AccessSTEM

"Accessibility Rallies" represent a promising practice for promoting accessible web design. This article describes the Georgia Accessibility Rally (GAR), which was designed to create new, accessible Internet sites for rural Georgia schools, train students in accessible web design techniques, and build the capacity for teachers and administrators to create accessible information technology opportunities for all students.

The following publication content was developed through a joint project between AccessIT and the ADA and IT Technical Assistance Centers.

Microsoft® Word is the world's most popular word processing software application, and files created with Word (typically ending in .DOC or .DOCX) are common as a means of distributing materials over the web, including materials used in education.

Growing numbers of educational entities at all levels are embracing the web for delivery of curriculum, as well as for administrative functions, outreach, and communication. Delivering web-based content to a variety of audiences demands a respect for the varieties of technologies that people use to access the web. In addition to the standard combination of computer screen, keyboard, and mouse, many web users with and without disabilities use alternative devices both for providing input to the computer and for perceiving output from the computer.

The following content was developed through a joint project between AccessIT and the ADA National Network Centers.

Captions provide equivalent text for individuals who are unable to hear the audio portion of a video presentation. Open captions are part of the video and can not be turned off. Closed captions, however, are contained with a separate text track and can typically be toggle on or off as needed.

Yes.

"Information technology" (IT) is "any equipment or interconnected system or subsystem of equipment, that is used in the automatic acquisition, storage, manipulation, management, movement, control, display, switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of data or information. Information technology includes computers, ancillary equipment, software, firmware and similar procedures, services (including support services), and related resources."

Many distance learning courseware packages include a whiteboard tool. The purpose of an electronic whiteboard is the same as that of a blackboard or whiteboard in a school. Instructors and students write or draw on the board in order to share their ideas and to deliver instruction. Electronic whiteboards work as graphical chat tools. They allow multiple users to draw, paint, and share existing graphical files in real time. Unfortunately, exclusively graphical workspace is not accessible to users of screen readers.

There is a growing trend on websites in education and elsewhere toward providing a navigational system that includes dynamic menus, menus that expand as users point to them with the mouse. Proponents of dynamic menus argue that they reduce page clutter and provide a familiar, organized interface to a website, comparable to that of most software applications.

The following sampling of online resources includes both websites and discussion lists related to accessible information technology. Many of the websites listed include online courses and/or tutorials.

Websites

DO-IT
Resources on electronic and information technology, postsecondary education, and careers for people with disabilities.