Time for digital inclusion at scale

Researcher with experience of the phenomenon. - AbilityNet blog and experience of teaching people later in life. Researcher teaches the course as per learning objectives identified in the literature review (and as per personal experiences of teaching accessibility). Researcher recruits teachers to explore teaching it. Lesson study- design a research lesson. Reflective and joint understanding of what is needed to teach digital accessibility awareness in schools. Help the researcher to understand how this could work in schools and what support would be needed. Participants as co-researchers - socially constructed  Heidegger and Moustakas https://www.nheri.org/home-school-researcher-a-heuristic-inquiry-into-the-stress-that-home-educators-experience/ Lesson study approach to experience learning how to teach it (subject knowledge) and learn how the subject can be taught and experienced by learners (pedagogical) Pedagogical content knowledge (Nind/Curtin/ - ped paper and pedagogy as a sc...

In every choice that shapes a legacy, let compassion be the compass   Overview from literature review notes The need for digitally accessible content permeates every aspect of public and private lives   (Holmes and Maeda, 2018; Gilbert and Rateau, 2019) ,  increasingly mandating access to education, work, family and friends for millions of disabled people   (Lewthwaite, Horton and Coverdale, 2023) .  To educate our next generation to advocate for  digital accessibility  is a fundamental instrument to support the shift towards an inclusive cyberspace and attitudes towards  equity and a  socially responsible society  (Wang, 2012) . Surveys conducted by professionals and employers within the  workplace context  and disability industry, recognise an  ‘Accessib le  Technology Skills Gap’   (PEAT, 2018;  National Disability Strategy , 2021, p. 91; Teach Access, 2023) ,  with the demand for digital accessibili...

  https://post.parliament.uk/research-briefings/post-pn-0712/

As a former teacher, I believe our next generation of learners are key to steering the future of a more inclusive digital society. Having conducted extensive research, I developed a training model for digital accessibility that got adopted in my workplace, so I know it’s possible to educate people to make more accessible for those with assistive technology needs. This model has also been adopted by NEW college to educate new members of their team how to make accessible materials for those with visual impairments. These ideas have underpinned my PHD research and helped me develop something called Learn to Enable. Learn to Enable sets out 12 basic digital skills that can help people to make content more accessible content for a range of diverse needs. It’s a bite-sized approach so anyone, no matter what IT skills level they have, can engage with the skills and adopt them to make everyday content such as documents, presentations, videos, podcasts and social media more accessible. If you e...

 Great quote: Beyond websites… The same issues pervade the emails, slide decks, documents, and spreadsheets we all create every day. This creates barriers that keep our colleagues and coworkers from doing their jobs effectively, prevent students from getting the most out of their education, and hinder authors from reaching their broadest possible audience. Holeček, A (2023) Create inclusive content with the new Accessibility Assistant in Microsoft 365. Online at:  https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2023/03/08/create-inclusive-content-with-the-new-accessibility-assistant-in-microsoft-365/  (Accessed 23/01/24) With accessibility things can of course be addressed after the fact, but most issues are completely preventable and don’t need the extra cost of duplicating work and fixing them at the end as an extra retrospective task. This ‘fix’ model makes accessibility cost more money.

Electronic documents  May it be put forward that the term electronic documents be changed to digital documents. The term electronic documents is now an old fashioned term, with digital being the more in line with current language surrounding online and digital content. Helen Wilson took over from ????. In a quick initial review, some of the current documentation needed some minor updates due to changes in Microsoft Office functionality. Software and guidance updates In March at their Ability Summit, Microsoft announced the launch of their new Accessibility Assistant in Office 365 to help address issues as they arise in the flow of work rather than just using the accessibility checker at the end. Further information about the updates on this have been shared related to it in the Beta Channel.  https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2023/03/08/create-inclusive-content-with-the-new-accessibility-assistant-in-microsoft-365/ https://insider.microsoft365.com/de-de/blog/c...

 Sowing the seeds of digital accessibility awareness. A case for the skills in FE - page on L2E Write academic paper but on L2E that outlines the gap as per VocTech - use/ shape stuff sent to Stroud. www.learntoenable.co.uk/skillsforFE Screen grabs - industry sector by topic/ skill/accessibility checker  Skills guide on the side. Learn skills as you go but reference guide for application in a real-world setting. Skills for digital literacy for being inclusive- employability- legal.  The vocational and societal context Society inaccessible- social responsibility- perm, temp, sit benefits- beyond disabilities digital accessibility benefits everyone, from seeing content on screens on a sunny day to forgetting headphones, many barriers can be overcome by small changes, to images not loading due to lack of data or internet connection. Everyone benefits. To some these needs aren’t just a nice to have but vital on a daily basis. Social model  The education gap The FE sector...

Legal backdrop and policy context of DA Social model of disability - disability rights- nothing about us without us. Wider movements of UNCRPD - AD - Equality Act. Legal movements relevant to equality in the digital society - Section 508, Canada, EN 501…, EAA and Uk regulations. Globally this topic is significant.  Definitions and the guidance backdrop of DA (Universal design, web accessibility and inclusive design). Architecture, services and digital. Physical, digital spaces and societal needs in all aspects of life. Accessibility permeates through all aspects of society, from the built environment and architecture, through to the design of services and digital content. In the digital space the legal requirements for the web dominate the discourse, literature and guidance surrounding digital accessibility. In the workplace, and more specifically the web industry, the lack of digital accessibility awareness and education appears to have implications with an identified ‘assistive t...

 Most responsibility for planning and delivering topics within the curriculum is almost always assigned as the responsibility of teachers (Cho, 2001). They are often the ultimate decision makers who select and modify curriculum resources and activities to make teaching and learning meaningful in their own context (Spillane, 1999 #in Cho PHD). For this study, the narratives or lived experiences of teachers in this context are crucial factors to understand. It is these experiences of the teaching and learning processes where classroom practice can be understood and improved upon (Bailey, 1996). This research has two main aims. Firstly, it aims to follow teachers through the planning and delivery of piloting the new topic, and secondly to explore their experiences of doing so in-depth to get to the heart of what support might be needed for others in the future implementation of it into the curriculum. How implementation occurs in a curriculum change situation, in terms of teacher’s li...

  FROM PHD PAPER - Cho, 2001 https://www.proquest.com/openview/48f4f941af067cc711cd1409bcb39c0c/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y The basic problem o f educational change lies in the gap  between plans and reality (MacDonald & Walker, 1976). By and large, all responsibility for planning and delivering topics on the curriculum is assigned as the responsibility of teachers.  Yet, because the stakeholders in education have different ideas as to what is supposed to be going on in practice, understanding the diversity of change is not easy (BACK IT UP WITH NO KNOWLEDGE IN LIT REVIEW). One traditional way to address curriculum implementation is to view curriculum as document and teaching as delivery, so the teacher is viewed as a “conduit” between the plan and the action (Clandinin & Connelly, 1992, pp. 364-378).  From the perspective of teachers, new skills and knowledge suggested by the developer may not always be appropriate in their context, so th...