Accessible online materials in Thai universities:

awareness, attitudes and barriers to effective development

Rattanavalee MaisakJustin Brown

Nattakant Utakrit

IntroductionGiven the necessity of equitable access to

educational opportunities, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD).

the Thai government has supported the CRPD framework in creating legislation and policies to embrace the rights and dignity of all Thai citizens under the Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons Act 1991.

However, research has found that Thai institutions are taking little or no action about the educational provisions and facilities for students with disabilities.

Research Question

What is the level of awareness of Thai university staff regarding web accessibility and accessible online materials for students with disabilities?

Literature ReviewAccessible online resources and

special needsWeb accessibility and related

workAssistive technologies

Research DesignWeb questionnaires and face to

face interviewsThree participant's groups:

lecturer, senior manager and web administrator

Perceptions of Thai university staff towards accessible e-learning development

Lecturers Web administrators Senior managers0%

10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

94 10085

6 015

Yes No%

of

Res

pon

den

ts

Awareness of developing accessible online materials for students with disabilities

Lecturers Web administrators Senior managers

No 70 70 55

Not sure 20 10 40

Yes 10 20 5

5%

15%

25%

35%

45%

55%

65%

75%

85%

95%%

of

Res

pon

den

ts

Familiarity with assistive technologies

Lecturers Web administrators Senior managers0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

45

25

50

55

75

50

Yes No%

of

Res

pon

den

ts

Awareness of web accessibility concepts

Lecturers Web administrators Senior managers0%

10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

5060 65

5040 35

Yes No%

of

Res

pon

den

ts

Perception of Thai accessibility policies and laws

Lecturers Web administrators Senior managers0%

10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

2840

25

7260

75

Yes No%

of

Res

pon

den

ts

Perception of the university web accessibility policy

Lecturers Web administrators Senior managers

Yes 31 15 20

No 16 0 55

Not Sure 53 85 25

5%

25%

45%

65%

85%

% o

f R

esp

ond

ents

RANK AND MEAN SCORES OF THE BARRIERS TO ACCESSIBLE ONLINE MATERIALS ON THAI UNIVERSITY WEBSITES

Barriers Rank Mean ()Lack of knowledge of the needs of students with disabilities

1 8.46

Lack of knowledge of technologies to create accessible online materials

2 7.58

Lack of knowledge of Assistive Technologies (AT)

3 6.84

Lack of accessibility training and awareness

4 5.48

Lack of assistive technology equipment and software

5 5.44

Lack of financial support from a university

6 5.14

Lack of time 7 4.52Lack of demand for accessible resources 8 4.06Lack of commitment to accessible design standards and resources

9 3.92

Lack of supporting network 10 3.56

Future strategies to integrate accessible online materials and web accessibility on university websites

ConclusionsThe lack of awareness of accessibility

policies and knowledge of people with disabilities is highly problematic in Thailand.

Training is the best way to enhance and put into practice their knowledge and awareness as apparent in other institutions.

It is recommended that accessibility should be one of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in educational quality assessment.