Towards a pedagogy of accessibility: The need for critical learning spaces in media accessibility education and training

Until now, the debate on education and training in accessibility has largely ignored the core competences of the accessibility expert, as it has tended to focus exclusively on context- and field-related skills. Looking at the case of media accessibility through the critical lens of accessibility studies, the article calls for the development of a theoretical reflection on education and training. Such reflection could then solidly support extensive investigation of the specific skills of accessibility researchers, professionals and policy-makers, frame analyses of current programmes, and strengthen proposals for new curricula and professional profiles. The article contributes to such a reflection by advancing and discussing the inclusion of critical learning spaces within vocation- and research-oriented courses. Using the critical lens of accessibility studies, the article also investigates whether education and training in audiovisual translation and media accessibility have been mostly dominated by some discriminatory normative frameworks, such as the medical model of disability, and how this is influenced by and in turn influences practices. The article suggests that this problem requires a (re)design of education (and practices) using the tools that constitute the critical apparatus of accessibility studies, such as the human variation paradigm, the social model of accessibility, the universalist account of access, the poietic model of agency, and proactive and user-centred approaches. Ultimately, the article outlines the very first traits of a pedagogy of accessibility, that is, a systematic approach to the practice(s) of teaching and learning accessibilit

Practice-based Qualitative Research: Participant Experiences of Walk-in Counselling and Traditional Counselling

Walk-in single session counselling is becoming a more widely used model for delivering mental health services across Ontario. This paper reports findings from the qualitative phase of a mixed method study, exploring the experiences of those attending walk-in counselling (WIC) model compared to the traditional service delivery model employing a wait list. We used a comparative case study design for the qualitative phase. Findings reveal that participant outcomes of the walk-in counselling model is influenced by accessibility, how a participant makes sense of the service, and the degree to which a participant is motivated and able to engage in counselling. WIC supports the mental health system by reducing wait lists associated with traditional service delivery models, and meeting the needs many people identify for immediate consultation. Other participants still perceive themselves as requiring ongoing counselling over time and involving in-depth exploration. This research supports health systems providing access to both models

Justice in transport policy

For the last hundred years or so, transport and planning systems have been based on the assumption that people had access to a car. What happens to people who have no such opportunity? Rural shops and facilities close, urban city centres degenerate leaving poorer people with little or no local goods and services. The increase in movement accorded to that part of the population with access to a car has left the other part of the population worse off than they had been before. This has had particularly bad consequences for those members of society who are already losing out, especially poor, elderly, disabled and young people. These people are dependent on others: neighbours, family or friends (if they have them), or what society chooses to dispense (if they do not).This is often seen as a transport, urban or rural planning problem. However, it is much more serious than that. People are being left without access to fundamental aspects of society: health care, education, legal and electoral rights in addition to affordable nutritious food. As a result they are losing out on the benefits of living within a society because the transport system is unable to accommodate their needs. The direction taken by transport and planning over the past hundred years or so has managed to open up enormous opportunities for some elements of society at the expense of restricting access to basic rights for others.The problem now is that society has designed itself to be inaccessible for certain parts of the population who have no means of reaching what are often considered basic aspects of modern life. These people are excluded from full participation in society as a result of a conscious decision to encourage movement rather than access. This has the unintended consequence that those who are unable, for whatever reason, to avail themselves of the means of movement, are also unable to obtain independent access to activities to which they are theoretically entitled as of right. This is inherently unjust.Transport should be available to all in a form that they can use independently because it is the means by which access to the fundamental activities is obtained. In general, this means what we might call ?public transport?: a transport system which the public is able to use. This suggests that the default transport system ? the one that should be designed and implemented as a starting point ? is the public transport system in its widest sense. Design for car traffic is secondary: it includes one part of the population at the expense of the rest. Devising measures that will help planners to plan such a system and which will demonstrate that access is sufficient is a matter of urgency. Such a measure would allow society to decide exactly what it means by ?sufficient? transport ? e.g. maximum walking time to a doctor?s surgery, fresh food, school ? and to allocate funds accordingly. The provision of accessible transport is a necessary element of making a just society

