Class
Article
College
College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Department
English Department
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Abstract
The mission statement of Utah State University (USU) includes “serving the public through learning, discovery and engagement.” In order to engage the diverse 27,932 students (Fall 2018 headcount including regional campuses), USU produces accessible content. Although accessible content is available to USU’s students, it is presented as an alternative to the original product rather than as a product itself. Thus, students must seek out this alternative, accessible content in order to engage with it. This pilot study tests theories of universal design as they pertain to accessible content by researching if these theories are true in the context of inaccessible PDF files vs more accessible HTML content. The research was conducted in two parts: an online survey and a literature review. For the online survey, respondents (a pool of USU students) were shown two excerpts, one as a PDF file and the other as an HTML file, and asked a series of questions about their experience reading the two formats. The literature review discusses theories of universal design, which argue that products should be designed for maximum usability regarding everyone, despite differing ability levels. In other words, products designed for people with disabilities are overall better for everyone. The results of this study provide insight on how beneficial it is to provide all students at USU with alternative options in receiving information through Canvas and if it is advantageous to conduct further research regarding this topic.
Location
Room 101
Start Date
4-10-2019 1:30 PM
End Date
4-10-2019 2:45 PM
Included in
Examining the Usability Impact of Content in Canvas: HTML vs. PDF
Room 101
The mission statement of Utah State University (USU) includes “serving the public through learning, discovery and engagement.” In order to engage the diverse 27,932 students (Fall 2018 headcount including regional campuses), USU produces accessible content. Although accessible content is available to USU’s students, it is presented as an alternative to the original product rather than as a product itself. Thus, students must seek out this alternative, accessible content in order to engage with it. This pilot study tests theories of universal design as they pertain to accessible content by researching if these theories are true in the context of inaccessible PDF files vs more accessible HTML content. The research was conducted in two parts: an online survey and a literature review. For the online survey, respondents (a pool of USU students) were shown two excerpts, one as a PDF file and the other as an HTML file, and asked a series of questions about their experience reading the two formats. The literature review discusses theories of universal design, which argue that products should be designed for maximum usability regarding everyone, despite differing ability levels. In other words, products designed for people with disabilities are overall better for everyone. The results of this study provide insight on how beneficial it is to provide all students at USU with alternative options in receiving information through Canvas and if it is advantageous to conduct further research regarding this topic.