AnnMarieVanDerZandenandLauraBestler,vanderza@iastate.edu;bestler@iastate.edu •CenterforExcellenceinLearningandTechnology

Top10TipstoMakeYourOnlineCourseAccessible

TheTeachingProfessorConferenceSt.Louis,Missouri•June2-4,2017

IntroductionAccessibility is not just about providing accommodations when requested.

Accessible courses and course content anticipate the potential needs of diverselearners, and remove barriers or provide alternatives in advance.

Tip1:TakeTimetoPlananOnlineTeaching-LearningStrategyCourseelements(activities,assessments,etc.)followaconsistentstructureandroutinethroughoutthecourse.

Studentactivitiesarevariedandtakeintoaccountdifferentlearningstyles.TolearnmoreabouttheUniversalDesignforLearning,visittheCenterforAppliedSpecialTechnology(CAST) website(http://www.cast.org).

Studentshaveadequatetimetocompleteactivitiesandassessments.TohelpdeterminethestudentworkloadconsiderusingRiceUniversityCenterforTeachingExcellence’sCourseWorkloadEstimator website(http://cte.rice.edu/workload).

Tip2:UseConstructiveCourseAlignmentConstructivealignmentinteachinglinkstheconstructivisttheoryoflearning(wherestudentslinknewmaterialtopreviousknowledgeandexperiences,andextrapolatetofutureunderstandings)withoutcomes-basedteaching.Implementingconstructivealignmentincoursedesignresultsinexplicitlylinkingteachingandlearningactivities,toclassroomassessmentsandevaluation,tocourselearningobjectives,andultimatelytocourselearningoutcomes.

Startwiththeendinmind.Considerincludingthistypeofflowchart,specifictoyourcourse,inthecoursesyllabustohelpstudentsseetheconnectionsbetweencourseassignmentsandlearningoutcomes.

Assessment•Ongoing•Positive• Individualized•Providesfeedback

Evaluation•Providesclosure• Isjudgmental• Isappliedagainststandards•Showsshortfalls

Both•Requirecriteria•Areevidencedriven

VisitCELT’scoursealignment website(http://bit.ly/coursealignment)

Tip3:DevelopAssessments&EvaluationstoSupportCourseLearningOutcomesOnce learning objectives are established, the next step is to create assessment and evaluation tools that will allow you to determine if students have accomplished/achieved a learning objective. This visual representation illustrates the relationship between assessment and evaluation. Using a combination of assessment (not graded) and evaluation (graded) approaches provides students a variety of opportunities to show their mastery of the course content.

Tip4:UsetheQualityMatters(QM)FrameworkAll of these 8 QM course components work together to ensure that students achieve the desired learning outcomes. When aligned, each of these components is directly tied to and supports the course learning objectives.

FormoreinformationoraccesstothefullQMrubricvisittheQualityMatters website(http://www.qualitymatters.org)

VisitCELT’sQMwebsite(http://bit.ly/isuqmtracks)

Tip5:UseConsistentPageTitles&HeadingsExample:NotformattedwithheadingsLackofheadings,sectiondivisionsinhibitscanningandreading

Examples:ProperlyformattedheadingsHeadingscreatedproperlyinWordwilltransferwhenexportedtoaPDF

Tip6:UseAlt-Text&LongDescriptionsonAllImages

• Storyabouttulipsalt=“YellowtulipsbloomingintheSpring”• HorticultureClassalt=“Tulipa gesneriana”• DecorativeImagealt=“”

When writing alt-text, consider the context ofthe image. What information is the imageconveying to users? (Sometimes the answers isnone, if the image is purely decorative, and thisis acceptable! The alt-text can be left empty if itserves no informational purpose.)

Tip8:UseDescriptive&UniqueHyperlinksUse descriptive and unique hyperlinks. This is another strategy to help screen reader users. Whenproviding a link, the link text should describe where it is going

AccessibleForinformationaboutcreatinganaccessiblecourse,visitCELT’sAccessifyYourCourse website(http://bit.ly/celt-accessify).

NotAccessibleForinformationaboutcreatinganaccessiblecourseclickhere.

NotAccessibleForinformationaboutcreatinganaccessiblecoursehttp://www.celt.iastate.edu/teaching/effective-teaching-practices/accessify-your-course

Tip9:CreateAccessibleMultimediaOneofthemostwell-knownaccessibilityfeaturesisvideocaptions.However,theyareonlyoneofmanyitemsneededtomakemultimedia—video,audio,andaudio/videorecordings—accessible.

AudioonlyTextTranscript(ofspokenword)

VideoonlyVideoDescription(ofkeyvisualelements)

AudioandVideoClosedCaptionsTextTranscriptVideoDescription

Tip7:UseAccessibleColorChoicesUseacoloranalyzertoseeifthecolorsyouarechoosingforyourwebsiteorPowerPointwillpassthecontrastratio.

Ensure color is not the sole means of conveying important information.

RedTeamandGreenTeamOfficeHoursProvidedBelow

AccessibleColorCoding(Codingwithdescriptivewords)

NotAccessibleinsufficientcolorcontrast

Accessibleadequatecontrast

WelcometoFallOrnamentalsJohnH.Doe,Horticulturalist

andSusanSanders,Specialist

Example:CreateaSyllabusWalk-ThroughAsyllabusisanecessarytaskatthebeginningofeveryclass.Studentsneedtoknowwheretofindresources,howyou’llbeevaluatingthem,andtohearyousetthetoneforthelearningahead.Butoftenittakesupagoodportionofthefirstclass– valuabletimethatcouldbespentlearning.

Insteadofusingclasstime,createavideothatexplainsyoursyllabus.Yourstudentscanwatchandre-watchitasmanytimesastheyneedto.Youcanbecertainthateveryonehearsand/orreadthesamemessage,eventhosewhoaddtheclasslater.

Tip10:IncludetheAccessibilityStatementinSyllabusIncludetheuniversity'ssyllabusstatementonstudentwithdisabilityaccommodations.Considerplacingtheinformationtowardsthestartofyoursyllabustoemphasizetheimportanceoftheinformation.

How:FortheappropriatewordingvisitCELT’sFacultySenateRecommendationsforSyllabusInclusion website(http://bit.ly/2mCpGWy).

NextSteps:ScaffoldforSuccessBreakdownthebarriers,developimplementationstrategies,andbeginusingatimelinetoparcelout“Accessifying”yourcourse.UsearesourcesuchasCELT’sIndividualActionPlanDigitalAccessibility:OnlineCourseDesign(PDF)(http://bit.ly/2p63EK7)

Todownloadthisposter,andadditionalresourcesvisitCELT’sAccessifyYourCourse website(http://bit.ly/celt-accessify)