Widgets for Inclusive Distributed Environments

Elaine Pearson, Franck Perrin, Voula Gkatzidou,

Accessibility Research CentreTeesside University, UK

Introduction Partners:

Teesside University, TechDis, Portland College

Aims To use a community based approach to make elearning

resources accessible and inclusive to disabled students.

Rationale To meet the needs of students with diverse needs to create

an environment suitable for all students regardless of how and where they access their learning.

Outcomes Suite of bespoke W3C standard widgets (Wookie)hosted on

repository Experience of applying standards

Context: towards an APLE

Context: towards an APLE

Widgets definition

• Tools– e.g. clocks, event countdowns, auction-tickers, visual prompts

• Services– e.g. contextualised spell checker

• Mini - applications (interactive)– e.g. paint programme, learning object

• Fully-collaborative applications– e.g. chats, quizzes, and games

Agile development methodology• Lightweight approach suitable for collaborative project• Based on iterative and incremental development

• Requirements and solutions evolve through collaboration

• Involved community of practice• Staff involved directly in teaching or support of disabled students

• Informal team approach:• Designs formulated

• (learning designs produced in workshops)• Specification outlined

• (designs classified and prioritised, additional content identified)• Prototypes developed

• ARC developers• Feedback illicited

• designers• Amendments made• Widget released for evaluation, use, adaptation

Development environment

• Apache Wookie (http://incubator.apache.org/wookie):

– Java server application to upload and deploy widgets

• Based on the W3C Widgets specification

• Compatible with many VLEs

• Widgets can be deployed and run in 3rd party applications

using Wookie

• Wookie has a REST API that can be used to get or create

instances of widgets

Outputs• Workshops produced more ideas than we expected

• Wookie as a development platform worked well in most cases

• Managed to develop (still ongoing) all but one of the 49 designs:

• Pronounce it– because need API that so far we have not found for free

Classification• Types: tools, applications and learning objects• Purpose:

• Task management, time management, learning aids (e.g. Digital abacus), independence tools (e.g. Budgeting tool), assistive technology (e.g. Transparent ruler), social network tools (community activism) , content free applications (choices template)

• Features:• Self-contained, Access to DB, Access to Web services, Media

Content, GPS, Access to Operating System, On top of application, Dockable, Movable, Resizable, Full screen, VLE compatible, Mobile devices, Multiple browsers, Access to user area

• Development platform:• Wookie, Opera, Windows apps

Standards

• Employ W3C Widgets 1.0 specifications

• Mostly comprised of HTML and JavaScript, the WIDE

Widgets are W3C XHTML 1.0 standard compliant

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0

• HTML 5 Draft Specifications

• Opera Widget Specifications 1.0

• Cascading Style Sheet 2 Specifications

Standards (future development)

• IMS AccessForAll Meta-data (IMS ACCMD) and IMS

Accessibility for Learner Information Package (IMS ACCLIP)

could be applied to LO widgets for adaptability of content

• IEEE Standard for Learning Object Metadata (IEEE LOM)

could also be applied to LO widgets for sharing and re-use

• ARIA could be applied to Widgets to ease the use of

assistive technologies and dynamically created web

controls

Examples• Intention was to create all widgets using Wookiehttp://arc.tees.ac.uk/wider

• Wookie– Visual shopping list

• Opera widgets (access to operating system– Community activism

• Windows applications – Magnfying glass

Visual shopping list (Wookie)

Community activism (Opera)

Magnifying glass (windows app)

• A simple widget that magnifies text and images.

• Windows app because it needs access to the client screen memory and a number of primitive operating system calls and DLLs.

• Until W3C widget standards or browser suppliers include a virtual operating system API some ‘widgets’ will need to be developed as native system applications (e.g.Windows applications, I-phone apps or Google Android mobile applications).

Touch screen/ one click timer (adaptation)

Widgets for Inclusive Distributed Environments

Elaine Pearson, Franck Perrin, Voula Gkatzidou,

Accessibility Research CentreTeesside University, UK

e.pearson@tees.ac.uk