Category Archives: Keynote

Using Learning Goals to Guide Accessibility—A Conversation

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Jessica Lemond, Brittnay Stahl, Parisa Ghaderi, and Daniel Trego

In this conversation, we share the story of a faculty member and her journey of developing accessible materials in a graphic design course. In reflecting on this experience and including student and faculty voices, we want to highlight two major takeaways: 1) accessibility is really a team effort that benefits from differently situated perspectives (e.g. student, faculty, staff, etc.); and 2) the role of learning goals in accessibility. This conversation also illustrates the need for greater access to accessibility support for instructors, and the role that students have in contributing to this support.

Extend Empathy Through Accessibility

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Tyler Smeltekop, Jessica Stokes, Leslie Johnson

This session attempts to address biases in ways of thinking about accessible design, encouraging an understanding of disability and barriers to access through the lens of Universal Design. When course content and experiences are designed with an eye to removing barriers to access versus ad-hoc, time-of-need remediation for individuals, pedagogy can be elevated to a higher standard for all. Creating and selecting accessible course content can introduce new ways of engaging with pedagogy—often in ways faculty may not expect! Embrace the vulnerability that is inherent to accessibility design work, and see your work connect with others more meaningfully and deeply.

Make sure you don’t miss the roundtable discussion following Tyler’s talk, where Jessica Stokes and Leslie Johnson join the conversation to talk about imagining possibilities for greater accessibility options and better practices at MSU and elsewhere.