Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
A Model for AccessibleLMS Discussion Boards
November 2013
Accessing Higher GroundPart of EASI Session Series
Presenters
Hadi RanginIT Accessibility & Collaboration CoordinatorDisability Resources and Educational Services (DRES)University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Michael McKelveyCoordinator of Engagement Technology & New MediaOffice for Mathematics, Science, and Technology Education (MSTE)University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Overview
Background on discussion board accessibility
Overview of our design modelDemo of our design modelDemo of U of I temporary solutionDemo of Moodlerooms solution
Background
Why discussion boards are powerful tools
How some discussion boards are more capable and consequently more complex
Understanding Forum, Thread, and Post dynamics
D2L’s additional layer: Topic
Current LMS Discussion Board Examples
• Blackboard• Thread listing
• Moodle• Thread Displayed in Nested View
• D2L• Discussion Reading View
General Problems
Too many layers to deal withMultiple nesting threads are a big issueDiscussion may easily venture off the
topicMassive, overwhelming information on
the interfaceScreen reader users cannot easily
determine the relationship/context for messages.
Vendor Response
Vendors have tried to improve the accessibility of their discussion tools
Discussion tools are currently technically accessible
Discussion tool interaction remains difficult, cumbersome, and ineffective
Problems with Existing Models
Too much flat information on each page Tool cannot be detached from application framework to reduce
clutter Many irrelevant elements/functions for common tasks Lack of a mechanism to customize the interface Too much noise for screen readers that read only one element at a
time No intuitive way of moving between major sections of the interface No well-organized grouping of relevant functions Incorrect use of elements—e.g., links instead of select, radio,
button Big problem: Use of basic HTML instead of advanced ARIA
techniques
Highlights of our Suggested ModelARIA landmarks to provide semantic structure
for each section of the applicationARIA menu for intuitive keyboard navigation in
the menu.Select box for selecting the desired forumARIA tree view to browse and select desired
threadHTML headings to structure message content
logicallyAction toolbar for each post to access
applicable functionsF6 key to switch focus between landmark
regions (theoretical)
Notes on our Suggested Model
This design is optimized for Firefox and Chrome. We have not worked on cross-browser compatibility yet
Use NVDA with Firefox to test for screen reader accessibility; do not use JAWS
Go to the following link and see the model in action:http://go.illinois.edu/AccessibleDiscussionBo
ardView a blog post describing the model:
http://go.illinois.edu/AccessibleDiscussionBoardBlog
Technical info on our Suggested ModelHeavy use of open-source JavaScript
frameworks/widgets:jQuery (core JS framework)
http://jquery.comjQuery UI (menu, menubar, modal dialog,
datepicker)http://jqueryui.comhttp://wiki.jqueryui.com (dev site)
OpenAjax Alliance (Treeview widget)http://
oaa-accessibility.org/examplep/treeview1Accessible Select List: capturing keydown,
change events & overriding default functionality until user hits <enter>
Disclaimer
We don't claim this design is the ultimate interface
It is a good, clean, functionally accessible interface
It can be offered along with other viewsNo branding for this view yet; maybe
Illinois View?We tried to group relevant functions
together, but it may not be perfectVendors are welcome to borrow the
design/code & remember to give credit to the team
A quick and incomplete enhancementInstitutions don't necessarily upgrade to
latest version of vendor productsWe need a quick (work-around) solution
for current implementationCollaborative work with Moodle
developers at University of IllinoisDeveloped a quick patchBig help navigating within the posted
messages pageIncorporated ARIA Region and headingsDemo: U of I temporary solution
About Moodle/Moodlerooms
Moodle: “open-source community-based tools for learning”
Collaboration in an open-source community is not easyDistributed developers with various technical
skillsVery limited knowledge of accessible design
within the Moodle communityMartin Dougiamas (father of Moodle) is
seriously looking into making Moodle more accessible
Moodlerooms (now part of Blackboard) is one of the major contributors to Moodle core
Moodlerooms Implementation
Impetus:Outstanding complaint about discussion
board at University of MontanaA working solution needs to be delivered by
end of 2013Progress:
Moodlerooms started with our suggested design
Moodlerooms has been incorporating Moodle Core feedback, concerns, and suggestions
Demo: Moodlerooms implementation
Acknowledgements
Marc Thompson, Instructional Designer, University of Illinois
Dan Hahn, ELearning Professional, University of Illinois
Ken Petri, Program Director, Ohio State University
Questions?
Contacts:Hadi Rangin [email protected] McKelvey [email protected]
URL for this presentation:http://go.illinois.edu/AHG2013
