AccessIT
The National Center on Accessible Information Technology in Education (AccessIT) provides resources to help educational entities purchase, develop and use information technology that is welcoming to, accessible to, and usable by everyone, including people with disabilities. AccessIT was funded for five years by the U.S. Department of Education (grant #H133D010306).
AccessIT resources continue to be updated and enhanced by AccessComputing with funding from the National Science Foundation (grant #CNS-0540615, -0837508, and -1042260).
The following resources developed by AccessIT continue to be available online and managed and updated by the DO-IT Center as part of its contribution to AccessComputing, a project funded by the National Science Foundation (grant #CNS-0540615,CNS-0837508, and CNS-1042260) and co-sponsored by the UW Department of Computer Science.
Fully Integrating Accessibility into Web Design Courses
Free Web Design & Development Curriculum
The introductory course curriculum on web design and development, now known as WebD2, integrates accessibility into a mainstream course. It was created for grades 9-12, but has been used at academic levels ranging from middle school to community college. It includes eight units covering introductory design and site planning, HTML coding, cascading style sheets, JavaScript, graphic design, site design and management, and use of web authoring tools. Students end the course by designing an accessible website for their school or local community organization.
The curriculum is cross-platform and vendor-neutral, so teachers can use it regardless of which operating system, web browser, graphic software, and web authoring tool they have installed in their schools.
Integrating Accessibility into Existing Web Design Courses
The publication Universal Design of Web Pages in Class Projects shares examples of how teachers can integrate accessible design into all or part of any curriculum on creating web pages.
Accessible University Demonstration Site
Accessible University (AU) is a fictional university home page designed to demonstrate a variety of common web design problems that result in visitors with disabilities being unable to access content or features. It includes a page with accessibility problems, a page that lists and explains the problems and recommends solutions, and an accessible page that implements the solutions.
IT Accessibility Guidance
The Accessible Technology website provides extensive information, including resources that support development of accessible web and multimedia content and applications. The site includes an example of accessible IT guidelines. Highlights at this site include the following:
DO-IT hosts multiple collections of resources on accessible technology, assistive technology, legal issues, and more:
- Accessible Technology
Explore resources provide information about accessible technology design and the design of technology spaces and online learning. - Assistive Technology
Review software and hardware designed specifically for individuals with disabilities. - Laws, Policies & Standards
Explore laws and legal cases that guide the accessibility requirements for every postsecondary institution.