When I first started reading this blog I was a bit confused/concerned by the negativity towards online learning; the possibility of it replacing face to face classes, it is for lazy people, and the lack of “completeness” a student has with no face to face interaction. Kellie’s post this weekend (finally) mentioned some good points regarding an online curriculum and I would like to add to that. Kellie addressed the fact that sometimes a person has no choice but to get an advanced degree online due to life circumstances, for example a full time working adult, or one with family obligations to either children or an aging parent. What has not been mentioned are the college students with challenges – whether it is visual, audio, environmental or cognitive. Are these students not entitled to the same education as someone with the freedom to choose between in person or online classes? Not many campuses offer learning environments with assistive technology, putting a vision or hearing impaired student at a disadvantage. What about those that cannot physically attend a brick and mortar campus?
In 1989 – 1990, Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web, and in 1994 he established the World Wide Web Consortium (http://www.w3.org/). The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is an international community that develops standards to ensure the long-term growth of the Web; included in the standards is a commitment to promote a high degree of usability for people with disabilities.
In 1997 W3C was nominated to host a program focused on web accessibility and from that nomination the Web Accessibility Initiative (http://www.w3.org/WAI/) was born. The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) develops its work through W3C's consensus-based process, involving different stakeholders in Web accessibility. These include industry, disability organizations, government, accessibility research organizations, and more.
WAI, in partnership with organizations around the world, pursues accessibility of the Web through five primary activities:
ensuring that core technologies of the Web support accessibility
developing guidelines for Web content, user agents, and authoring tools
facilitating development of evaluation and repair tools for accessibility
conducting education and outreach coordinating with research and development that can affect future accessibility of the Web.
As we learned in the beginning of this class, accessibility is very important to instructional design - remember our first assignment? We created an instructional support handout explaining the location/use of an accessibility or universal design feature. That assignment is the basis of the WAI. If or when you do online instructional design, I encourage you to take a few moments and look at the work the WAI has done. It is a great resource of information and a good way of keeping up with new assistive technology developments.
A few of you know this is my passion and I wanted to take a moment to share this with the rest of the class. Thanks -
I am a firm supporter of WAI, primarily for those who have color deficiencies. It is the easiest factor to account for and yet so many do not even think about the colors they use when making websites (or any other visual materials).
ReplyDeleteSimilar color fonts and backgrounds are sometimes impossible for color deficient people to see. Why make a website that many cannot see?
Check out this website for more information on what color deficient people see: http://www.vischeck.com/vischeck/vischeckImage.php
I could not be more frustrated and angry with the 'good intentions' of the do-gooders doing good with my money! Web access for rural and poorer districts is being funded and provided for,not by internet users (a most likely target, but blocked by bipartisan support in Congress), but by cell phone users. Yes, that is right, you pay for schools and rural users to have internet access by owning a cell phone. The 1996 Telecommunication Act set the stage and the Snowe-Rockefeller Amendment boosted annual taxes collected by $2.5 Billion annually! IF this sounds like a great idea to you, then answer this: Why is it that the FCC prohibits phone companies from identifying the tax as an E-Rate tax, or as a "mandate," but a "Universal Service Charge?" Furthermore, the larger your monthly bill, the larger your contribution. Yes, the tax is levied at 8.6% of your monthly bill.
ReplyDeleteAdding insult to injury, internet service providers are forced by the FCC to reduce charges to the same subsidized rural schools and libraries the rate they charge by 20-90%. While the internet can be a benefit to these schools, one should wonder why, if it is such an noble enterprise, the government hides the redistribution of wealth. One should also ask the question of whether it is in the government's authority to cap rates charged to one customer over another. This practice reeks of prejudice and class warfare, and interferes with the market place. Please note that textbook manufacturers are not required to sell books to these same schools for less, nor are hidden taxes being diverted to offset the purchase cost of those same books.
Check out Lawrence Glasman's article entitled "Universal Service: The New Telecommunications Entitlement and Taxes" published by the CATO institute, or "Secret Taxes on Your Telephone" by Mike Krause.
Emmett