What Does Accessibility Mean To The Blogging Community?

1. http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/conferences/blogs-ac-uk-2006-06/http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/conferences/blogs-ac-uk-2006-06/ What Does Accessibility Mean To The Blogging Community? Emma Duke-Williams School of Computing University of Portsmouth Portsmouth UK Brian Kelly UKOLN University of Bath Bath UK B.Kelly@ukoln.ac.uk This work is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 licence (but note caveat) UKOLN is supported by:

2. Contents • Introductions: • The Facilitators • The Participants • What We Aim To Do • Technological Challenges • Pedagogical Challenges • Addressing The Challenges Note this aims to be a Web 2.0 session – user-focused and always beta 

3. About The Facilitators (1) Introduction • Brian Kelly: • UK Web Focus – a JISC/MLA-funded post to advise UK HE/FE and cultural heritage sectors on Web issues (standards, emerging technologies, ..) • Based at UKOLN, a national centre of expertise in digital information management • Current areas of interest: • Potential of Web 2.0 in learning & teaching, research, ... • Maximising interoperability through use of open standards • Addressing barriers to the deployment of new technologies • Maximising access to resources, services and learning Note that as a national adviser, the advice needs to be pragmatic and achievable across the sectors.

4. About The Facilitators (2) Introduction • Emma Duke-Williams • Lecturer in the School of Computing at Portsmouth University • Came into Higher Education after having taught in Special Education the UK, and teacher training/ teaching in Papua New Guinea - through Voluntary Services Overseas • Currently teach undergradudate & postgraduate units on educational uses of computers (including community development), Multimedia & Web development • Current research includes the role of Computers in supporting learning, teaching & assessment - with emphasis on access for all

5. D About You Introduction • Please tell us: • Who you are • What you do • The aspects of Blogs and accessibility of interest to you Note that we will try to keep a record of your interests in a Wiki in order to (a) remind ourselves of your interests (b) review this towards the end and (c) help in subsequent reports. Please let us know if the notes breach confidentiality, are inaccurate, etc. (or update Wiki yourself!)

6. Learning Objectives Introduction • By the end of this session participants will: • Have a better understanding of what accessibility means in the context of Blogging. • Have a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the WAI approach to accessibility. • Be aware of a holistic/contextual approach to e-learning accessibility. • Have explored the reasons for use of Blogs from a pedagogical approach and how this relates to accessibility. • Be aware of possible barriers to the use of a holistic approach & ways of addressing such barriers. This workshop session will feed into the conference aims of producing a white paper on educational blogging

7. Scope of the Session Introduction • In order to provide a framework for managing this session we propose that we focus discussions on: • Blogs and related Web 2.0 technologies (e.g. include Wikis and Podcasting) • Access to the technologies by students with disabilities for reading/listening and for publishing • Pedagogical aspects • Additional relevant areas include: • Use of / availability of specialist devices • Social inclusion • Important, but out-of-scope areas include: • Access control management • Mainstream Blog issues (addressed in other sessions) Are you happy with this scope?

8. Issues Which Need to be Addressed • Issues: • What is meant by 'universal accessibility'? • Is the approach taken to making an online bus timetable accessible likely to be the same as making e-learning accessible? • Does the law (SENDA) or e-government guidelines require us to comply with WAI guidelines? • If we have flexibility, how do we address the issue of accessibility for e-learning (in general) and Blogs in particular?

9. How many of you are familiar with: • UAAG (User Agent Accessibility Guidelines) • ATAG (Authoring Tools Accessibility Guidelines) The WAI Perspective • How many of you are familiar with: • WAI (Web Accessibility Initiative) • WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) Technological Challenges • How many of you: • Have policies based on WAI/WCAG? • Make use of WCAG guidelines in your Web development work, e-learning, …? Note that your institution may have policies which mandate conformance with WAI guidelines, and potentially could ban use of applications on these grounds (e.g. Podcasting)

10. The WAI Model • WAI has been tremendously successful in raising awareness of Web accessibility and providing guidelines to achieve this. • WAI guidelines are based on: • WCAG (Web Content …) • ATAG (Authoring Tools ..) • UAAG (User Agents …) Technological Challenges • The model is simple to grasp. But is this model appropriate for the future? Does the model: • Reflect the diversity of users & user environments • Reflect the diversity of Web usage • Reflect real-world technical environment and developments • Reflect real-world political and cultural environments

11. Limitations Of The Model • This model: • Requires all three components to be implemented in order for the WAI vision to be achieved • Is of limited use to end users who have no control over browser or authoring tools developments • Is confusing – as many think WCAG is WAI • How does this model address: • Delays in full conformance? (We're still waiting for "until user agents …" clause to be resolved) • Real-world reluctance to deploy new software (issues of inertia, testing, costs, …) • Real world complexities Technological Challenges Is there a plan B in case this model fails to ever take off? Is it desirable to base legal requirements on an unproven theoretical framework?

