatives. Hopefully, these articles are helpful and might lead to your institution creating a more flexible policy.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
I use Habitica too! It helps me stay motivated to complete tasks.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
Beyond improving battery technology solar might help reach this goal too. The new top trim Prius Prime has solar panels, which MKBHD highlighted can add minimal range. Maybe as solar tech improves they can add more panels to the car and recharge the battery faster.
Thinker33 Now • 100%
I use Habitica and Forest. I try to gamify everything. Also rewarding myself for staying on track with 10 to 30 minutes of video games. I find I like audiobooks and podcasts to be in the background when I'm studying. I also use the Calm app a lot when I'm working. I like the city and coffee shop soundscapes. I've listed to This American Life Cars 129 about 50 times while doing my literature review. I am working full time, my wife and I have a new baby and I am also getting my doctorate. Another key strategy is waking up early like 5 AM to do a self-care routine to start the day. I meditate and exercise as part of my Habitica habits. It helps me get focused and feel ready for the day. I never took any medication growing up although the doctor recommended it. My parents made me meditate every day for 30 minutes when I got home from school and on weekends. I was basically grounded until I did that. It helped a lot for me. Those are some of my strategies.