NB This is the fifth and last page of the online version of the SDT Guidance Note Disability Equality Duty: Implications and Opportunities for ICT provision in Higher Education Institutions and Colleges of Further Education, published in April 2006.
5: Standards, Guidelines and Best Practice
The process of commissioning ICTs that meet acceptable levels of accessibility has been eased by the publication of a number of standards and guidelines, some of which specify basic levels of accessibility, and others that specify a development process for ensuring optimally accessible ICT.
When creating their Disability Equality Scheme, institutions/colleges should therefore investigate adopting these standards and guidelines in minimum specifications, invitations to tender, and other key documents that set out basic requirements of ICT.
Standards
Relevant standards related to ICT accessibility include:
- ISO 16071: Ergonomics of human-system interaction -- Guidance on accessibility for human-computer interfaces. This standard provides advice on issues related to designing software and interactive systems for people with varying sensory, mobility and cognitive impairments.
- ISO 13407: Human-centred Design Processes for Interactive Systems is not directly focused on accessibility, but does describe a process of involving end users throughout the design and development of ICT. .
- The process for commissioning accessible web sites has also been standardised in the UK - the Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 78 Guide to good practice in commissioning accessible websites was published by the British Standards Institute (BSI) in March 2006. It addresses issues such as specifying appropriate levels of accessibility to be met by the web site to be developed, identification and selection of a suitably qualified organisation to carry out the work, and accessibility validation and assessment methodologies.
ISO standards can be ordered from the International Standards Organisation web site: http://www.iso.org
BSI standards can be ordered from the British Standards Institute web site: http://www.bsi-global.com
Guidelines
The World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) has developed three important sets of accessibility guidelines.
- The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Version 1.0 consider the accessibility of web sites. Conformance with WCAG can be specified at three levels (Single-A, Double-A or Triple-A). In theory Triple-A conformance indicates the highest level of accessibility, although in practice conformance levels may not always be true indicators of a site's accessibility and usability to disabled people. At the time of writing, Version 2.0 of the WCAG is in draft. Publication is anticipated towards the end of 2006. The WCAG are available at http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/
- The Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) is also a relevant accessibility standard for authoring tools - software that enables development and publication of web content - for example, web site design tools, content management systems and authoring tools provided by virtual learning environments. Institutions should strive to ensure that authoring tools they provide staff and students meet the ATAG in order to maximise the accessibility of the online material published. The ATAG are available at http://www.w3.org/TR/ATAG10/
- The User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) covers Web browsers, including assistive technologies used to allow access to web content. Institutions should provide web browsing technologies that conform as far as possible to UAAG. The UAAG are available at http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG10/
NB Unfortunately, at the time of writing (February 2006) it must be noted that conformance levels with the UAAG and ATAG amongst market-leading browsing and authoring tools is disappointing. As a result, institutions mandating conformance in tools they procure and provide may find their choices limited. It is to be hoped that the demands of public authorities to meet their obligations under the Duty will act as a driver for browser and authoring tool manufacturers to improve efforts at meeting the accessibility standards set by these guidelines.
Additionally, institutions should be aware of ongoing work in creating a framework for capturing and storing a disabled student's accessibility preferences as part of a wider learner profile, and the development of e-learning resources that can adapt in format and delivery based on a learner's profile. This work, led by the IMS Global Learning Consortium, has produced the ACCLIP (Accessibility for Learner Information Profile) and ACCMD (Accessibility for all Metadata) specifications and supporting resources, and is in the process of evolving into recognised international standards.
More on accessibility activities of the IMS Global Learning Consortium can be found at: http://www.imsglobal.org/accessibility/
Best Practice in Accessibility for specific formats
Technology vendors provide a wealth of accessibility information relating to widely used formats for digital information and applications in educational institutions:
- Adobe Accessibility
- information on Portable Document Format (PDF) and accessibility: http://www.adobe.com/enterprise/accessibility/
- IBM Developer Accessibility Guidelines
- includes advice on general software and hardware development, plus specific guidelines on web, Java and Lotus Notes accessibility: http://www.adobe.com/enterprise/accessibility/
- Macromedia Accessibility Resource Center
- While Macromedia is now part of Adobe, this separate resource exists to cover Macromedia technologies such as Flash and Shockwave as well as authoring software such as Dreamweaver): http://www.adobe.com/enterprise/accessibility/
- Microsoft Accessibility
- Advice on Windows accessibility and on specific Microsoft products: http://www.adobe.com/enterprise/accessibility/
Resources and Tools
Some resources and tools that institutions might find useful include:
Other sources of useful information:
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