Web Accessibility

An attempt to redefine or reframe the term ‘disability’, in the context of online learning as a mismatch between a learner’s needs and the education process delivered, is enshrined in a new international e-learning standard.

The standard says it views disability as “a consequence of a mismatch between the learner’s needs (or preferences) and the education or learning experience delivered. “For example, an individual who is blind is not disabled when the lesson is delivered in audio. However, an individual who does not have the necessary background knowledge to understand the lesson, or who is listening to the lesson in a noisy environment, is disabled. “Thus, the needs and preferences of a user may arise from the user’s context or environment, the technical requirements of the user’s device, the tools available (e.g. assistive technologies such as Braille devices, voice recognition systems, alternative keyboards, etc.), the user’s background, or a disability in the traditional sense. “Given this reframing of the meaning of “disability”, a learning environment is deemed as “accessible” when learner needs can be addressed or matched.”

Captivate has a number of accessibility features in version 3 and 4 although there are some issues that Adobe is working on.

Ensure that the “enable accessibility” checkbox is checked under the File > Publish settings in order for accessibility to be exposed to assistive technologies.

Slide Accessibility Text Each slide can contain accessibility text. This can be added by going to the slide properties, activating the Accessibility button and entering text in the text field.