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Blackboard Software is itself fairly accessible to users with disabilities who may be utilizing assistive technology. Except for Blackboard assessments and tests, accessibility issues with Blackboard are usually a result of faculty/staff posting or uploading documents or modules that are not accessible. Blackboard at College of the Redwoods Here are some common accessibility issues and solutions for documents posted to Blackboard: Issue: Adobe PDF (Acrobat) documents are not fully accessible -- despite the fact that Adobe Corporation has improved accessibility over the past year or so. Solution: When posting an Adobe PDF document, always provide another more accessible format such as HTML. Check out the College of the Redwoods recommendations for Making Adobe PDF Documents More Accessible
Issue: Screen reader software such as JAWS can not successfully open Microsoft Word documents or RTF documents embedded in frames in web pages -- which is exactly the situation with Blackboard. Partial Solution: You can help by always labeling links to embedded Word or RTF documents, e.g.: Assignment 1.doc (Word format) This informs users that they will be opening a Word document. JAWS users will know that they need to go through some extra steps to successfully view it. You cannot assume all visitors to your site will have Microsoft Word installed. It's best provide to a link somewhere on your page for the free downloadable Word viewer visitors who might not have it. For example: Microsoft Word viewer - free download for your computer if you do not have Microsoft Word for Windows or Microsoft Word for Macintosh. Please do not attempt to install this on student computers at CR. More Complete Solution #1: Open the Word or RTF document, select all, and copy and paste the information into a new Blackboard document -- effectively creating an HTML document rather than using Word. More Complete Solution #2: Offer the same document twice with two separate links. This lets your users choose an accessible alternative format besides Microsoft Word or RTF: plain text (.txt) or HTML (.htm).
Issue: Assessments (tests and quizzes) in Blackboard are said to be accessible, but in reality they are not useable by users who rely upon screen readers or other assistive technology. Solution: Be prepared to provide Blackboard Assessments (tests and quizzes) in another format, specifically for users who are blind. For example, you could provide the same test questions in .txt format or Word format which could be posted as a link on the assessment page. Please contact the CR High Tech Center for more information.
Issue: A student who is blind cannot access a newspaper article that has been scanned and uploaded to Blackboard as a PDF document. Solution: Offer a link to an alternative accessible document. Scan the newspaper article as OCR to convert it to text and save the document as plain text (.txt) or HTML (.htm). It won't look as pretty, but at least all of the information will be there. As stated above, PDF documents are not fully accessible, alternative formats should also be provided.
Issue: Uploaded PowerPoint documents to Blackboard may not be accessible to users who rely upon screen readers or other assistive technology. Solution: When posting a PowerPoint presentation, provide a second link to an accessible HTML version. Another option is to to create an accessible Powerpoint file using the University of Illinois Accessible Web Publishing Wizard. If the PowerPoint presentation has audio multimedia then captions and/or transcripts will be required. Check out WebAim's recommendations for PowerPoint accessibility. Check out this example of how you can provide a second accessible HTML version of a PowerPoint presentation.
Issue: Online accessibility check software, such as WebXACT (formerly called Bobby), HiSoftware's® Cynthia Says, or The Wave, is unable to conduct usability and accessibility checks on pages within a Blackboard site. This is because the software cannot log in . Solution: Use WebXACT (Bobby), HiSoftware's® Cynthia Says or other accessibility check software before posting or uploading the page(s) into Blackboard.
Issue: Uploaded documents to Blackboard may not be accessible to users who rely upon screen readers or other assistive technology. Solution: Check the document(s) for accessibility before uploading to Blackboard. See the recommendations for evaluating the page for accessibility from the College of the Redwoods DSPS Online Accessibility web site.
Issue: Students with a learning disability may have problems finding their way through your Blackboard site to find the information they need. Solution: Keep your site as straightforward as possible. It may sound obvious, but it is essential for students with learning disabilities for you to be clear and concise with your assignment directions. Colors and images (with corresponding alternative text) can make it easier for students with cognitive difficulties to navigate your site. All text documents may be great for students who are blind, but they can be very difficult for students with learning disabilities.
Be aware that some of the visitors to your Blackboard Site might not have good fine motor coordination. Make sure that all of your site links (and text) are large enough so users can easily access the information.
Helpful links:
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