Topic 25 - Academic Perpectives
Read Chapter 4 of the set book (Seale, 2014). This chapter introduces the different stakeholders in accessibility and their roles and responsibilities. You will be asked to refer back to sections of this chapter in the next few topics.
In Chapter 4 Seale uses the terms ‘lecturers’, ‘faculty’ and ‘academics’: in other contexts this might include ‘teachers’, ‘instructors’ or anyone whose main role is teaching.
- Accessibility is frequently framed as a technical issue rather than a pedagogical (learning and teaching) one.Can you think of any arguments, evidence or examples from what you have read, or from your experience, which could help lecturers or those with a similar teaching role to see accessibility as a pedagogical issue?
Make brief notes in response to this question. Your notes should reflect your own context. You can do this as bullet points or just a sentence or two about the question.Before I got underway with the reading, it occurred to me that I had better be absolutely sure of what pedagogy actually means. I mean, it could be one of those words that I think I understand but have got a bit wrong. As it happens, I didn't.
Pedagogy: the method and practice of teaching
In my work context, I would have to disagree with Seale's evaluation that. "lecturers/faculty have negative attitudes towards and limited knowledge about disabled students." In discussions with my tutors, I have found attitudes to be overwhelmingly positive towards disabled learners. If anything, some could be accused of being over-protective of them. The only negative thing I could say about some tutors is that they lack awareness of the use of language, but that is more reflective of models of disability than their willingness to support learning. For example, I have heard the phrase, "people who have something wrong with them" used to describe disabled people on several occasions. I think this is a training issue.
Accessibility is a pedagogical issue because:
1. It is part of the general ownership of the teaching methods and content.
JISC TechDis ( 2006a ) and Mariger ( 2011 ) both note that there has been a tendency to rely on disability officers and support services to take the main responsibility for accessibility. JISC TechDis ( 2006a ,b) suggest that this is unhelpful because it fails to recognise the significant contribution that well-informed staff such as tutors, librarians and technicians can make. JISC TechDis ( 2006a TechDis, p. 2) therefore conclude that: ‘Accessibility needs to be owned by all staff as a part of the mainstream culture’. (Seale, 2014)
2. It is about HOW we teach. The choice of learning resources should be determined by:
"(a) its pedagogical value;
(b) its accessibility of design;
(c) its attractiveness and usability; and
(d) its basis in research." (Seale, 2014)
3. We have a responsibility to teach all learners ABOUT good accessibility practice. If they are making a presentation or some other document, we should be teaching them how to make it accessible. It all boils down to corporate responsibility. Thinking in terms of my context, it is another employability skill.
I think it is this last point that is most important in my context. Our mantra, whatever the course, is that we are preparing our learners to enter the workplace, progress within the workplace or to contribute to society. They may not currently have a disability but they are likely to encounter disabled people at some point, in some context, or they may become disabled later in life. It is our duty to prepare them for that eventuality.
