As education becomes more technology focused, it’s worth focusing on some of the ways inclusive practice could support better wellbeing for students and staff – easier access, more personalised learning experiences and increased engagement.
Category: Subject Specialist
On 23rd of September 2018 a new EU Directive came into force in the UK. The new regulations mean that public sector websites and mobile apps will need to be accessible to all users, especially those with disabilities. The regulations will remain part of UK law regardless of our future relationship with the EU. So new […]
The negative effects of technology on young peoples mental health are often written about. Education has become more technology focused, more remote and less personal. But is technology always bad news? Julia Taylor focuses on some of the ways that technology could support better student mental health. Why should we worry? Universities and colleges have a […]
Universities and colleges have a legal obligation to provide resources in accessible formats to print disabled students. However, many of the e-book platforms they subscribe to have limited accessibility or are tied-in to scarcely accessible third-party tools like Adobe Digital Editions. So it is not unusual to need to get the raw file from the publisher […]
Tech Lounge is a new social learning project created by the digital team at Gloucestershire College. Husna Ahmed a Digital learning Coach at Gloucestershire College talks about their ‘relaxed’ approach to supporting inclusive teaching skills. We invite staff across the college from different departments to attend a relaxed conversational session to discuss digital tools that […]
So what is a digital classroom? And how does it work? More particularly – how might it work for my disabled students? Alistair McNaught explores some of the issues and oppportunities. Introduction Traditional, didactic, methods of teaching can create significant barriers for some students. Where teaching resources are mainly a monoculture of text and learning activities […]
Sarah George is a Subject Librarian at the University of Bradford. She was made a National Teaching Fellow in 2017 – and her accessibility remit contributed significantly to that recognition. Here she gives a personal take on e-book accessibility and accessibility activism via research and evidence. I am an academic librarian at the University of Bradford, covering the subjects […]
Digital capability is on the radar of many organisations – investments in learning platforms and digital resources are often undermined by the lack of skill or confidence in staff (or even students). In this post, Julia Taylor explores how inclusive thinking needs to be pervasive if digital practice is going to create benefits rather than unintended […]
Students are shaping the way technology is used at Gloucestershire College through the Student Innovators project. The idea is to involve students in changing the way digital technology is used in the college. Amina Begum, a Digital Learning Coach at the college told Julia Taylor about the project. Who can be an innovator? The idea originally stemmed […]
It seems tautological to write a blog post on open access and accessibility. Surely if something is open access then it is open to anyone and therefore accessible to anyone? Alistair McNaught argues that the link between open access and accessibility is more nuanced than you might expect. Authors and institutions need simple guidelines to […]