Presented on May 19. 2017 at UXPA Boston @UXPABOS

1. Accessibility in Online Learning:
Users as Learners
Mary J. Ziegler
UXPA Boston
May 19, 2017
1
“It is better to know how to
learn than to know.”
Dr. Seuss

2. Overview of Today’s Presentation
1. Context of online learning and learners as users
2. Approaches to accessibility in online learning
3. Current landscape and opportunities
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3. ● Scope and Growth
● Learners
● Educational
technologies
Context of
Online Learning
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4. Scope of online learning and learners
Distance education evolution
Mail Radio/TV Internet Mobile
Formal education open and recreational learning
Professional students global, all ages
Educational software applets, games
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5. Growth and popularity of open learning
MOOCs in 2016 The leading mobile app
category is Education
+250K Educational mobile
apps
(iOS and Google Play store)
Reference https://42matters.com/stats
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6. What is a “learner” ?
A learner is someone who is learning about a particular subject or how to do something.
A student is a person who is studying at a school, college, or university.
- Collins English dictionary
Online learning users may be
learners, students, or both
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7. Motivations for learning online
● Desire to learn/acquire knowledge, skills, a credential
● Flexible
○ Time
○ Location
○ Commitment
● Affordable
● Social or professional connections and networking
● Fun, entertainment
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8. “I don’t need to worry about time or location restraints: I can learn wherever I
want and whenever I want.” - edX learner story
“I am one of those people who crave learning, but I felt that it was out of
reach due to work, family, and financial constraints.”
- a Coursera learner story
"I learned essential tools and obtained crucial experience through completing
projects. This built my portfolio and helped me attract recruiters."
- a Udacity learner story
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9. Learner activities mapped to technologies
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Activity or learning task Educational technology, format, or means
Locate, select learning Web, LMS, MOOC, apps
Watch, listen to multimedia Video, podcast, vodcast, webinar
Read, annotate, comment Web (html), e-books, PDF, annotation tools
Communicate, discuss, share Discussion, chat, conferencing, social media
Practice skill / knowledge: write, draw,
compute, code, play
Multiple choice, open response, drag and drop
simulations, virtual environments, games
Take test (knowledge assessed) Machine-graded, peer-graded, human-graded

10. Accessibility in
online learning
● Expectations of
learners with disability
● Approaches to
accessibility in learning
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11. Data on online learners with disabilities
● Very little data!
○ Open University UK study shows 19% have a disability
○ Usability studies on some MOOCs
● Informal feedback
○ Learner stories
○ Comments
○ Discussion forums
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12. “The accessibility of the courses makes edX
the perfect platform for me to learn about my
interests.”
An edX learner story
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13. What we know about learners with disabilities
● Same motivations as all learners
● May select online because it is more accessible
● Familiar with technology and expectations line up with
mainstream options on mobile and web
● May hear from them only if they hit a barrier or need an
accommodation
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14. Types of disabilities learners may have
● Temporary injury
● Health condition (temporary or chronic)
● Learning disability
● Attention deficit
● Autism spectrum
● Speech
● Mobility
● Blind or low vision
● Deaf or hard of hearing
● Cognitive
● Psychiatric
● Other
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15. Design and development approaches to accessibility
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Industry guidance Applicable to
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative
● Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)
● Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines
(ATAG)
● Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA)
Web development, authoring
environments, interactions and content
based on standards to reach the widest
possible audience
Universal Design for Learning
(UDL, UID, UDI, UDforI, UDT)
Frameworks for how to design
instruction to consider a diverse set
learner preferences

16. How WCAG principles are applied to online learning
WCAG has 4 principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, robust
1 - Perceivable
❏ Captions/transcripts/audio description for video/audio
❏ Images/visuals are described
❏ Color contrast is sufficient
2 - Operable
❏ Accessible via keyboard or mouse
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17. How WCAG principles are applied to online learning, cont’d
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3 - Understandable
❏ Navigation and terminology is consistent
❏ Language of text is identified
4 - Robust
❏ Works across devices - assistive technology, mobile

