Global Accessibility Awareness Day
What is Global Accessibility Day?
The purpose of GAAD is to get everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital access and inclusion. The Teaching and Learning Academy (TLA) and the Web Content team have been working on a number of projects to help improve access to Canvas, the LJMU website and other technologies.
“Every user deserves a first-rate digital experience on the web. Someone with a disability must be able to experience web-based services, content and other digital products with the same successful outcome as those without disabilities.” www.Accessibility.day
The following digital accessibility regulations became law in September 2018:
Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
LJMU is committed to providing an inclusive digital environment for everyone. Did you know there are some simple things you can do to help improve accessibility when submitting your coursework (students) or designing your course (staff)?
‘Just do one thing’ online resources
Making small changes like using a heading structure or providing alternative text can be really beneficial. Take a look at the TLA’s series of ‘Just do one thing’ articles and help to make the digital environment better for everyone:
- Just do one thing [1. Headings]
- Just do one thing [2. Alt Text]
- Just do one thing [3. Accessibility Checkers]
Take a look at the website guidance for making web content accessible:
- LJMU online style guide – a comprehensive guide about writing for the web
- Making your content accessible – including different file formats and accessibility checkers
Student Help and Resources
Take a look at our Student Learning Technology Accessibility page for a comprehensive list of helpful guides and resources.
Staff Help and Resources
Training
We are running some training events where you can learn, discuss and share good practice for Canvas on Global Accessibility Awareness Day (19th of May).
Canvas Accessibility Course
This online course will help you understand digital accessibility and learn how to make improvements to your Canvas course to make it accessible.
Introduction to Accessibility Canvas Course
Further Resources
We have a dedicated page on our TLA site for all things Accessibility. There’s an accessibility help page for students too. There are lots of tools and information available for you to make informed decisions about the way we use and create content.
Digital Accessibility isn’t something that just works in the background, we all have to be considerate in the way we develop and create digital content. Our training will discuss some of the ways you can improve your digital content inside Canvas.
As staff, we all have an obligation to meet the 2018 regulations and the TLA have developed the Accessibility in Digital Education Design Project (AiDED) project to help meet these standards. AiDED’s vision is to use the digital learning environment to help all our students improve their life chances. Find out about some of the activities we have been engaging in on our AiDED Project page.
