What to teach? A taxonomy of Knowledge and Skills for 'Design for All' Curricula related to HCI

An EU project called IDCnet is focusing on educating the students and professionals who are learning and working in the area of information and communication technologies (ICT) to include the requirements of older and disabled people. The aim of the project is to integrate information and identify core knowledge sets and skills for model curricula in Design for All (DfA) specifically for information and communication products, systems and services. Various categories of knowledge and skills have been identified as being important to include in modules and courses with Design for All content, e.g., awareness raising, reasons for promoting Design for All, and what legislation and guidelines are important to consider. Nine categories and some suggestion of the content of courses in inclusive design for ICT are discussed, suggesting what to teach and why it is important. The paper concludes by stating that the work of IDCnet will be extended by carrying out teaching pilots, by communicating the results to Education Policy and Strategy bodies, and by inviting participation and contributions from interested and informed experts in this field

The IDCnet approach: educating students and professionals in 'design for all'

will enable people with impairments to move through life with appropriate Assistive Technology to meet their changing needs. A key requirement within such an infrastructure is education. The Inclusive Design Curriculum Network (IDCnet) is a Thematic Network financed by the Information Society Technologies (IST) Programme of the European Commission (http://www.idcnet.info/). The aim of the project is to integrate information and identify core knowledge sets and skills for model curricula in Design for All (DfA) specifically for information and communication products, systems and services. This presentation will present some ideas which are still under discussion and will invite further contributions, both now and as the project progresses

Recommendations from IDCnet for promoting inclusive design in ICT curricula

This paper aims to provide a starting point for discussions on higher education and research policies and strategies to promote inclusive design in the curricula for information and communication products and technologies (ICT). It summarises the 10 recommendations made by the Inclusive Design Curriculum Network (IDCnet) project, under the EU Information Society Tech-nologies (IST) Programme. Suggestions are invited in order to support the ob-jectives of eEurope and the European Design for All e-Accessibility Network (EDeAN) with regard to the development of curriculum recommendations in this area

Curricula recommendations – an update from IDCnet

This paper summarises some of the key findings and recommendations of the Inclusive Design Curriculum Network (IDCnet) project, under the EU Information Society Technologies (IST) Programme. These findings include a description of the taxonomy of core knowledge and skills for model curricula for information and communication technologies, the piloting of experiences in using the taxonomy, examples of teaching material, work on the optimal graduate profile, and recommendations for higher education and research policy and strategy

What constitutes DfA knowledge? Identification of a range of work that contributes to DfA. Baseline Document for attendees of the IDCnet Helsinki Workshop: “Design for All Curriculum: Towards a synergy of the needs of ICT industry and education"

This document acts as a baseline for the participants of the Helsinki Workshop. In order to situate the tasks to be carried out during and after the workshop, this document describes other efforts at curriculum design for higher education in related subjects, thereby setting the stage for the methodology adopted by IDCnet. This is followed by a brief description of some of the current trends with regard to the teaching of design for all, in terms of learner background, targeted audiences, etc. This section also notes the connection between on line learning and DfA. The next part of the document attempts a taxonomy of types of knowledge and skills identified in taught courses, and indicates useful sources of material. It also lists two examples of curricula plans that influenced this section. The final section summarises the main points of the document and describes the next steps. An annex provides some terminology related to Design for All, as well as definitions of terms used in curricula

Curricula recommendations – an update from IDCnet

This paper summarises some of the key findings and recommendations of the Inclusive Design Curriculum Network (IDCnet) project, under the EU Information Society Technologies (IST) Programme. These findings include a description of the taxonomy of core knowledge and skills for model curricula for information and communication technologies, the piloting of experiences in using the taxonomy, examples of teaching material, work on the optimal graduate profile, and recommendations for higher education and research policy and strategy

The needs of industry and future technologies landscapes and the resultant requirements for the graduate profile

This report presents current and future technology landscapes that can be affected by design for all in the field of ICT, and how these landscapes can affect the future graduate profile. It also presents an overview of current industry awareness about the topic, and a summary of the industry needs

Identifying core knowledge and skill sets for model curricula: update

This deliverable presents state of the art in curriculum development work, and compares IDCnet to it. Next it discusses the methodology followed to identify key knowledge and skill sets for Design for All. The categories of knowledge thus identified are organised into a taxonomy with examples given for each category and subcategory along with a set of learning outcomes. The purpose of the taxonomy is to structure the knowledge. As this deliverable was a ‘living’ document, and as further activities have taken place since this deliverable was first submitted, this version includes a substantially expanded chapter 5, incorporating comments from: the project review process; the new members of IDCnet; the second IDCnet workshop; as well as comments received from colleagues in response to dissemination activities at conferences. The categories and subcategories of the taxonomy remain unchanged, but further topics and examples have been added to illustrate and clarify the use and range of each category. Finally, the next steps in the IDCnet WP3 strategy are briefly described

Report on update of design for all and design for all related higher education and research policies in eu member countries and USA

This deliverable presents state of the art in Design for All education and research strategies and policies in EU member countries. These findings are complemented with considerations on respective strategies in USA. The report identifies key issues to be further discussed and developed to produce recommendations for further development of DfA related strategies and policies in Europe

Analysis and recommendations on Design for All related higher education and research policies in EU member countries

The report includes recommendations for further development of DfA related strategies and policies in Europe, based on the analysis of the state of the art in Design for All education and research strategies and policies in EU member countries, complemented with considerations on respective strategies in the USA