Accessibility: Why is it important?

This is the ninth blog in a series of articles I have and will be writing on Accessibility.

For daily tips on how to improve Accessibility, check out the Accessibility Tip of the Day thread on Twitter using the hashtag #AccessibilityTipOfTheDay

Overview

What will this article cover?

To give this article some focus, we will be looking at Accessible Design and why accessibility is important.

What is 'Accessibility Design'

Accessible design is a design process in which the needs of people with disabilities are specifically considered. Accessibility sometimes refers to the characteristic that products, services, and facilities can be independently used by people with a variety of disabilities.

Why is Accessibility important?

Accessibility is an immensely important effort. Individuals and organisations with different functions will find different reasons to adopt accessibility.

The following is a list of reasons many find compelling.

• Accessibility is the right thing to do
• Accessibility is the law for many institutions
• Accessibility offers benefits for all users
• Accessibility makes use of innovative technology
• Accessibility creates market opportunity

Accessibility is the right thing to do

Accessibility represents an important step toward independence for individuals with disabilities. Accessible web pages provide access to services and information. Accessible web pages also make possible a broader range of employment and educational opportunities by providing added means of communication. In addition, accessibility allows users with disabilities to participate in day-to-day activities many of us take for granted, such as reading a newspaper or buying a gift for a loved one.

Accessibility is the law for many institutions

With new national requirements in the EU (European Union), the United States and Canada, and more to come in the near future, there are a number of legal mandates for accessibility. In due course, these policies will no doubt expand in scope. For example, in the United States, Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act sets standards for web pages designed or maintained by federal agencies. State and local governments, as well as educational and non-profit institutions, are considering their own accessibility policies.

Accessibility offers benefits for all users

Enhancements of accessible design offer benefits for all users of the web

As with many improvements intended for individuals with disabilities, the enhancements of accessible design offer benefits for all users of the web. Anyone who has pushed a shopping cart out of a grocery store can vouch for the value of automatic doors and ramps cut into curbs. Similarly, accessible web pages are often easier to read, easier to navigate, and faster to download.

Accessibility makes use of innovative technology

Accessible design is based on the premise that web pages must work with a broader range of browsers than only Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, or Mozilla Firefox. A page must be accessible - whether using a screen reader, a refreshable braille display, or a head pointer. Making pages work in nonstandard browsers often makes them available to other consumer Internet-enabled devices, such as smartphones or tablets. The techniques of accessibility are based on recent technologies and design strategies. Older, static HTML designs often mix content with formatting on web pages. Accessibility guidelines encourage the separation of formatting from content through the use of cascading style sheets (CSS) to allow more flexible use of content and easier implementation of more powerful dynamic models.

Accessibility creates market opportunity

Accessibility offers the potential for organisations and businesses to reach new customers and new markets. As additional accessibility policies are adopted, the need amongst government and educational institutions for goods and services that support accessibility policy is growing.

Conclusion

The Web is an increasingly important resource in many aspects of life: education, employment, government, commerce, health care, recreation, and more. It is essential that the Web be accessible in order to provide equal access and equal opportunity to people with diverse abilities.

Dig Deeper

Enjoy this article and want to delve deeper into similar content?

1. Check out my previous articles on Accessibility
2. In case you missed it, listen to the GoodPractice podcast on making digital learning accessible
3. Visit the #AccessibilityTipOfTheDay hashtag on Twitter for daily updates

Previous Articles

Up until now, I have published eight articles, here on LinkedIn, on the topic of Accessibility - with an objective of spreading awareness and offering practical tips on what can be done to make things more accessible.

1. Accessibility and colour-blindness
2. Accessibility: What is it?
3. Web Accessibility: What is it?
4. Accessibility: Disabilities – What are they?
5. Top 5 Reasons why we should care about Accessibility
6. Why websites, web applications and mobile apps NEED to be accessible
7. What are the benefits of Accessibility?
8. Exploring Assistive Technologies

GoodPractice Podcast: How do we make digital learning accessible?

I was recently invited to speak on the Good Practice Podcast.

As online learning designers we're often tempted to experiment with new functionality, but sometimes our enthusiasm for innovative approaches can create a barrier for users.

For this podcast, I had the pleasure of joining Learning and Development Advisor, Mike Shaw; The Good Practice's own Gemma Towersey; and host Ross Garner to discuss tips for creating accessible learning.

To give the podcast a listen, check out How do we make digital learning accessible?

If you'd like to share your thoughts on the show, you can tweet me at @MikeOzzy and my co-speakers at @RossGarnerGP, @GemmaTowersey and @MikeShawLD.

Daily Tips on Twitter

For daily tips on how to improve Accessibility, be sure to check out the Accessibility Tip of the Day thread on Twitter which uses the hashtag #AccessibilityTipOfTheDay