Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2023

Why?

• We have a responsibility as educators, as humans and by law to create resources and teaching that don't disable people.
• Inclusive teaching practices will benefit all learners in your class, not just those with specific 'labels'.

What is Accessibility?

Accessible means something is usable by as many people as possible, regardless of their cognitive, physical or cultural situation. Accessibility can mean many different things to different people, as the students in these videos explain.

See more Students explain digital accessibility

How can I take part?

TEL Fixathon

Thursday 11th May 11:00 - 12:30pm

Join this in-person ‘Fixathon’ to address the accessibility issues on your Moodle course and to make sure that your online learning spaces are as digitally accessible as possible for all learners.

Workshop: Inclusive design for learning & communication

Friday 12th May 11.00am - 12.30pm

In this online workshop, staff will gain awareness of accessibility issues faced students, see practical examples of working with inaccessible materials and simple guidelines to create accessible documents.

Conference: Edufest 2023

Tuesday 16th May, Wednesday 17th May

Join Bath's annual Learning & Teaching Event with this year's theme of Inclusivity. Tuesday (on campus) looks at effective practice and bringing our community together to face sector challenges. Wednesday (online) features key note speakers and short lightning talks with opportunities for discussion.

Workshop: The power of accessible resources

Thursday 18th May 10.30 - 11:15am

Join this online workshop to understand how assistive technologies can make access to resources possible for all.

Accessibility Awareness at Bath

Blog: How can technology impact how we study and work?

Keira Cozens and other members of the aFLAME Disability Network: Staff and PGR in the University, have their say on digital accessibility, including how it can be helpful but also what could be better.

Blog: How does the Disabled Students’ Allowance help students?

Learn more about the tools, equipment and interventions to support disabled students.

Blogs: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) - disability articles

Subscribe to the EDI blog and catch-up on articles from Disability History month.

Blog: Using bookdown to generate accessible course materials

Read Dan Green's discussion with Dr Thomas Cottrell (Mathematics) about how Thomas switched from LaTeX to bookdown to write lecture notes and problem sheets.

Blog: does being off camera (still) matter?

As we begin to navigate hybrid working, there has been a rise in the use of ‘cameras on’ policies in businesses and HE hyflex courses.  This blog discusses the challenges and opportunities for creating inclusive environments which centre around the issue of webcams and visibility.

Blogs: Students with a declared disability: student bloggers

Bath students share their perspectives and experience on disability.

Network for disabled staff and PhD students

Learn about the aFLAME Disability Network: a forum for disabled staff and research students to connect, network and discuss issues of interest.

Accessibility escape room game 2023

Play our interactive online escape room to learn more about accessibility and put your skills to the test! If you want more, try Bath's accessibility escape room game from last year

Key accessibility groups and resources at the University of Bath

Find more about the various groups, services and advice pages offering support and guidance surrounding accessibility at the University of Bath.

Where can I learn more about Accessibility?

5 steps towards accessible content

Use these simple steps to start your journey in making your content accessible to everyone.

Digital accessibility for learning and teaching

Learn more about digital accessibility for learning and teaching and also how Blackboard Ally can help you identify and improve the accessibility of your Moodle content.

Accessibility essentials self-paced course for staff

Do you want to learn about accessibility, useful tips and test your understanding with activities and a quiz? First enrol and then take part our online introduction to accessibility short course (~1 hour).

Quick Tips: Running accessible online meetings

Read our quick and easy tips on running accessible meetings to enhance your next call for everyone.

Quick Tips: Accessibility tools for all

See a list of accessibility tools at the University of Bath that can help your students and boost your productivity.

Quick Tips: Supporting inclusive teaching

Accessibility is more than alt text, subtitles or "labelling" students. Read these tips on inclusive teaching practices that benefit all leaners, as well as those with specific learning needs.

Resources and Events: Global Accessibility Awareness Day

The Global Accessibility Awareness Day homepage has resources, perspectives and events from around the world.

Writing accessible technical content

Learn about the challenges and solutions for creating accessible STEM resources.

External digital accessibility resources

Engage with sector experts at a monthly JISC accessibility drop-in clinic, catch-up with AbilityNet's Don't Disable Me webinar series or browse AbilityNet's free digital accessibility resources.