Accessibility Analysis
Introduction:
Accessibility is a flexible and broad concept, and its flexibility and breadth are its main strengths. It is known that individuals or groups require a range of activities, and several facilities can cater to these needs through various means of transport and communication networks.
These networks basically bridge the gap between demand and supply. Thus, accessibility can be referred to as an attribute of getting the needed product or service with ease. Accessibility can answer several questions like ‘whom’, ‘how’, ‘what’, etc.
Accessibility is the ability to reach desired destinations, activities, services or goods and it also depends on the mobility substitutes or the mobility. The main aim of this assignment is to conduct accessibility analysis of online learning resources.
It is known that there has been an extensive increase in online learning and learning resources are provided to students (Burgstahler, 2006). However, there are certain accessibility issues with eLearning resources, and the service is also not accessible to disabled people.
Thus, the service’s accessibility concern with regard to the existing legislation, standards, and guidelines for the United Kingdom is discussed here. The recommendations to make the service more universally accessible are also given here (Cartelli, 2013).
Web Accessibility:
Web accessibility means that people with disability can also access the web. It is known that issues are faced for the disabled people in terms of accessing the web and thus web accessibility refers to the removal of barriers and implements inclusive practice so that people with disabilities are not prevented from accessing the web.
Sites can be correctly designed, edited, and developed so that all users can equally access and contribute to the web by perceiving, interacting, navigating, and understanding (Cheung, 2012). Web accessibility can also benefit older people, as their abilities can change due to ageing.
Web accessibility can encompass all types of disability like cognitive, speech, physical, auditory, neurological, visual etc (Clark & Mayer, 2003). Different disabilities affect the web use of millions of people, and there is an accessibility barrier for websites as well as web software.
In this context, the issue of accessibility is extensive in this case, as accessibility requires that people in every group be able to use the product or the service.
Thus, a universal design approach is necessary so that everyone can access and use the product or service. Web accessibility is about ensuring that the website can be used and accessed by everyone regardless of their browsing technology or disability (Comeaux, 2005).
E-Learning Accessibility:
Background:
Education and learning enable economic and social change. The attainment of learning dictates an individual’s ability to maintain a comfortable lifestyle by entering a professional career.
Several aspects of modern society are evident, and it is evident that, at present, the internet age has had a significant impact on the landscape of higher education.
The learners in the internet age can access any number of curriculums of the educational institutes but the accessibility has increased in terms of the convenience of the time and the place of access (Coombs, 2010).
The e-learning system provides a comprehensive mechanism for managing the content and curriculum presentation. It also allows students and instructors to interact asynchronously and synchronously from anywhere in the world if there is a viable internet connection.
Recognised and accredited qualifications can be received by students from high-quality institutions without leaving their homes. But it is also evident that people with disability have issues in terms of the accessibility of the resources as they cannot use the web technology.
People with disabilities can have problems traveling and learning, and they have specific requirements. But online learning can be done in any setting, such as the workplace or home (Dror, 2011).
It is also very important that transportation accessibility is ensured in the educational environment. Thus, it should be ensured that e-learning is accessible from the design stage (Garrison & Anderson, 2003).
It is seen that disabled learners face various issues in the accessibility of learning in terms of the physical location and education options (Hricko & Howell, 2006). It is evident that they are also unable to access the digital web interface due to the designs of the e-learning systems and their functions of the interface.
Thus solution must be provided for the disabled to access the e-learning resources effectively.
The literature in the e-learning field is comprehensive and broad but the intersection between the web-accessibility and e-learning is less well developed. The combination of the benefits of the accessibility of e-leaning and internet can provide higher value to the students (Khosrow-Pour, 2002).
Description of the Issue:
E-learning materials are sometimes used with specific configurations and technology, which can make them less available to individuals with limited access or non-standard computer equipment.
Students with disabilities can benefit from the online resources as those are more accessible and these can allow the individuals with disability a flexible way of learning by accessing the resources.
But it is evident that people with disability faces problem of accessing these resources due to the interface and incompatibility with the disables (Li, 2012).
The interface element of the Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) can also create barriers as the materials and objects can interact in a specific manner that cannot be understood by the disabled. There are various components and they do not share the interface consistency and interactive logical elements (Phipps & Kelly, 2006).
The ability of each and every learner must be taken into account for an effective e-learning environment in order fulfils the main goals of learning. In this context it can be said that the capability of the learners can interact with the needs and the means and that can create a specific learning experience (Popescu, 2012).
Disability is a broad term, and it can include people with sensory, neurological, motor functioning, or learning disabilities. As the age of an individual increases, the severity of the disability challenge also increases.
Thus, change needs to be implemented so that the usability of the learners with disability can be increased for the provision of the academic qualification to the disabled people (Ravenscroft, 2012).
It is evident that accessibility for services and e-learning resources is not equally distributed, and thus, the issue of accessibility is faced in every nation. Thus, measures need to be implemented to eradicate the problem.
On the other hand, there can also be a problem with the Internet. It is known that at present, the number of Internet vendors and service providers has increased in every nation (Salmon, 2011). However, in developing countries, there are certain regions where internet access is limited or not accessible at all.
In certain situations, people cannot afford the service, and thus, they cannot access the Internet. This leads to a problem, and it is one of the major challenges that are faced nowadays. Measures need to be taken to tackle this problem so that each and every person can access the Web and thus access the e-learning resources.
