As technology becomes more a part of our lives, assuring the materials used in educational environments are accessible becomes a critical consideration. How do I know if my district website is accessible? How do I know if the learning materials being used are accessible? If the materials are not currently accessible, what can and should I do?
The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) in collaboration with the Minnesota Office of Accessibility is offering an intensive two-year
Online and Digital Content Accessibility Cohort (ODCAC) project to support schools and districts across Minnesota
to improve the accessibility of their digital content for all learners. Through their work, participating schools will develop the knowledge and skills needed to assist in meeting Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. Teams applying to this professional development opportunity will go through a competitive process with a limited number of teams selected to participate from districts or cooperatives in Minnesota.
The focus of the project is building the capacity of local education agencies (LEAs) to:
1. use an evidence-based framework to develop, implement and refine comprehensive and sustainable systems for effective use of assistive (AT) and instructional technology (IT)
2. increase the knowledge of education professionals regarding accessible materials including:
a. creating;
b. procuring, and
c. using accessible products and materials in the educational environment.3. increase the knowledge of educators in how to maximize integrated use of AT and IT throughout instruction; and
4. increase the use and integration of AT and IT by children with disabilities and their families.Year one (1) will focus on:
- Review of local digital accessibility, including policies and procedures to identify areas of strength and concern.
- Understanding why accessible materials are important for all students.
- Data collection and/or action research to identify students for whom accessible educational materials are required.
- Data collection and/or action research to vet materials and devices for accessibility acquired and implemented with students.
- Using the science of implementation framework, teams will plan and develop strategies for an Accessibility Implementation Team to facilitate district selection, procurement and implementation of accessible solutions (devices and services) for students.
Year one (2) will focus on:
- Updating the district review of local accessibility, including policies and procedures to identify areas of strength and concern.
- Data collection and/or action research to understand how accessible materials are: identified for students, acquired for students, and implemented with students.
- Using the science of implementation framework, teams will plan and develop strategies for an Accessibility Implementation Team to facilitate district selection, procurement and implementation of accessible solutions (devices and services) for students.
Participants will receive:
- training and assistance from MDE staff and accessibility experts from MNIT in a collaborative cohort with other schools, digital curriculum vendors, and professional development partners on
- WCAG-2 guidelines, including the P.O.U.R. Principals (Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust).
- resources for checking the accessibility of documents, webpages, and other materials.
Participants are required to:
- complete a self-study of their organization’s accessibility practices using the Digital Accessibility Maturity Model (DAMM) and set goals to improve their capacity to serve all learners and families.
- participate in two in-person activities, one in the fall and one in the spring.
- participate in one activity per month (webinar) for approximately two hours (November - March). Additional activities may be offered.
- complete an evaluation survey for each activity.
- share products and policies developed as models for others.
Participants may be asked to demonstrate mastery of professional development objectives through a short survey, report, or project for each activity.
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