Resources
National organisations and initiatives have provided staff with a wealth of information on making their learning and teaching more accessible to disabled students:
Kelly, B., Phipps, L. and Swift, E. (2004) Developing A Holistic Approach For E-Learning Accessibility, Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology Vol. 30, Issue 3, http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/cjtl-2004/
Kelly, B. Phipps, L. and Howell, C. (2005) Implementing A Holistic Approach To E-Learning Accessibility, ALT-C 2005 Conference, http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/alt-c-2005/
Kelly, B., Sloan, D., Phipps, L., Petrie, H. and Hamilton, F. (2005) 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 href="http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/w4a-2005/
The ALERT project aimed to improve the accessibility of online learning in specific subject areas. In particular, to identify methods of supporting disabled students to enable them to achieve the pedagogical objectives of their modules through a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) (http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/alert/)
If you are using BlackBoard you will find Carol Doyle's article very useful. Entitled 'Making Your Module Accessible in BlackBoard', it gives a slightly outdated but nevertheless excellent overview.
For more information regarding the legal responsibilities to provide accessible materials, visit the JISC Legal website.
Accessibility information from specific VLE suppliers can be found from WebCT and Blackboard.
Rob Woodford and Sally Bradley provide an example of how VLEs can be used with dyslexic students. ALT News Issue No. 45 April 2004.
