Accessibility in Teaching | Centre for Teaching Excellence

The University of Waterloo is committed to achieving barrier-free accessibility for persons with disabilities studying, visiting, or working at Waterloo. This document is devoted to connecting Waterloo instructors with practical resources for implementing accessible practices in teaching. Accessible course design, teaching practices, and learning resources can help you meet the needs of the greatest number of learners.

For questions about universal design or accessibility in teaching, contact CTE's Trevor Holmes or read more about on-campus accessibility support.

Resources

Why accessibility in teaching matters

Resource	Description
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)	The Province of Ontario was the first province and one of the first jurisdictions in the world to enact specific legislation establishing a goal and time-frame for achieving accessibility for government, business, non-profit, and public sector organizations, which includes the University of Waterloo.
Introduction to accessible education	A resource developed by the Council of Ontario Universities that discusses: the characteristics of accessible education, advantages for educators and students, the medical model vs. the social model of disability, and, accommodation vs. the accessible education approach.

Resource

Description

The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)

The Province of Ontario was the first province and one of the first jurisdictions in the world to enact specific legislation establishing a goal and time-frame for achieving accessibility for government, business, non-profit, and public sector organizations, which includes the University of Waterloo.

Introduction to accessible education

A resource developed by the Council of Ontario Universities that discusses:

the characteristics of accessible education,
advantages for educators and students,
the medical model vs. the social model of disability, and,
accommodation vs. the accessible education approach.

Understanding disability

Resource	Description
Disability defined	The Ontario Human Rights Code’s full definition of disability, which notes that “disability” covers a broad range and degree of conditions, including physical disabilities, mental and developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, and injury.
The five barriers to accessibility	Definitions and examples of the five barriers to accessibility from the Council of Ontario Universities.
Student experiences with disability	Videos from the Council of Ontario Universities featuring students discussing their individual experiences with mental illness at Ontario universities.

Waterloo policy

Policy	Description
Policy 58: Accessibility	The principle policy for meeting the requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with a Disability Act (AODA) at Waterloo. Available from the Office of the Secretariat.
Policy 33: Ethical Behaviour	States that the University “has a responsibility to provide an environment free from harassment and discrimination” as required under the Ontario Human Rights Code and the occupational Health and Safety Act. Available from the Office of the Secretariat.
Guidelines for Managing Student Information	Establishes procedures for maintaining students’ confidentiality with respect to their personal information, including health information. Available from the Office of the Secretariat.

Instructors' roles and responsibilities

Resource	Description
Roles and responsibilities at Waterloo [PDF]	A comprehensive, plain-language summary developed by the University of Waterloo’s AccessAbility Services of the roles and responsibilities of Waterloo students and instructors.
Accommodating students with disabilities	A fact sheet summarizing the roles and responsibilities for government, post-secondary institutions, and students with disabilities from the Ontario Human Rights Commission.

Understanding assistive technologies

The following resources provide an introduction to assistive technology. Students use many types of assistive technologies, many of which are discussed in the first resource below. The final two resources focus on screen readers, a technology relevant to the creation of accessible teaching materials like PowerPoint slides and documents.

For more information about assistive technologies in use at Waterloo, contact AccessAbility Services.

Resource	Description
What is assistive technology?	A primer on assistive technologies commonly used in higher education and how they enable students to engage inside and outside the classroom. Created by the Association for Higher Education Access & Disability (AHEAD).
Screen reader demo: digital accessibility	A short video from the University of California, San Francisco demonstrating how users read a website or text with a screen reader.
Screen reader demo: accessible vs. inaccessible documents	A short video from Normandale Community College showing how screen readers read accessible and inaccessible documents, including headings, images, spaces between paragraphs, and hyperlinks.

Accessibility checklists

The checklists below will help you create accessible MS Word documents, MS PowerPoint slides, and face-to-face presentations.

Learning how to create accessible teaching materials

The resources below will help you create accessible teaching materials.

Resource	Description
Creating accessible materials for PC	Step-by-step instructions for PC users creating accessible materials in the Microsoft Office suite,including Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Developed by Microsoft.
Creating accessible materials for Mac and PC	Instructions for creating accessible materials for the Microsoft Office suite and Adobe Acrobat on both PC and Mac. Developed by the Accessible Digital Office Document Project (ADOD).
Microsoft Office 2010 accessibility video tutorials	Three-minute video tutorials on creating accessible PowerPoint slides, Word documents, using an accessibility checker, and creating alt-text, developed by the University of Ontario Institute of Technology.
LinkedIn Learning: creating accessible documents in Microsoft Office	A half-hour course showing you how to make accessible documents in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. LinkedIn Learning was formerly Lynda.com.
Creating Accessible Transcripts or Captions for Video-Based Learning Resources	Why and how to create accessible transcripts (or captions) for video or audio-based learning resources.
Captioning your own videos for free	A step-by-step guide to creating captions for video, from the University of Washington.
Website accessibility checker	A free tool for checking the accessibility of a website or PDF document.

Accessible teaching practices and course design

Resource	Description
AccessAbility Services guidance for faculty and staff	Guidance and tips for faculty and staff created by Waterloo’s AccessAbility Services.
COU accessibility teaching tips	Accessibility teaching tips from the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) for creating accessible lectures, evaluating students and giving feedback, using PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, and PDFs, and teaching students with visual disabilities, deaf-blindness, physical disabilities, mental health disabilities, speech-related disabilities, and learning disabilities.
Accessible course planning	A guide for designing your courses with accessible education in mind, from the Council of Ontario Universities.
e-Classroom services and support details	A listing of Waterloo campus buildings and rooms with information about instructional technology (e.g., podium/laptop availability, podium instructions, microphone availability, etc.) and images of classroom layouts in select rooms, from Information, Technology, and Media Services (ITMS).

Universal design

There are three frameworks that apply Universal Design principles to education: Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Universal Design of Instruction (UDI), and Universal Instructional Design (UID). Despite their differences, these frameworks have the common goal of designing inclusive and equitable education that considers all learners.

Resource	Description
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Guidelines	A tool for implementing Universal Design for Learning (UDL), covering three areas of learning: engagement (the “why” of learning), representation (the “what” of learning), and action and expression (the “how” of learning), developed by the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST).
Universal design	From the Library at University of Waterloo's Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) Toolkit, includes seven principles for universal design as well as additional information and resources.
Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) Guidelines	An overview of the definition and principles of Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) as well as guidelines for implementation and examples of UDI in practice. Developed by the University of Washington.

On-campus support

Unit	Description
AccessAbility Services	Provides academic support for University of Waterloo students who have both permanent and temporary disabilities, including full-time, part-time, graduate, and undergraduate students. Contact AccessAbility Services for further information about: accommodations, assistive technologies, exam procedures, and other ways in which our campus supports students with disabilities.
Campus Wellness	Provides primary medical care and mental health services to University of Waterloo students. If you believe a student is in crisis or is in need of medical support, refer them here.
Centre for Extended Learning	Supports the design, development, and delivery of accessible online credit and non-credit courses for the University of Waterloo.
Centre for Teaching Excellence	Waterloo faculty and staff can consult with Trevor Holmes, on questions and issues related to universal design and accessibility in teaching.
Human Resources: disability management	Resources and key contacts for staff and faculty. the Disability Management Guide (PDF) provides a summary of sick leave and long-term disability benefits, as well as additional information and resources.
Information Systems and Technology	Offers web accessibility consulting to instructors, faculty, researchers and staff as well as Skills for the Electronic Workplace (SEW) courses, including courses on creating accessible documents, accessible digital design, and accessible websites. Check the SEW site for current course offerings.