This week was all about accessibility in technology, which is something I was very curious to learn about. There are many different elements you can add to a webpage, photo, or video to make them more accessible that I would’ve never considered. For example, adding alternative text to photos, which is what I have done with the photo below, is something that can be done so easily but is often overlooked.
Subtitles
As someone who enjoys having subtitles, I sometimes get irritated or confused if a video I am watching does not have the option to include them. I often just assume adding subtitles is really time consuming and might require specialists to do professionally, but that is far from the case. I just uploaded a YouTube video and all I had to do to include subtitles was choose the language and enable captions. YouTube automatically generates the captions and if you really want to, you can go through and edit the captions if they’re not fully correct. Two simple steps, and yet, people often skip past them, especially on YouTube.
Colour Contrast
I was surprised to see that colour contrast made a big difference to the accessibility of websites. This is something that is often overlooked because it can seem unnecessary for people to whom it does not concern. However, for those with colourblindness, it can become a massive disadvantage if they cannot read or select the proper text because they cannot see it due to its colour.
Noise
I also find that noise is something that is often overlooked when considering accessibility in technology. For example, there are certain sounds or pitches that I find extremely irritating in videos. If I am watching a video that has a triggering noise for me, I cannot listen to the information that is being addressed and instead, I lose focus and my anxiety rises. Also, if a video involves a very abrupt or alarming sound, some people neglect to send out a warning beforehand, consequently triggering those who are very sensitive to sound.
Making technology accessible is a very simple task that is often overlooked because it requires slightly more effort and can be viewed as “unnecessary” for those who do not benefit from it. Technology is such a great tool that can be thoughtfully used in the classroom to enrich learning and I find it is super important to ensure it is accessible and to also teach accessibility to my own students!
