Passion for Inclusive Design

Inclusive Designs Can Be Very Simple

A parent shared this story (see cartoon image) about shoveling the ramp. Their child uses a wheelchair and the parent was educating the school about accessibility.

Rethinking the way we approach the design process to build inclusive experiences doesn’t need to be extra work - but it has a huge impact.

Lessons from the Classroom

Small Tweaks Can Have A Big Impact

A student with a visual impairment taught me the power of alt text. I could have scrapped my image heavy lessons. Instead, I began incorporating alt text into my slide decks and sharing them with the student who used a screenreader. The student fully participated and contributed meaningfully to lessons that involved images like artifact studies.

By providing simple additions individuals can participate without experiencing unnecessary frustration and isolation.

Inclusive Designs Benefit Everyone

A student with an audio-processing disorder had a video accommodation. They needed captions or transcripts for videos to help them process the information. When I played videos for the class all of my students began to read along as they watched the videos and their comprehension scores improved.

Experiences designed to benefit one individual or group often improves the experience for everyone.

History Designing for Individuals with Disabilities

I got my M.Ed. in High Incidence Learning Disabilities and Behavioral Disorders because I wanted to figure out how to help my student users who were struggling. The typical school model wasn’t working for all my learners. How could I understand their needs more deeply in order to redesign their experience? Where were their pain points and frustrations? What was working well?

I utilized a mixed methods approach. I collected qualitative and quantitative data so that I could make research based decisions such as:

  • Student surveys

  • Test results

  • Neuro-psych evaluations

  • User interviews with students, parents, and educators

  • Education resources and remediation techniques

Working with such a diverse set of learners gave me skills that go beyond research methods. In addition I:

  • Advocated for student user needs

  • Adapted experiences to reflect accommodations and modifications

  • Communicated with a wide variety of audiences such as students, parents, and learning specialists

  • Anticipated painpoints and frustrations before they occurred

  • Kept track of details and worked efficiently in a fast paced environment

Continuing to Grow My Skills and Knowledge

I have developed a passion for accessibility. The more I learn about the ways poor design isolates individuals with disabilities the more I want to learn how to integrate good accessibility decisions into the fabric of the design process. I’ve begun to listen to podcasts, read resources, and take courses on accessibility. Some of my recent courses include:

  • Chimmy Kalu’s course on Practical Accessibility for Designers

  • Emma Moore’s course on Designing with the WCAG 2.2 Guidelines

Do you have a favorite accessibility resource? I would love to hear about it! Send me a message through my contact page.