Summary

This article covers making EdTech content inclusive for the disabled through Section 508 compliance and offers tips for accessible digital materials.

Educational Technology (EdTech) has progressed considerably in recent history and accessibility is now mandatory to make education available for everyone. A significant 15% of the world’s population lives with disabilities, and making education readable and perceivable for this demographic is essential.

Section 508, which was updated in the U.S. Workforce Rehabilitation Act of 1973, is a milestone that assures that federal agencies and companies churn out accessible content so that people, regardless of disabilities, can read it and educate themselves.

Understanding accessibility compliance for edTech can save your company a lot of time as it can save you from civil lawsuits. Let us learn what 508 compliance rules are, how you can create a 508-compliant website, and how such a website can impact the teaching of your edTech content.

Table of Contents:

What are the EdTech Content Accessibility Standards?

Section 508 compliance guidelines were established by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Congress amended these compliance guidelines again in 1998 and added Section 508 standards for all federal agencies and companies to create electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to all individuals, irrespective of disabilities.

During this update, they included digital content to cater to the needs of disabled people. The act was revised in 2017 again and the law now requires all information and communication technology (ICT) to be accessible to disabled people.

This last update included telecommunication equipment for enhanced accessibility at every digital step. Such laws indicate how crucial it is to form an accessible 508-compliant website for your edTech content so you can make education available to all.

Also Read: Technologies to Invest in Boosting Higher Education Learning

Why is Accessibility in Educational Technology Important?

Educational institutions must adhere to 508 compliance guidelines to avoid civil lawsuits. Complying with these guidelines is crucial to making space for every individual in the domain of education.

Technology has become a significant game changer in education, with 51% of students feeling they can concentrate better. Thus, making space for disabled people in digital learning spaces becomes more important than ever. Creating clear and concise websites makes navigation easy, and this can increase the number of people benefitting from the website.

With enhanced ease, new and existing students can go through study materials on a 508-compliant website much more quickly to perform better academically. EdTech can benefit educators by giving them a platform that students are enthusiastic about, which can increase their effectiveness as educators.

Let us see how accessibility compliance for edTech can create a significant impact on teachers and students alike.

Top Ways an Accessible 508 Compliant Website Impacts EdTech Content

The global educational technology market size stood at $142.37 billion in 2023, and these figures are expected to grow exponentially over the coming years. So, it only makes sense to integrate accessibility into this evolving digital educational landscape.

Here are four ways 508 compliance benefits educators and learners with accessible edTech content:

1. Media Accessibility

Using visuals is a great way to enhance the learning process because around 65% of the population are visual learners. Using videos, images, and animations can make your edTech content more engaging for students and they become more informative with accessibility enhancement.

Use alt texts for every visual and captions and headings so readers can see them. Try to use a clear and large font for captions for videos and images so readers can read them and understand the visuals. Large and clear fonts for captions are great for people with hearing impairments who cannot use text-to-speech or screen readers for 508-compliant websites.

If you want to make educational videos accessible, write descriptive captions that give readers an idea about what the video is so visually impaired individuals can benefit from the descriptions they hear with screen readers.

2. Text-to-Speech Assistance

28% of students have an absolute visual impairment, while 72% are partially sighted. Thus, inclusive edTech content becomes essential and text-to-speech assistance is just the right solution. As the name suggests, this tool converts text to speech for students with visual impairments.

The tool has several options to increase or decrease voice speed and lower or increase volume. Text-to-speech tools now make documents, business websites, and other written text accessible for people with any visual impairment. Try to create documents in PDF or Word format that are easily detectable by screen readers for enhanced readability.

For a better performing 508 compliant website, consider adding alt texts to images so the reader also describes images to every reader.

3. Accessible Web Design

Creating online inclusive edTech content begins with creating an accessible web design. Consider breaking text into several paragraphs, using headings and bullet points. Integrating such practices makes the text easy to scan and can help students with ADD, ADHD, and dyslexia.

Choose your font carefully and go for a clear and large font that readers find easy to scan. Choose a dark font color so it is easy for readers with visual impairments to read them and understand what is written.

Include adequate white spacing between lines and keep the entire page or document clean so people do not fumble too much while reading it. Use meaningful headings so readers get an idea of what you are about to write next, and add captions with every visual.

4. Alternative Input Options

Using Universal Design is one of the best edTech accessibility solutions for enhanced readership. Approximately 39 million adults in the U.S. have motor impairments, and such individuals can find it difficult to use traditional input devices like the mouse.

Make your edTech content accessible by making it navigable with the help of keyboards and trackpads. Integrate assistive technology like voice command that allows readers to use voice to lead them to certain portions of the page or lead them to different pages.

The above-mentioned practices can make your edTech content accessible to everyone and it becomes easy for learners across the globe to read and learn with your content.

Also Read: 5 Ways Higher Ed Institutions are Using Tech to Support Neurodiversity

Final Words

Creating a 508-compliant website is not complicated if you understand the rules your eLearning platform needs to follow. Opening up edTech for everyone benefits both educators and learners because everyone adapts quickly to such easy websites.

Understanding where your website is lacking and integrating accessible practices in those gaps can help create a website that is perceivable by all. Want to invest in a powerful website with the best edTech accessibility solutions? Hurix Digital‘s expert editorial team provides clear and concise content.

With our high-technology accessibility solutions, you can take your educational journey to new levels of reach with an easy-to-use website that everyone can use effortlessly. To get the most out of accessibility, call us today!