12. Accessibility Usability Usability Accessibility Accessibility Usability Usability Issues • What is the relationship between usability & accessibility? Technological Challenges Accessibility Usability

13. This approach reflects current UK emphasis on blended learning(rather than e-learning) Holistic Approach • Kelly, Phipps & Swift1 developed a holistic framework for e-learning accessibility • This framework: • Focusses on the needs of the learner • Requires accessible learning outcomes, not necessarily e-learning resources Technological Challenges 1 Developing A Holistic Approach For E-Learning Accessibility, Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 2004, Vol. 30, Issue 3

14. Widening The Scope • Paper on "Contextual Web Accessibility - Maximizing the Benefit of Accessibility Guideline" by Sloan, Kelly et al presented at W4A workshop, Edinburgh, May 2006: • Argued the need to know and design for your target audience • Extended the user-focussed approach to accessibility: • From a top-down approach (e.g. use in national development programmes) based on a 3-layered contextual model • From a bottom-up approach for developers based on the tangram metaphor Technological Challenges

15. External factors: Institutional issues (funds, expertise, policies, security…) Accessibility guidelines should be usable in wider context External factors: Legal issues; cultural factors; … This approach embraces relativism and contextrather than the current absolutist approach Top-Down Approach • A framework has been developed which places accessibility & usability within a wider context: • The context • A range of policies • A compliance regime Digital Library Programme Context Purpose Sector Funding Resources Research … Policies Standards Accessibility/Usability Privacy Finance … Compliance External Self-assessment Penalties Learning Broken

16. Bottom-Up Approach • The "Tangram Metaphor" developed to avoid checklist / automated approach: • W3C model has limitations • Jigsaw model implies single solution • Tangram model seeks to avoid such problems Technological Challenges • This approach: • Encourages developers to think about a diversity of solutions • Focus on 'pleasure' it provides to user

17. Tangram Model • Model allows us to: • Focuses on end solution rather than individual components • Provided solutions tailored for end user • Doesn't limit scope (can you do better than WAI AAA?) • Make use of automated checking – but ensures emphasis is on user satisfaction Technological Challenges • Guidelines/standards for/from: • WAI • Usability • Pedagogy • Learning styles • Dyslexic • Learning difficulties • Organisations • Legal • Management (resources, …) • Interoperability • Accessibility metadata • …

18. The Legal Framework • This approach is well-suited for the UK legal framework: • SENDA/DDA legislation requires organisations to take"reasonable measures to ensure people with disabilities are not discriminated against unfairly" • Note that the legislation is: • Technologically neutral • Backwards and forwards compatible • Avoids version control complexities • … • The legislation also covers usability, as well as accessibility Technological Challenges

19. Questions / Exercises • Any questions / comments? • We will now have group exercises which explore some of the challenges of Blogging and accessibility Note resources cited in the talk are bookmarked indel.icio.us using tag ''blogs-ac-uk-2006-kelly"

20. Further Information • Contextual Web Accessibility - Maximizing the Benefit of Accessibility Guidelines W4A 2006 Proceedings, May 2006, (CD ROM) Sloan, D. Kelly, B., Heath, A., Petrie, H., Hamilton, F and Phipps, L. <http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/w4a-2006/> • A Contextual Framework For Standards WWW 2006 E-Government Proceedings, May 2006, (CD ROM) Kelly, B., Dunning, A., Rahtz, S., Hollins, P and Phipps, L. <http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/e-gov-workshop-2006/> • Forcing Standardization or Accommodating Diversity? A Framework for Applying the WCAG in the Real World Proceedings of the 2005 International Cross-Disciplinary Workshop on Web Accessibility (W4A). ISBN: 1-59593-036-1. Kelly, B., Sloan, D., Phipps, L., Petrie, H. and Hamilton, F.<http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/w4a-2005/> • Holistic Approaches to E-Learning Accessibility ALT-J Research in Learning Technology, Vol. 14, No. 1, March 2006, pp. 69-78. Phipps, L. and Kelly, B.<http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/alt-j-2006/> • Developing A Holistic Approach For E-Learning Accessibility Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 2004, Vol. 30, Issue 3, Kelly, B., Phipps, L. and Swift, E.<http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/cjtl-2004/>