Coffee maker patterns and the design of energy feedback artefacts

Smart electricity meters and home displays are being installed in people’s homes with the assumption that households will make the necessary efforts to reduce their electricity consumption. However, present solutions do not sufficiently account for the social implications of design. There is a potential for greater savings if we can better understand how such designs affect behaviour. In this paper, we describe our design of an energy awareness artefact – the Energy AWARE Clock – and discuss it in relation to behavioural processes in the home. A user study is carried out to study the deployment of the prototype in real domestic contexts for three months. Results indicate that the Energy AWARE Clock played a significant role in drawing households’ attention to their electricity use. It became a natural part of the household and conceptions of electricity became naturalized into informants’ everyday language

Guidance on the principles of language accessibility in National Curriculum Assessments : research background

This review accompanies the document, which describes the principles which should guide the development of clear assessment questions. The purpose of the review is to present and discuss in detail the research underpinning these principles. It begins from the standpoint that National Curriculum assessments, indeed any assessments, should be: - appropriate to the age of the pupils - an effective measure of their abilities, skills and concept development - fair to all irrespective of gender, language, religion, ethnic or social origin or disability. (Ofqual, 2011) The Regulatory Framework for National Assessments: National Curriculum and Early Years Foundation Stage (Ofqual, 2011) sets out a number of common criteria which apply to all aspects of the development and implementation of National Assessments. One of these criteria refers to the need for assessment procedures to minimise bias: “The assessment should minimise bias, differentiating only on the basis of each learner’s ability to meet National Curriculum requirements” (Section 5.39, page 16). The Framework goes on to argue that: “Minimising bias is about ensuring that an assessment does not produce unreasonably adverse outcomes for particular groups of learners” (Annex 1, page 29). This criterion reinforces the guiding principle that any form of assessment should provide information about the knowledge and understanding of relevant content material. That is to say that the means through which this knowledge and understanding is examined, the design of the assessment and the language used should as far as possible be transparent, and should not influence adversely the performance of those being assessed. There is clearly a large number of ways in which any given assessment task can be presented and in which questions can be asked. Some of these ways will make the task more accessible – that is, easier to complete successfully – and some will get in the way of successful completion. Section 26 of the Fair Access by Design (Ofqual, 2010) document lists a number of guiding principles for improving the accessibility of assessment questions, although the research basis for these principles is not made completely clear in that document. The aim of the current review is to examine the research background more closely in order to provide a more substantial basis for a renewed set of principles to underpin the concept of language accessibility. In the review, each section will be prefaced by a statement of the principles outlined in Guidance on the Principles of Language Accessibility in National Curriculum Assessments and then the research evidence underpinning these principles will be reviewed

Fair agricultural innovation for a changing climate

Agricultural innovation happens at different scales and through different streams. In the absence of a common global research agenda, decisions on which innovations are brought to existence, and through which methods, are taken with insufficient view on how innovation affects social relations, the environment, and future food production. Mostly, innovations are considered from the standpoint of economic efficiency, particularly in relationship to creating jobs for technology-exporting countries. Increasingly, however, the realization that innovations cannot be successful on their technical prowess alone calls for a broader investigation

Measuring and comparing the reliability of the structured walkthrough evaluation method with novices and experts

Effective evaluation of websites for accessibility remains problematic. Automated evaluation tools still require a significant manual element. There is also a significant expertise and evaluator effect. The Structured Walkthrough method is the translation of a manual, expert accessibility evaluation process adapted for use by novices. The method is embedded in the Accessibility Evaluation Assistant (AEA), a web accessibility knowledge management tool. Previous trials examined the pedagogical potential of the tool when incorporated into an undergraduate computing curriculum. The results of the evaluations carried out by novices yielded promising, consistent levels of validity and reliability. This paper presents the results of an empirical study that compares the reliability of accessibility evaluations produced by two groups (novices and experts). The main results of this study indicate that overall reliability of expert evaluations was 76% compared to 65% for evaluations produced by novices. The potential of the Structured Walkthrough method as a useful and viable tool for expert evaluators is also examined. Copyright 2014 ACM