Online courses and e-learning platforms have become an integral part of education and training. However, not all courses are created equal, and some can be difficult or impossible to access for individuals with disabilities. That’s why accessibility in online course development is a critical consideration.
This is why Construct has taken a proactive approach and introduced two courses to upskill its teams in creating accessible courses.
Introduction to Accessibility is a 2-hour course with the objective of enabling our staff to identify potential accessibility issues in the courses that we develop. The highlight of the course is an activity in which we show what it’s like to experience an inaccessible website as a way to generate empathy for the users who require accessible interventions. We also encourage our staff to be honest about our past failures, using these experiences to recognize areas for improvement.
To date, 112 staff members have completed the course, and we have received some fantastic feedback:
“[This course] hit the nail on the ‘why’ behind Accessibility.”
“What an amazing build and course—clean, clear, to the point content. No fluff, easy to understand, beautifully structured, short pages, easily digestible—win, win, win.”
“I saw the difference between a course created with accessibility in mind and one that did not.”
“This is a really amazing. Not only is this incredibly important, it was simple, clear and understandable, and a PLEASURE to take.”
“It really showed how accessibility isn’t just a nice-to-have.”
“Absolutely amazing course. We should make this available to the general public and edtech world.”
In addition to the Introduction to Accessibility course, we have also developed an 8-hour course to upskill our Instructional Designers in creating effective text alternatives for images. Writing text alternatives for images is a crucial aspect of accessibility in online course development, and we want to ensure that our Learning Teams are well-equipped to handle this task.
The course concludes with a rigorous assessment where designers must write text alternatives for various images, with a pass mark set at 80%. So far, 15 staff members have completed the course, and feedback from staff members who completed the course highlights the practical nature of the program.
“Very practical course. It was exceptionally helpful to prepare for writing alternative text in the future. Thank you!”
“Amazing job yet again. Extremely interactive and fun!”
“As much as I loathed having to write the really long text descriptions, it was such a great example and practice to help understand the necessity of this and the amount of work and hours that go into doing it right!”
At Construct, we believe that it is important to show, not just tell, our commitment to accessibility. We are committed to continuing to provide our staff with the necessary training and resources to create accessible online courses that can be enjoyed by all.
This blog post is made available by the author for educational purposes only and to provide general information. All views expressed are the author’s own and do not represent the opinions of any entity whatsoever, to which they have been, are now, or will be affiliated. If you have a specific problem related to this topic and need advice, contact Construct Education directly.
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Construct Education is the trading name of Proversity.Org Ltd (UK entity), Proversity Inc (USA entity) and Proversity Org Incorporated in UK (South African entity)
