Online Accessibility
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The web has the potential to provide and liberate, but there exists also a responsibility on authors, designers and teachers to ensure it does not prevent and restrict. In this age of increasingly commonplace technology, much has been made of the potential for technology to enhance or replace traditional teaching techniques, or even to open up possibilities which simply did not exist in the analogue age. The term Online Accessibility is designed to cover all uses of electronic means by education providers. This, therefore, includes online-only teaching, institution intranets or learning platforms, web sites, e-learning techniques (often as part of a blended learning approach) and so on.
The key to using technology in any of the activities of an education institution is to use technology as one of a suite of tools with which it can achieve its stated objectives. The use of technology should always be an option, not a prerequisite, and accessibility should be one of the prime considerations.
JISC TechDis has gathered together a range of case studies, articles, and other good practice sources, in order to guide education institutions and their staff in using technology as inclusively as possible. From the procurement of a new institutional virtual learning environment (Nottingham Trent University case study) to the preparation of accessible documents for online delivery or storage (Accessibility Essentials), the use of technology will always need careful consideration to maximise accessibility.
Value can be added to different types of learners through the appropriate use of technology and provision of alternatives or ‘reasonable adjustments’ (The Holistic Approach), and the use of the web and web 2.0 technologies to support staff and learners.
