[nfbcs] FW: your advice would be appreciatedFW: [List] Handling

[Doug Lee]

My quick thoughts on this one:

I think it is fair for the instructor to say in effect, "I don't know
how a blind person can do this." However, I do not think it is the
instructor's job or right to decide whether the student may try. It
will fall to the student, and whoever he may find for assistance, to
figure out possible ways to handle the problems in the course. The
student should find out what academic and technical expectations
exist. Academic examples: Books, chapters covered, items on syllabus.
Technical examples: Will students need to draw or interpret drawings,
diagrams, computer graphics or paper material that is not text? Can
alternatives to inaccessible software be agreed upon? Are any special
arrangements required for a reader to be able to help with in-class
work, homework, tests or quizzes?

Notice I said to check whether arrangements are necessary for a
reader, not to check whether a reader is ok. It is my understanding,
though I will accept correction, that a reader is legally permitted in
this setting and that this cannot be countermanded by an instructor,
college, or rehab system.

My interpretation of the instructor's concerns, as expressed in the
forwarded emails, is that the instructor, along perhaps with the
student, may have room for education on what a blind person can do.
The student, in my opinion, may freely decide whether this course is
worth pursuing and may expect the instructor to accept his decision.
The student may and may not be able to expect a lot of extra work from
the instructor; this I do not know. But again, I believe the final
decision as to whether to attend this course will rest with the
student and with no one else.

Again, corrections welcome if I'm off anywhere.

On Wed, Jun 26, 2013 at 08:51:22AM -0700, juliannah harris wrote:
Hello,
I am sorry to hear about the issues the student is facing. The instructor sounds like a?handful.?I recently graduated and was faced with similar difficulties. Many courses are unfortunately not initially?being designed?using tools that are?accessible to everyone, and it becomes a headache for everyone when the problem is brought to light. In my web courses I worked with my instructors to find alternative solutions when the tools they choose wouldn't work. Good web design is not just about having flash, knowing how to use CS6, or having the most pleasant color scheme. Good web design?is knowing what good design is,?about having?a strong?framework to design from, and?thinking about accessibility first. That being said I would try and stress to the instructor that you can get just as much out of the course even?if?you?don't use the tools they choose. The point of the course is to?build the foundation for?good design. Tools may?change over
 time, but foundations?are pretty solid.??
As for alternative solutions for your class I have a few. CSS can be done without dreamweaver using a text editor.?And in my experience I successfully?noticed?drop columns and broken layout issues using JAWS just fine. Many image manipulations like cropping, brightness, and color contrast can be done on?the command line to an image using a?tool?like ImageMagick. ImageMagick can also be used to create simple banners and buttons. I found it quite useful in my web apps class. I don't know what type of flash the instructor is having you work on, but if it is an animation you might be able to?alternatively make an animated gif. I found a good tutor as well who was able to go over some of the things I couldn't get from the instructor or textbooks. I have even made mock ups of a web page with tactile mediums to get an idea of the page layout and elements. 
I wish you the best in your goals. You can do it.
- Juliannah Harris
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-- 
Doug Lee                 dgl at dlee.org                http://www.dlee.org
SSB BART Group           doug.lee at ssbbartgroup.com   http://www.ssbbartgroup.com
"It's not easy to be crafty and winsome at the same time, and few accomplish
it after the age of six." --John W. Gardner and Francesca Gardner Reese