In this post, I talk about ways that my pod could tailor our Interactive Learning Resource to meet the needs of students with hearing difficulties and color blindness.

Hearing difficulties can fall on a spectrum from minor diminished hearing abilities to total deafness. To ensure that our Interactive Learning Resource is accessible to those with hearing difficulties, we will ensure that video resources have accurate subtitles, and that a sign language or other preferred interpreter is available during collaborative activities, such as Zoom breakout rooms. This will enable those with hearing abilities to contribute and participate in collaborative activities and have access to the same depth of learning experiences as other students.

There are many different types of color blindness, ranging from minor anomalies that usually do not interfere with everyday activities, to complete color blindness where no colors are perceived (National Eye Institute, n.d., “Types of Color Blindness”). The most common types of color blindness interfere with the ability to tell the difference between red and green, with the milder variants being more common (“Types of Color Blindness”). One way that our pod could tailor our Interactive Learning Resource to maximize accessibility to those who are color blind includes mindful design of the color scheme of our learning materials and workshop website. A color scheme with a small palette of colors could be chosen, with high contrast overall to facilitate distinguishing different elements.

Featured photo by Sigmund on Unsplash

References

National Eye Institute. (n.d.). Types of Color Blindness. Retrieved from https://www.nei.nih.gov/learn-about-eye-health/eye-conditions-and-diseases/color-blindness/types-color-blindness