Minister launches 'one-stop' accessibility shop
An online toolkit of practical guidelines has just been unveiled by the new Minister for Further Education, Siôn Simon. The guidelines are designed to help teachers create learning materials to reach all learners, regardless of ability. Developed by Jisc TechDis and launched by the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), they are freely available online at the Quality Improvement Agency's Excellence Gateway, a site that draws together previously scattered threads of advice into a ‘one-stop-shop’ super resource.
The guidelines will shortly be available on the Jisc TechDis website, too, Jisc’s advisory service on accessibility issues. They are grouped into eight thematic categories of learner difficulty and will enable staff to create effective learning materials for students who have difficulty:
- Seeing things
- Hearing things
- Understanding things
- Concentrating
- Handling and manipulating things
- Communicating with others
- Accessing text
- Due to dyslexia
Kevin Carey, Director of HumanITy, advised on the creation of the materials. He also spoke at the launch at Lewisham College, one of the UK’s top FE colleges. Uniquely placed due to his accessibility expertise and his standing as a blind author, he said: ‘There is no single solution for accessibility. The most time-consuming and expensive adjustments are not always the most effective. The accessibility guidelines available on Excellence Gateway will help teachers to adapt and personalise delivery to all learners.’
Other accessibility features on the Excellence Gateway include:
- Jisc TechDis briefings on accessibility issues for senior managers
- Jisc TechDis staff development packs with ready-to-run PowerPoint presentations, notes and activities
Unveiling the new resource as his first ministerial duty, Siôn Simon said: ‘These accessibility guidelines will ensure that all learners can unlock their talent in an amazing and innovative way.’ Alistair McNaught, senior advisor with Jisc TechDis, then spent some time with Mr Simon, answering his questions and introducing other resources such as AccessApps and the newly released Upwardly Mobile DVD (an introduction to mobile or m-Learning), launched this month at 2008's Hand Held Learning Awards.
Registration and use of the Excellence Gateway is completely free
View the thematically grouped teaching and learning guidelines