04-636   Software Accessibility

Location: Africa

Units: 6

Semester Offered: Spring

Course description

The course addresses the ICT solutions (tools and applications) for users with special requirements. Topics include the models for the characterization of the functional skills of users and the design, development, and evaluation (of usability) of ICT solutions designed for special users. Specific attention is paid to the Web Accessibility standards and to multimodal interfaces for users with cognitive, sensory, and motion disabilities.

Learning objectives

Students taking this course will:
  • Learn to analyze problems and solutions related to universal accessibility, taking into account the national and international legislation (particular attention will be paid to the UN contexts).
  • Base their analysis and evaluation on a global user model which considers the user and his or her health condition in agreement with the international standards and requirements (OMS models).
  • Participate in practical sessions that will allow them to verify the acquired competencies:
    • Describing their own user profile and their satisfaction using a multimodal single-user environment
    • Writing suggestions to improve the accessibility of a website taking into account the special needs of persons with disabilities (sensorial and/or physical and/or cognitive and/or relational)

Content details

  • Universal accessibility: national and international contexts
    • The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its influence on ICT
    • The international network: (the role of governmental, non-governmental, professional, industrial, and academic subjects)
  • A global reference model to profile users
    • The OMS ICF Model and its extensions to support ICT accessibility
  • Multimodal devices and contexts
    • Multimodality for innovation and accessibility
    • Innovative devices and best accessible solutions for different abilities
    • Accessibility and evaluation – models and instruments
    • Etc.
  • Web accessibility
    • Accessing the interface and the contents
    • Disabilities related to personal, social, or cultural diversities
    • How to use the input and the output redundancies: additional and complementary multimodality
    • The WCAG guidelines
    • Accessibility of the active web: best and worst practices and programs
    • Evaluation of web accessibility considering different points of view

Prerequisites

None

Faculty

Eric Umuhoza