| | November 20208CIOReviewBy Mary Hricko, Ph.D. Professor, University Libraries, Kent State UniversityPROJECTS FOR IT LEADERS AND HIGHER EDUCATION COLLABORATIONAs we begin a new year, one resolution that IT leaders and higher education administrators should consider involves implementing directives that advance Universal Design for Learning (UDL). UDL principles promote quality assurance, support different learning styles, and expand access to digital learning materials such as open education resources (OERs). Although many industry IT leaders are aware of the importance of adopting UDL principles in their EIT Accessibility Policies, implementing and ensuring similar application has proven problematic in higher education where complaints regarding accessibility issues continue to be filed with the Office of Civil Rights (OCR). In a 2015 white paper report entitled, IT Accessibility Risk Statements and Evidence developed by EDUCAUSE's IT Accessibility Constituent Group, a list of risk management issues involving higher education institutions were outlined along with evidence of legal cases to help higher IT administrators conduct a review of their own risk management processes.While many of the OCR rulings relate to specific internal compliance issues such as failure to provide faculty accessibility training, there are three important risk management issues in which the education technology industry could provide leadership and support for higher education to improve implementation of UDL practices. These three key areas include: preparing accessibility statements, improving closed captioning, and increasing accessibility of open education resources.IMPROVING ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENTSWhen Section 508 passed its guidelines for accessibility, industry IT leaders had to ensure that their technology tools met the government's requirements for compliance. As a result of this legislation, many industries prepared a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPATTM) for their products. A VPAT is a document that explains how information and communication technology (ICT) products such as software, hardware, electronic content, and support documentation conform to the Revised 508 Standards for EIT accessibility. Similar to a VPAT, an accessibility statement provides an overview of the accessibility features of a given resource and offers contact information for consumers who may have questions or concerns if they are unable to use the resource. Accessibility statements include the following details:1. A list of accessibility features of the resource that has been added 2. Instructions that explain how to customize the resource3. Information regarding the limitations of the resource4. Contact information for questions or concerns5. A summary of the resource's accessibility policy6. The date in which this information was last updatedWhile most individuals think that accessibility statements are included in the development of digital learning resources, numerous resources, especially in the OER arena, provide no documentation regarding accessibility. Since accessibility statements are required elements in the National Standards for Quality Online Courses, curating resources that meet such guidelines can prove challenging. The inclusion of accessibility statements for all technologies provides valuable information for learners who need special accommodations.To address this issue, IT leaders can work with higher education institutions to develop better tools that generate accessibility statements for curated content. WCAG and the BC Accessibility Toolkit offer a good model for developing accessibility statements, but IT leaders involved with curation projects for digital repositories should ensure that all items being housed in such repositories include current accessibility statements. Dated accessibility statements are not useful to anyone.Mary HrickoIN MY OPINION
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