Abstract
Since the passage of the American Disabilities Act in 1990 and the coincident growth of the Internet, academic libraries have worked to provide electronic resources and services that are accessible to all patrons. Special collections are increasingly being added to these Web-based library resources, and they must meet the same accessibility standards. The recent popularity surge of Web 2.0 technology, social media sites, and mobile devices has brought greater awareness about the challenges faced by those who use assistive technology for visual disabilities. This study examines the screen reader accessibility of online special collections finding aids at 68 public U.S. colleges and universities in the Association of Research Libraries.
Highlights
University students and faculty today expect some degree of online access to most library resources
Basic descriptive data recorded during the selection process shows that 65 of the 68 finding aids tested were displayed as webpages using HTML, XHTML, or XML coding
This study indicates that special collections finding aids at US public colleges and universities can be accessed by screen-reader users, but they do not always perform well because of faulty coding and inadequate use of headings or links for keyboard navigation
Summary
University students and faculty today expect some degree of online access to most library resources. Special collections libraries are no exception, and researchers have access to troves of digitized finding aids and original materials at university library websites nationwide. As part of the websites of higher education institutions, these resources must be accessible to patrons with disabilities. Since the passage of these laws, libraries at US colleges and universities have made progress in physical and electronic accessibility for the disabled
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