Weekly Recap

This week, we learned about assistive technology and learning design. To ensure all of our learners can have equitable access to information, as educators we are responsible for creating and publishing content that is multi-modal and accessible in various modes (with alternative text, visual images, audio descriptions, etc.). As demonstrated in this blog post, some important considerations included enabling accessibility of photo and video by way of captions and alternative text. Further, careful attention to color choices in such a way that will pass a colour contrast checker test, so that individuals perceiving colour in different ways can still access your published content. Two models – SAMR and Triple-E – were discussed in terms of evaluating created content for efficacy in learning. Important considerations included attention to engagement for students, tech modifications, and use of tech tools to redefine and extend students’ knowledge of the specific content. Finally, different forms of assistive tech (iPads, PhET, MathConnect, Co:Writer, etc.) were discussed for use in our future classrooms.

Commonly Missed Digital Accessibility Practices

Enabling accessible photo and video is something I find is often missed in classrooms. The majority of our lessons as educators are made available to students who have visual access to powerpoints, worksheets, articles, and documentaries or short videos. This is something I often neglect to include in my papers and (until today) my blog posts, but will be a crucial thing to carry forward for my future students and learners.

Digital Accessibility Practices and Tools

One digital accessibility practices that surprised me was colour contrast checking. Notably in science, where much of our material is colourful and vibrant in presentation, using contrast checkers should be something we integrate more often to ensure accessibility. Some of the tools I liked in particular listed under the Assistive Technologies were those embedded in Microsoft and Google Suite, given that most students are somewhat familiar with these platforms already. I think many students would benefit from using voice-to-text or read-aloud tools to support them as they conduct research and brainstorm ideas for paper writing, lab reports, or projects. Kurzweil is also a wonderful tool I am now aware of and would love to explore the ways in which it could be implemented or integrated into schools for students who benefit from writing and test taking help. Some things I am curious about concerning this tech include privacy concerns, costs, and accessibility for all students in terms of available resources. Can all students who want this support gain access to an iPad or laptop with downloaded software? Is it beyond the school district budgets? Is it easy to teach and learn how to use? Will this replace the support provided by education assistants (EAs)? Personally, I think EAs are critical to student success in more ways that just reading and scribing, by way of building student relationships and personal connections, which is something these tech tools cannot do. However, they could be very helpful as support tools for EAs and students to use together.

Moving forward, I think these are exceptionally important considerations for future educators to ensure their students can learn to the best of their ability in their classrooms.