Accessibility Concerns with the Legislations, Guidelines and Standards:
The significance of the accessibility to e-learning resources digitally has been widely acknowledged all over the world, especially in the UK. A leading role is played by W3C WAI for the promotion of the importance of the accessibility of the web resources.
They have also taken the initiative to develop guidelines that can help create accessible web resources. Several challenges can be faced when accessing e-learning resources, and in this context, the usability of e-learning, along with student learning styles and pedagogic issues, should be taken into account (Secker & Coonan, 2012).
The Special Educational Needs and Disability Act (SENDA, 2001) was introduced by the UK government in 2001 (Legislation.gov.uk, 2014). The Act brought the excluded element of previous laws into the anti-discrimination legislation in the education sector.
It can be said that the legislation refers to the special education needs of disabled children as they face severe problems with the accessibility of educational resources. The act emphasises on the anti-discrimination policy that should be implemented in the education sector and thus the issues of accessibility come under the regulation.
The TechDis service was established in the same year by the Joint Information Systems Committee, and it established all the aspects of disability and technology within education (W3.org, 2014). Since 2001, the service has tried to understand the ramifications of the legislation by working with different intermediaries to understand e-learning.
In 2002, a survey was conducted by creating a homepage for the websites of the 160 UK universities. The survey was conducted before the SENDA legislation in order to assess the accessibility legislation in the education sector. It was found that 57% pages failed to comply with the guidelines of WCAG.
The Disability Rights Commission (DRC) published a high-profile report on the accessibility of 1,000 websites in the UK. It found that 81% of the websites failed to comply with the minimum standards of WAI (W3.org, 2014).
Education institutions are responsible for providing further and higher education. Thus, they need to ensure that the VLEs and online teaching resources are accessible to every candidate, including disabled students.
Thus, they need to implement reasonable adjustments to overcome the issues and challenges so that continuous discrimination can be justified (W3.org, 2014).
The authors and the academic staff are working together in order to understand the guidelines and the standards complying with the legislations of the UK in this context in the education sector. By understanding the guidelines and the legislations, a better learning experience can be provided to the disabled candidates (Ukoln.ac.uk, 2014).
Relevance of the Service with Infotainment and Impact on Future Business:
It is known that infotainment is basically information based programming or media-content and it also includes the content of entertainment for enhancing the consumers and the audience. It can be referred to the hardware or the software systems and the products that can enhance the experience of the passenger (Sharpe, 2012).
Several websites can be included in the infotainment category, but it is evident that e-learning resources cannot be considered under this category as they basically help in accumulating knowledge and are the content materials for learning.
Thus, there is no relevance of the online learning materials with the infotainment.
It is known that learning resources are becoming more accessible significantly nowadays. There are various benefits of e-learning guidelines and resources. Students have faster access to study guides and other materials through the internet.
The value of e-learning has been extensive due to its capacity to facilitate thinking and communication, thereby constructing knowledge and meaning (Ukoln.ac.uk, 2014). Online resources provide increased flexibility to access at any time and place for a duration that is more convenient to them.
Through online sources, hyperlinks to further explanatory materials can be provided. Online resources can richly incorporate diagrams and colours, and students can access them according to their customised preferences.
Online communication tools can support discussions with peers or lecturers. Online media can also facilitate online collaboration (Khosrow-Pour, 2002). There are also online assessment tools that can provide feedback to students.
Here, advanced technology is used for educational purposes, and it can be said that the education system is more efficient and effective with the help of online resources.
Thus, the number of institutions offering online courses and study materials is increasing on a local and global level.
The issue of internet accessibility has been one of the drawbacks or barriers to reaching a wider group of people. For people with disabilities or without an internet connection, accessibility and usability are limited. Thus, measures are taken to limit the problems and raise the accessibility of the service so that everyone can access it.
Measures Taken to Improve the Accessibility:
Several issues are known to be faced regarding the accessibility of e-learning online resources. There have been significant changes in the educational sector as new technologies have been implemented in the industry to make the education system more efficient and effective, but there have been issues regarding the accessibility of the online resources.
If the materials cannot be accessed by people in every category, then the main purpose of the system is not served entirely (Ukoln.ac.uk, 2014). Discrimination can also be an issue. Thus, online educational web services need to be redesigned so that disabled people can also access the resources.
Changes in the user interface of the web service need to be made to make it friendlier with disabled people. Clear topic headings should be given along with clear instructions (Garrison & Anderson, 2003).
It should be ensured that the information and web links are up-to-date. The induction of the on using VLE for a particular unit should be arranged with the students. Accessible resources can be used in the sites like word documents, PDF files, audio, video, PowerPoint files etc (Ukoln.ac.uk, 2014).
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is responsible for the development and coordination of web standards. In order to lead the web to its full potential with the reference to promotion of high degree of accessibility, they have established the Web Accessibility Initiative. WAI guidelines can provide the required e-learning development in terms of the wider perspective (W3.org, 2014). Thus government initiative is necessary for eradicating the issue
Conclusion:
In conclusion it can be said that e-learning is one of the rising trends in the education sector nowadays. The number of people using the online resources and opting for online courses is increasing significantly.
Thus it is very important that the efficiency and effectiveness of the service is increased and discrimination and inaccessibility of the service is reduced as each and everyone should have the access to the online resources.
In this assignment the background of the issue that is faced at present has been provided and it is discussed in the legal framework for the UK.
Several guidelines and the legislation in terms of the service are mentioned and the measures taken to address the issue have been provided as well.
Thus it can be concluded that these measures are necessary to face the challenges faced at present for the inaccessibility of the disabled candidates.
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