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Digital Accessibility Newsletter
May 2019

Happy Birthday, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines!

On May 5, WCAG turned 20 years old. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines are the gold standard in digital accessibility — and they’re old enough to vote.

Mark Shapiro, President of the Bureau of Internet Accessibility, highlights their importance in this way: “Rarely does a single document have such a direct impact on people’s lives, but the guidance that WCAG provides allows developers and content creators to include people who have historically been excluded from digital experiences.”

Read more about the history of WCAG

Harvard’s New University-wide Digital Accessibility Policy

“The power of technology allows us to make information and resources more easily available to those who need it,” said Anne Margulies, Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Harvard. “We must ensure that means everyone, including those with disabilities.”

Effective April 30, Harvard University adopted a new Digital Accessibility Policy that applies to public-facing websites and apps. WCAG 2.1 A/AA was selected as the standard. Harvard’s sites and web properties covered by their new policy will have until December 1 to comply with the changes.

This update is timely, as the accessibility of education resources is a hot topic.

Need an education accessibility audit? BoIA has a 100% acceptance rate from the OCR as an approved third-party auditor.

Lego Unveils Braille Bricks as a Fun Way to Help Kids Learn Braille

Contrary to popular belief, most children who are blind or visually impaired do not know Braille — in fact, less than 10% of blind students today are Braille readers.

To help combat the Braille literacy crisis, Lego has launched a pilot series of Braille Bricks in a few countries for testing and they are expected to be available commercially in 2020.

“Blind and visually impaired children have dreams and aspirations for their future just as sighted children,” said John Goodwin, CEO of the Lego Foundation. “They have the same desire and need to explore the world and socialise through play, but often face involuntary isolation as a consequence of exclusion from activities.”

Read more about Lego Braille Bricks

Ditch the Fancy Vocab for Accessible Language

It’s often said that if you can’t explain something simply, you don’t understand it well enough.

But who says you have to explain things simply and who decides if it’s simple enough?

Well, nobody, but we do ask that you consider accessibility and inclusion when crafting messages. Here’s why:

Millions of people in the United States have a cognitive disability that affects attention and comprehension. Millions of others are more comfortable speaking a language other than English and everyone likes to feel like they understand what they’re reading. When you choose common language instead of overly-technical jargon (when possible), you’re welcoming more people to share in your content.

Ditch the fancy vocabulary for accessible language

Why is web accessibility becoming so popular?

Is accessibility new? Is it a fad?

Actually, the concepts that govern web accessibility have been around for decades. Here are some reasons you might be hearing more about it now:

  • Everything is going digital.
  • Web accessibility lawsuits are on the rise.
  • Household names (like Beyonce and Domino’s) are in the news.
  • More companies are committing to accessibility.

Check out more reasons web accessibility is becoming so popular

 

 
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