The Digital Accessibility Guidelines mean that the content we hold on webpages, in Moodle, Panopto and Teams, as well as information we distribute digitally must be fully accessible. To help academic colleagues achieve this we have invested in two new processes to support you.
Blackboard Ally for Moodle
Blackboard Ally will provide you with feedback on the accessibility of your content and step-by-step instructions to improve your content’s accessibility.
It also automatically creates alternative versions of your files, which allows students to choose the type of file which best suits their needs. For example, they can download audio versions to listen as a “podcast” or PDFs structured for use with assistive technology.
Blackboard Ally Alternative Formats
After you upload files in your course, Ally produces an accessibility score for each file and provides detailed feedback. For accessible files, Ally tells you what you did correctly. For files with Low to High scores, Ally shows you the issues and gives a step-by-step guide on how to fix them, making it easier for you to make your course content fully accessible as you update it.
Improved Captioning Request Service for Students
We have previously shared guidance on automatic transcription of teaching sessions, which is considered appropriate for teaching purposes.
We are implementing a process for students to request improved captioning for a recording, and student staff are being recruited within faculties to review these requests and update transcripts as required. We aim to reduce the burden on academic staff while providing accurate transcripts and employability benefit to our students. Further details will be shared soon.
Local operation, central support
Guidance and training for reviewing and updating transcriptions have been developed by colleagues in Student and Academic Services and Information and Library Services. It includes advice on technical terminology, grammar and the appearance of formulas for maths & science courses.
You can find further information on creating inclusive content to help you design inclusive, accessible content on our webpages.
