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Accessibility Features | Plug-ins | Privacy Policy
For the optimum experience visiting our site, we recommend the following guidelines. Note that we present the information on this page as a recommendation, not as a requirement. You can find the latest versions of internet browsers for free by selecting one of the following links:
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.x (recommended),
Netscape Navigator 7.x,
Opera 7.x or
Firefox.
Your browser should be enabled to handle JavaScript and Cascading Style Sheets. (We do not require you to enable Java, JavaScript or CSS, but enabling this functionality will enhance your visit.) The site is best viewed at a screen resolution of 800 x 600 or higher with 16 bit color. Special Note: You may view the site with graphics off or a non-graphical browser such as Lynx. Descriptive text will be displayed where graphics would appear to make your experience as informative.
Refer to our Site Map for precise navigation of our site. If you have any questions about this document, about finding information on the site, or any comments you would like to share with us, please send us your comments via email.
The following plug-ins are available for free downloading from the links below. They are not required to view the majority of the content of this site, but they may enhance your web browsing experience.
Technology, in conventional wisdom, is considered the great equalizer of people today. Arguably technology has the full potential to be just that but reality unfortunately does not conform to conventional wisdom. There are many reasons to advocate a more accessible computing world, especially an accessible Internet that does not limit the usability of information by making it dependent on any one system.
Persons with disabilities, especially visual disabilities, currently make up the population of people who have the most difficulty finding information in a usable form on the Internet. The World Wide Web is a very visually oriented information interface, the driving force behind its mainstream success, but that does not make it inherently inaccessible. Actually, the opposite is true. With minor modifications to most existing web pages, and by applying "Universal Design" concepts in the initial authoring stage, the World Wide Web can be completely accessible to anyone. At this point, web pages are only as accessible as the designer made them.
People with disabilities are not the only ones who benefit from the Universal Design model. Consider the possibility of being able to listen to your stock ticker, get the latest weather, and listen to your email paragraph by paragraph right on your cell phone. Consider being able to speak browsing commands and free yourself from the keyboard and mouse. Think about a page that formats itself to meet the style of each individual user, (e.g., language translation, one style for print, one for Braille, one for vocal content delivery, one with a lot of eye candy, etc.). All of this technology is currently available, and would be fully functional, if accessibility for it was built into the information architecture, (i.e., well designed, accessible web pages).
Please explore the following links for more information on universal access for people with disabilities on the internet and in education.
How People Who Use Electronic Augmentative and Alternative Communication Devices Utilize Telephony
This report discusses the results of a study designed to examine how people with speech disabilities utilize telecommunications technology and to suggest ways for further improvements.
Accessible Web Design Tutorial by Scott SaintOnge
The Basics of Accessible PDFs® by Scott SaintOnge (PDF version)
Office of Disability Services, Springfield Technical Community College
Universal Design for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, an NSF grant funded project at S.T.C.C.
Technology and Internet Access
Employment Resources for People with Disabilities
Advocacy and Services for People with Disabilities
Government Sites and Legislative Documents
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Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those
of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the National Science Foundation.
 This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Number DUE 0302548. |
Copyright August 2004 STCC Foundation Press All rights reserved. E-Mail the Webmaster with your comments. |
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