18. How universal design enhances accessibility
● Recognize diversity of learners
● Provide flexible or multiple options:
○ Present content in multiple ways
○ Allow for flexible means to communicate
○ Allow for different means to demonstrate knowledge
● Establish clear and consistent expectations
and objectives
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19. Example of universal design options for video
1. Video player
2. Audio stream
3. In-line captions
4. Video file for
offline viewing
5. Interactive or
downloadable
transcript
6. PDF Handout of
graphic
Screenshot taken from MITx on
edX: Just Money: Banking as if
Society Mattered
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1
2
3
4 5 6
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20. Learner meets content
What’s essential to the learning?
● What are all the ways possible
to present a concept?
● What are all the ways to interact
with the content?
Provide all you can!
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Graphic courtesy of
grbcoolkid

21. Example of Visual Content and Description
Description: Fetal hemoglobin (HbF),
formed by two alpha subunits (top) and
two gamma subunits (bottom). The 4
heme groups are also displayed. All chains
(ribbons) are rainbow-colored from blue to
red (N- to C-termini)
Question: Is the description sufficient to
learn this content without the visual? Is the
essential information provided?
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22. Learner meets inaccessible content
● What if presentation is
inextricably linked to a content?
● What is core to demonstration
of knowledge?
● What if additional supports are
needed?
Involve experts! On content,
presentation, accommodation, etc.
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Graphic courtesy of
grbcoolkid

23. Current and
Future
Landscape
● Ingredients for success
● Challenges
● Opportunities
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24. Contributors and experts in online learning
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Teachers, instructors, faculty Content authors and creators
Platform, web, app developers Develop learning environment
Instructional designers Design content to fit technology
Educational technologists Provide expertise on how the learning
technology works
Open education resources, publishers,
accreditors, test centers, etc.
Provide external content and assessment
Digital learning scientists, data scientists, UX,
accessibility and usability, disability specialists
Roles evolving
Students and learners Users of learning technology

25. Educational technology mapped to accessibility
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Educational technology, format, or means Example of accessibility strategy or support
LMS, MOOC, apps Apply WCAG 2.0 AA
Video, podcast, vodcast, webinar Provide captions/transcripts, audio description, flexible
methods of interaction (voice, keyboard)
Discussion, chat, conferencing, social media Provide flexible means of interaction (voice, keyboard)
Web (html), e-books, PDF, annotation tools Provide text to speech and describe images
Multiple choice, open response, drag and drop,
simulations, virtual environments, games
Apply WCAG 2.0 AA, especially for interactions
Assessments Apply WCAG 2.0 AA, address peer submissions
accessibility, process to request additional time

26. Key ingredients to online learning accessibility
● Accessible development environment (platform,
application, LMS)
● Design of instructional content and interactions
● Content creators/authors provide accessible content in
the form of text descriptions, verbalizing well in video, etc.
● Innovation in new technologies for communication
● Learner/user data on what is working
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27. Online accessibility opportunities to improve
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● Image and audio description requires content expertise
and understanding of how to describe visuals
● Flexible assessments hard to make equitable
● Communication tools across disability types
● WCAG one-size fits all approach has gaps for learning
○ How do we consider everyone?
○ W3C AccessLearn Community Group

28. References and resources
References
❏ Francisco Iniesto: What are the Expectations of Disabled Learners when Participating in a MOOC?
Presented at Learning at Scale, Cambridge MA, April 20, 2017
❏ W3C Web Accessibility Initiative www.w3c.org/wai
❏ W3C Community Group AccessLearn https://www.w3.org/community/accesslearn/
❏ National Center for Universal Design for Learning, http://www.udlcenter.org/
❏ Sheryl Burgstahler, Universal Design in Higher Education: From Principles to Practice, 2008.
Learn Online!
❏ TeachAccess Tutorial http://teachaccess.org/initiatives/tutorial/
❏ Digital Accessibility - a FuturnLearn MOOC from University of Southhampton
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/digital-accessibility
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29. Questions?
“It is better to know how to
learn than to know.”
Dr. Seuss
Mary J. Ziegler
@youhavetime
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