A New Open Educational Course … Coming Soon!
Who decides what makes online content accessible? Are we asking learners with disabilities what makes learning accessible to them, what is problematic, and what solutions work best?
Online education can be a wonderful medium to help make education accessible to all, provided there is inclusivity in the design of online learning experiences. Traditionally as educators and technologists we make decisions for learners about what we believe learners need to make online learning accessible. This often means that decisions on accessibility are being made from a systemically ableist perspective.
For the majority, this is not our intent and we may be completely unaware of ableist things we do and say, and ableist views that we hold, even if we ourselves are disabled. It is for this reason, that as we begin to share courses on Universal Design, Accessibility, and Inclusivity, we are starting with a course on Ableism and Inclusivity in Online Education.
Through discussing systemic ableism and gaining understanding of what it is, we better equip ourselves as educators to change and build more accessible and inclusive online educational experiences. Case in point, the video below shares Our Journey with Ableism.
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