From Disability to Usability in Online Instruction

Abstract

Online instruction is making inroads into legal education. In this shift from tangible to virtual, many pedagogical, structural, and design issues arise. To add to the complexity, law professors and librarians must consider and address the needs of the vision and hearing impaired. Online education holds many promises for people with sensory or motor impairments because digital information can be rendered in multiple ways depending on the learner’s preferences. Unfortunately, many educators – myself included – who are developing materials for online instruction do not know what is needed or how the tools work.This article is a primer on the work needed to ensure that, as law schools develop online instruction, accessibility is achieved. It begins with an overview of the types of impairments our students may have and a review of the relevant laws. The article then goes on to explore the relationship between accessibility standards and the broader principles of universal design, concluding that universal design is an effective paradigm for approaching accessibility issues. Universal design is effective because it pursues usability, allowing the concept of disability, and the segregation that often accompanies it, to abate. The article then introduces a number best practices for accessibility in creating online instruction. The emphasis here is on the most effective and easy-to-apply practices rather than on more technical aspects of coding for accessibility. The end result is usability – and better materials – for both instructors and students.