My research question(s): How can accessibility be emphasized to development students in a way that facilitates interest and understanding? What common misconceptions do students have going into introduction level classes about accessibility?

Hypothesis

Common accessibility myths keep students of web development from understanding the importance of accessibility and overcoming these myths at an educational level through a hands-on approach will help change industry mindsets.

Proposal Outline:

Defining web accessibility

• (Podlas, 2015)
• (Charski, 2015)

Web accessibility myths

• (Ellcessor, 2014)

Need for accessibility

• (Bearne, 2007)
• (Ferati, Vogel, 2020)

Educational Approaches

• (Crave, Nietzio, 2007)
• (Youngblood, 2012)
• (Michalska, et al., 2014)

Methodology

• • At least 1 University – 2 sections of introductory web development
  • Pre-test both sections of the class (basic understanding of current beliefs)
  • One section implements hands-on approach with task-oriented learning objectives
  • Other section maintains traditional instruction
  • Post-test to both sections

Discussion

               Future studies

• study multiple universities across the country
• implement at different levels, not just introduction classes

Weaknesses of study

The effect of hands-on approaches to accessibility

                             

 

References

 

Bearne, S. (2007). Access for Everyone: Guiding Hands. New Media Age.

Charski, M. (2015). Web Accessibility: Is Your Content Ready For Everyone? EContent.

Crave, J., & Nietzio, A. (2007). A Task-Based Approach to Assessing the Accessibility of Websites. Performance Measurement and Metrics, 98-109.

Ellcessor, E. (2014). <ALT=”Textbooks”>: Web Accessibility Myths as Negotiated Industrial Lore. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 448-463.

Ferati, M., & Vogel, B. (2020). Accessibility in Web Development Courses: A Case Study. Informatics.

Michalksa, A., You, C., Nicolini, A., Ippolito, V., & Fink, W. (2014). Accessible Web Page Design for the Visually Impaired: A Case Study. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, 995-1002.

Podlas, K. (2015). Website Accessibility and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Journal of International Law, 3-16.

Youngblood, S. (2012). Communicating Web Accessibility to the Novice Developer: From User Experience to Application. Journal of Business and Technical Communication, 209-232.