Accessibility

At a glance

Everyone in Australia who is living with disability is guaranteed the right to an education thanks to the Disability Discrimination Act and the Disability Standards for Education (2005). Because of this, accessibility is an important issue.

Within university settings, accessibility refers to creating an inclusive environment where all students, regardless of their physical, sensory, cognitive, or psychological abilities, can access learning resources, participate in educational activities, and benefit from equal opportunities. Accessibility involves removing barriers—whether physical, technological, or attitudinal—that may prevent students from fully participating in academic life.

Fundamental principles of accessibility:

Physical accessibility means ensuring teaching spaces and general facilities are accessible to students with physical disabilities.

Digital accessibility means ensuring websites, learning management systems (LMS), and online learning materials, comply with web accessibility standards (i.e. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). This allows for the use of assistive technologies such as screen readers or captioning tools.

It is important to know your responsibilities to students who have registered for equity support and have an Academic Adjustment Plan (AAP): https://students.unimelb.edu.au/student-support/student-equity-and-disability-support/standards

In depth

Accessibility is...

Accessibility in higher education is an ongoing process that involves adapting to the diverse needs of the student body and ensuring that institutions promote equity, participation, and success for all students. The increasing use of educational technologies also impacts accessibility. While technology can be a great enabler, if not used mindfully technology can also present barriers for some students.

Some tips to make on-campus teaching and learning more accessible for all

Provide clear, detailed information (both in writing and orally) about the structure of the course, practical/logistical matters, assessment requirements and deadlines.
Clear instructions and expectations related to participation in any group work (for some students with an AAP, an alternative assessment type may be necessary)
Where practical, present the same information/concepts in a range of ways, for example, audio, visual, hands-on experience.
Break up subject material into smaller chunks (including assignment instructions if they are lengthy or complex).
Provide reading lists as early as possible and provide guidance regarding which are key or required texts.
Provide a glossary of discipline-specific terms/acronyms used in the subject.
Repeat and emphasise important information and concepts.
If subject structure or location for a class must change during the semester for whatever reason, provide as much notice and clear information as possible for students. Be aware that sudden disruptions to routine can cause anxiety for some students.
Repeat clearly any questions asked by students in a class before giving a response.
Try not to speak with your back to students (such as while writing on the board).

Digital Accessibility

While online learning and teaching is ubiquitous within higher education, digital content (such as public-facing university websites) is often lacking in terms of accessibility (Campoverde-Molina et al., 2023).

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) (W3C, 2021) provide standards for developing online content with such considerations in mind. As presented below, these standards evaluate webpages from the perspective of those with disability. Guidelines associated with each of the four standards (perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust), give developers specific instruction for creating accessible online materials. This includes the requirements of assistive technologies such as screen readers and provides recommendations as to increasing the accessibility of websites.

The WCAG2.2 Standards

Principles of accessibility	Guidelines which address each principle
1. Perceivable – Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive.	Provide text alternatives for any non-text content Provide alternatives for time-based media Create content that can be presented in different ways (for example simpler layout) without losing information or structure Make it easier for users to see and hear content including separating foreground from background
2. Operable – User interface components and navigation must be operable.	Make all functionality available from a keyboard Provide users enough time to read and use content Do not design content in a way that is known to cause seizures or physical reactions Provide ways to help users navigate, find content, and determine where they are Make it easier for users to operate functionality through various inputs beyond keyboard
3. Understandable – Information and the operation of the user interface must be understandable.	Make text content readable and understandable Make Web pages appear and operate in predictable ways Help users avoid and correct mistakes
4. Robust – Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies.	Maximise compatibility with current and future user gents, including assistive technologies

From W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines by the World Wide Web Consortium, 2021
https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/

Tools that Increase Digital Accessibility for Our Students

There are tools available within Canvas to help make learning materials more accessible for students. This includes Ally, which generates alternative formats; Microsoft’s Immersive Reader, which presents module content in various ways; and the Lecture Capture (ECHO 360) option of creating lecture transcripts.

Ally is a tool that assesses the accessibility of LMS content and provides guidance for improving its WCAG rating. A colour-coded speedometer provides academics with an indication as to whether an element on their LMS site needs attention (ie. an image will have a red speedometer icon if no alternative text is offered). By clicking on the speedometer, options to improve the item are displayed. Ally also provides students with alternative formats to module content. For example, MP3 versions of written text.

The Microsoft Immersive Reader tool sits in the upper right-hand corner of each module page within the “Student View”. When students select Immersive Reader they can adjust things such as the type size, colours, and background colour. They may also have the module page text translated to a range of different languages and to be read aloud

Transcripts of lectures may be useful for some students since they can read through the content and search for certain words. The Lecture Capture (ECHO360) has the option of generating transcripts automatically. While this is convenient automatically generated transcripts are not as accurate as human-generated transcripts, so they should be checked before sharing with students.

At a glance

In depth

Further reading and resources