Flexible Environment

Environment is flexible to accommodate the teaching and learning needs.

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Offer Alternatives for Visual Information

Images, graphics, animations, video, or text are often the optimal way to present information, especially when the information is about the relationships between objects, actions, numbers, or events. But such visual representations are not equally accessible to all learners, especially learners with visual disabilities or those who are not familiar with the type of graphic being used. Visual information can be quite dense, particularly with visual art, which can have multiple complex meanings and interpretations depending on contextual factors and the viewer’s knowledge base. To ensure that all learners have equal access to information, it is essential to provide non-visual alternatives.

Provide descriptions (text or spoken) for all images, graphics, video, or animations
Use touch equivalents (tactile graphics or objects of reference) for key visuals that represent concepts
Provide physical objects and spatial models to convey perspective or interaction
Provide auditory cues for key concepts and transitions in visual information

Text is a special case of visual information. The transformation from text into audio is among the most easily accomplished methods for increasing accessibility. The advantage of text over audio is its permanence, but providing text that is easily transformable into audio accomplishes that permanence without sacrificing the advantages of audio. Digital synthetic text-to-speech is increasingly effective but still disappoints in its ability to carry the valuable information in prosody.

Follow accessibility standards (NIMAS, DAISY, etc.) when creating digital text
Allow for a competent aide, partner, or “intervener” to read text aloud
Provide access to text-to-speech software

Vary the Methods for Response & Navigation

Learners differ widely in their capacity to navigate their physical environment. To reduce barriers to learning that would be introduced by the motor demands of a task, provide alternative means for response, selection, and composition. In addition, learners differ widely in their optimal means for navigating through information and activities. To provide equal opportunity for interaction with learning experiences, an instructor must ensure that there are multiple means for navigation and control is accessible.
Provide alternatives in the requirements for rate, timing, speed, and range of motor action required to interact with instructional materials, physical manipulatives, and technologies
Provide alternatives for physically responding or indicating selections (e.g., alternatives to marking with pen and pencil, alternatives to mouse control)
Provide alternatives for physically interacting with materials by hand, voice, single switch, joystick, keyboard, or adapted keyboard

Optimize Access to Tools & Assistive Technologies

Providing a learner with a tool is often not enough. We need to provide the support to use the tool effectively. Many learners need help navigating through their environment (both in terms of physical space and the curriculum), and all learners should be given the opportunity to use tools that might help them meet the goal of full participation in the classroom. However, significant numbers of learners with disabilities have to use Assistive Technologies for navigation, interaction, and composition on a regular basis. It is critical that instructional technologies and curricula do not impose inadvertent barriers to the use of these assistive technologies. An important design consideration, for example, is to ensure that there are keyboard commands for any mouse action so that learners can use common assistive technologies that depend upon those commands. It is also important, however, to ensure that making a lesson physically accessible does not inadvertently remove its challenge to learning.
Provide alternate keyboard commands for mouse action
Build switch and scanning options for increased independent access and keyboard alternatives
Provide access to alternative keyboards
Customize overlays for touch screens and keyboards
Select software that works seamlessly with keyboard alternatives and alt keys