With the advent of new regulations governing accessibility of electronic resources, institutions of higher education are required to provide a "comparable" experience to students, faculty and those in the public who access these resources, regardless of any disability.
As a primary point of access for students and faculty in the University of Maine System, Blackboard represents a growing resource. Faculty who use this expanding resource should be aware of the special obstacles an e-learning platform presents to their students.
For those with hearing, sight, cognitive, or physical disabilities web-based resources can present barriers. In almost all cases, however, simple adjustments to content and presentation remove these barriers and facilitate better comprehension for all users.
Many national organizations are involved in the dissemination of information under the general heading of "Universal Design-" those practices that benefit all consumers of an information resource. The W3C (World Wide Web Consortium), CAST, WebAIM, and EASI are just a sampling.
Maine CITE is a statewide project designed to help make assistive and universally designed technology more available to Maine children and adults who have disabilities.
