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Accessibility Checklist for Virtual Student Programming
COVID-19 has forced students to adapt to a new set of challenges as institutions transition to remote learning and programming. Students with disabilities or extenuating financial circumstances at home are facing additional barriers to access as students’ needs evolve during the shift to virtual programming.
Review the following virtual student programming accessibility checklist to ensure that students can connect with the appropriate resources to succeed:
This resource is part of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice Initiatives in Higher Education Resource Center.
- Partner with your Student Access Services office or an equivalent office to select at least one designated staff member to answer questions/concerns from students regarding accessibility and to connect students with resources
- Confirm your institution’s website and programs are not programmed to block common accessibility tools, such as screen readers and auditory tools
- Send out an incoming student survey 3 to 4 weeks before programs begin that asks whether students need to register for disability services or anticipate any access issues with virtual programs
- Send a follow-up email to all students who request disability services that highlights resources available through your institution and detailing the contact information of the dedicated staff member
- Make information on accessibility resources available on your orientation webpage and at the beginning of all presentations and events
- Send an accessibility checklist or one-pager to all faculty and staff presenting to students. An example of University of Washington’s accessibility checklist can be found here.
- Provide scripting for staff to incorporate a message about their commitment to accessibility. An example from ExploreAccess is listed below:
- Students with Disabilities: If you anticipate issues related to the format or requirements of this course, please contact me. I would like us to discuss ways to ensure your full participation in the course. Together we can plan how best to remove barriers and coordinate your accommodations. You are also welcome to contact the disability resource office [insert office contact information].
- Use the built-in MS Office Accessibility Checker when building program materials
- Consider purchasing or providing quality microphones to instructors, as not all laptop or desktop built-in microphones are high quality
- Alternatively, ask participants and program leaders use headsets during sessions, if available
- Always test microphones for quality sound before beginning or recording a program
- Caption all video content using your institution’s captioning options, or online tools such as YouTube’s video captioning.
- Google Meet also provides free live captioning for G Suite Customers
- Provide closed captioning for Zoom lectures and meetings/ activities
- If captioning is not available, provide recordings and transcripts to all attendees following events
- Use the built-in MS Office Accessibility Checker when building all program materials
- Do not rely on color as a navigational tool or as the sole way to differentiate items
- Image should include alt text in the markup/code; complex images should have more extensive descriptions near the image like a caption or a descriptive summary
- Make PDFs digitally readable (See section below)
- When a document containing text is on the web, you can use the following steps to perform optical character recognition (OCR) to ensure that the computer is recognizing the words in the documents properly
- Hit Ctrl+F (PC) or Cmd+F (Mac) to search in document for a word. Search for a word you know is in the document. If the shortcut can find the word and highlight it for you, that means it is digitally readable.
- If you click and hold your mouse/trackpad over a chunk of words and it highlights the text as opposed to highlighting the whole page or nothing at all, you know it is digitally readable
- Hit Ctrl+F (PC) or Cmd+F (Mac) to search in document for a word. Search for a word you know is in the document. If the shortcut can find the word and highlight it for you, that means it is digitally readable.
- Minimize using scans of book pages or handwritten notes or diagrams as these are not necessarily digitally readable. If you must use scans of book pages, use the highest quality (>= 600 PSI) possible when scanning and take the following steps:
- Check that words near the binding and edges aren’t cut off or distorted
- Check if the final product is digitally readable (see above)
- Make sure all program materials and websites are optimized for mobile devices, as some students may not have access to computers at home
- Google has designed a free service to test if your web-page is mobile-friendly
- Expand laptop loaner programs
- Allow requests to be made through faculty, peers, and advisors.
- Build flexibility into terms of use so students can use them through the semester, over the summer, or throughout the upcoming academic year.
- Negotiate discounted/free internet
- Include the cost in student fees to ensure students have access, even at home
- Comcast and Spectrum/Charter are offering 60 days of free internet for K-12, college student, and educator households
- EAB has found that public colleges and systems can often negotiate rates with providers, which could be included in the total cost of attendance and subsequently covered for their academic year
- Make important materials asynchronous so students can access or review important information on their own time
Have any additional strategies to make virtual programs more accessible to students? Email Tess Frenzel at [email protected].
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