Below is the automated MP3 you would get if this post was an uploaded file in KEATS- If you get time, have a listen to how this sounds, especially the tabulated sections. What issues might there be?

This post accompanies a CPD event for colleagues at King’s. In it are resources referred to in this event.  But please do read and try the linked activities for yourself even if you can’t attend! The resource is designed to raise awareness of what digital accessibility means and what a ‘by design’ approach to digital accessibility requires us to know and to do. The session is also an opportunity for us to pilot aspects of an (in-development) Accessibility Engagement Tool being worked on in a collaboration between KCL and UCL (Two of the best ‘CLs’ in fact!). The tool is being designed to help colleagues discuss their accessibility engagement and get clear direction on what they can do to further improve the accessibility of their teaching and, as far as possible in an anticipatory and planned way, rather than reactively or in response to a need that had not been anticipated. The goal is to enable colleagues to set some clear digital accessibility goals irrespective of their starting point.

Accessibility in its broadest sense is about making activities, environments, and information as useable and meaningful as possible in ways that do not exclude people. It is about empowerment, about minimising frustration and about effective anticipatory design. Digital accessibility therefore ‘provides ramps and lifts into information.’ It includes ensuring that all information we create at KCL can be seamlessly consumed by everyone that wishes to access it.

The accessibility engagement model and accompanying self-assessment tool are being designed to enable colleagues to plot their own level according to a series of questions about aspects of digital accessibility. The idea will be that through series of questions related to:

1. Values and beliefs
2. Knowledge and skills
3. Actions and behaviours

…the tool will plot an overall position as well as noting areas of developmental or resourcing need. As we have shaped this model one area that has led to much discussion, consultation and head scratching are the labels we are appending to levels. As a starting point we propose six levels of ‘maturity status’ and invite colleagues to decide which level they are currently at:

Accessibility Engagement Model

Level	Accessibility Maturity Status	Characteristics and indicative practices
0	Unwilling	Context means that this is not prioritised in current working environment given competing commitments and pressures.Time is a key point of resistance.
1	Unable	Don’t know where to start and/or in need of direction, support, and prioritisation.
2	Reluctant compliant	Awareness of accessibility principles and drivers; only adopting bare minimum when encouraged.
3	Willing compliant	Awareness of accessibility design principles; willingly adopting good basic level of accessibility.
4	Ally	Connected to wider pedagogical values; allies are vocal on behalf of students. Role model or provide case studies/ templates for others in their departments.
5	Champion and Co-creator	Activists/ innovators who work with students to understand and design more accessible approaches and resources. Potential contributors to institutional policy and strategy.

Digitally Accessible Learning Design

Whilst the online tool is still under construction, we will invite colleagues to use to respond briefly to some ‘actions / behaviours’ statements in the session. The results will be shared here after the event.

For each statement you are able to choose from 0-5 as follows

0. Not on my radar

1. Would if I knew how

2. Rarely or if required

3. Sometimes

4. Always

5. Yes! And support others

Your responses

The statements in the slides can also be seen below.

1. I use descriptive hyperlinks rather than ‘click here’ or unconcealed links
2. I ensure that visual materials are conveyed effectively to those who cannot see them using alternative text descriptions and audio descriptions
3. I ensure my documents are navigable with a structured set of headings
4. I ensure tables are easy to read and have clear heading rows
5. I can use/ enable automatic speech recognition captions in live sessons
6. I caption and/or provide transcripts for in all multimedia I create
7. I offer a range of formats for my materials e.g., PDF, html and docx
8. I signpost students to assistive technologies so that they can have more support accessing materials
9. I share electronic content with students (such as slides) ahead of teaching sessions
10. I accessibility check my documents before finalising them
11. I explain acronyms and jargon when I use them
12. I check my work for colour contrast issues

As you will note, this is not an exhaustive list as in the King’s Digital Education Accessibility Baseline but it is a series of indicative behaviours that will allow us to position ourselves and set clear developmental targets (as well as a way into enagging more thoroughly with the baseline itself).