Week 10 Activity 3.1 - Reflection on Creating an Accessible Resource

Why did you choose the particular topic?
The resource I produced was an accessible version of the first lesson in a Totem Pole module for the Art & Desing department in the school where I work. It is for key stage three students aged 12-13 years. I decided on the totem pole module becasue I was thinkning about some of the multimedia elements I have been involved in creating which ones could be made more accessible. I was also keen to try transcribing a video and the 'shaping cardboard' video that was produced for the totem pole module seemed a good place to start.

Why did you include particular elements?
I included a flash video. I used this format as the player is accessible to screen readers and navigable using a mouse. You can include in-video captions using flash video, and this is something I would like to try in addition to providing a transcript but I ran out of time. I also included some website links for additional research.

What guidelines did you refer to when creating the resource?
I referred to the W3C Web Content Accessibility guidelines becasue I produced the resource in HTML, like a lesson website. I made sure I included a page title, kept the formatting information in an external style sheet, provided alternative text for pictures, a transcript for the video and kept the page layout simple.

What areas were particularly difficult and why do you think this to be the case?
None of the areas was particularly difficult as I was already aware of the guidelines and have produced accessible materials before so I was aware of the techniques and processes involved. I did find the transcript was surprisingly time consuming. It took me over an hour to transcribe a video that was three to four minutes long because it needed to include a lot of descriptive information, not just a direct copy of the narrative.

Do you think the act of making an accessible resource affected the way that the learning outcomes were addressed?
In this instance the act of making the resource accessible was a case of adhering to best practices, the learning outcomes remain the same as the inaccessible version of the lesson.

How many of the decisions you made about the resource were influenced by technical considerations? How many of your decisions were influenced by pedagogical or other considerations?

The key decisions I made about the resource and the reasons for doing them are listed below :

1. Use of HTML. This was a technical consideration. HTML is an accessible method of providing online content as long as best practices are adhered to. It can easily be customised by users either by using assistive technologies such as screen readers or magnifiers or built in accessibility features such as making text larger in the browser settings.
2. Page formatting. I used size 12 font with increased line spacing and left hand justification and a pale coloured background. This might to assist users with visual impairment or learning difficulties. I also kept the pages short, linking to additional information rather than including it on one long page to assist navigation and understanding.
3. Video. This was technical and pedagogical consideration. I chose the flash format for the video as this claims to be accessible for screen readers and keyboard navigation. Providing a video is engaging for those students who are able to view the video, and also provides a point of reference for review of the subject later unlike a live demonstration. The transcript was provided as an accessible alternative.