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Online learning opens doors...or does it? - Page 2

© Glenda Watson Hyatt

As one final comment, some WSYIWIG web page editors automatically use the file name and size as the default ALT (i.e., ALT="image1.gif 546 bytes"). Generally, this is rather uninformative; not to mention rather boring to listen to when read aloud by a screen reader. Good web designers make it a practice to add appropriate, informative ALT tags in each required instance.

Maximize colour contrast

Colour blindness affect approximately 8% of males and 1% of females. These individuals see a see a different range of colors.

Poor colour contrast between text and background can drastically decrease the readability of a site.

Considering the following are general guidelines when designing web pages:

• Design in black and white, adding color for emphasis.
• Color should never be the only visual cue for anything.
• Distinguish between features that a user must be able to see in order to use the web page and those that would be nice to see.
• Use the 16 common browser-safe colours to ensure cross-platform consistency in colour scheme.
• TIP: Test whether color contrast is sufficient to be read by people with color deficiencies or by those with low-resolution monitors, print pages on a black and white printer (with backgrounds and colors appearing in grayscale).

Contact Soaring Eagle Communications to receive a detailed report on how to choose colour schemes that accommodate colour blindness.

Provide alternative formats

Oftentimes, course materials are created using Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). However, files in this format are difficult, if not impossible, to read using screen readers and/or refreshable Braille displays. Thus, if materials are provided on a website in PDF format, an alternative version should also be available in plain text or HTML format. Of course, this is only feasible for textual information and would not apply to materials, or portions of materials, that are inherently graphic in nature such as pictures, graphs and maps.

For more information:

• Distance Education: Access Guidelines for Students with Disabilities, August 1999
• For Students With Disabilities, the Web Can Be Like a Classroom Without a Ramp
• Web Accessibility Initiative

These are only a few possible suggestions for making online learning more accessible. Watch future articles for more suggestions. Or, feel free to contact me today.

Cheers,
Glenda
Soaring Eagle Communications
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