AccessComputing News - February 2019
Below are the articles of the AccessComputing News - February 2019 newsletter. These articles can also be seen all on one page at the Full Newsletter option.
AccessComputing
Teaching About Accessibility in Computing and IT Courses (2018)
´¡²ÔÌýAccessComputing-sponsored capacity building institute (CBI) focused on promising practices around accessibility in computing. The event was held November 13, 2018 in Westminster, CO as part of Accessing Higher Ground (AHG) conference.
Bellevue College: A Promising Practice in Modifying a Web Accessibility Curriculum to be More Practical
Completion of a course is required to earn a Web Design Certificate at Bellevue College in Washington State. In the original curriculum, a large portion of course content focused on legal cases related to web accessibility. Although it is important to understand the role that laws and regulations play, this is not critical to ensure that web designers and developers can actually develop accessible websites.
Case Study: Exam Accommodations and Anna’s Chronic Illness
Background
Teresa and Computer Science: A Case Study in Coding With Minimal Movement
Background
What are best practices for recruiting and retaining employees with disabilities?
In a study by Erickson, W. A., Schrader, S. von, Bruyère, S. M., & VanLooy, S. A., best practices reported to increase hiring people with disabilities included:
What barriers exist in recruiting employees and interns with disabilities?
Employers may encounter a variety of barriers to recruiting interns with disabilities. These include:
Accessible Programming with Blocks4All
Blocks-based programming environments such as Scratch are often the first experiences for young children who are learning computational thinking and programming. Unfortunately, these environments are not accessible to children who are blind or visually impaired who use screen readers, thereby excluding them from experiences that can lead to careers in STEM fields including computer science. The Blocks4All prototype programming environment makes blocks-based programming accessible on a touchscreen tablet computer.
Our Technology for Equal Access
This video highlights participants in DO-IT programs such as AccessComputing, who share information about the technology they use to access school, work, and the community. Information is shared about alternative hardware, software, and peripherals that assist people with disabilities.
Teaching Accessibility: Including Accessibility in Your Courses
There are multiple strategies that can be used to teach about accessibility in computing courses. Exposing students to this information can help them create more accessible products throughout their careers.