[nfbcs] Leading by Example

[Bryan Duarte]

Hello Peter,

I agree it is important for us as the users of technology begin to learn, teach, and develop accessible technology. If we want to see assistive technology continue to evolve from where it is to where we want it to be, it is crucial for us to take charge of our own destiny by being first person players in the game rather than 3rd party players. It is one thing to be advocates for accessibility in other peoples technology but it is an entirely different thing to be the developer of accessible technology. 

I am a software engineering student about to graduate this semester from Arizona State. I have spent much of my time at ASU advocating for accessibility in and out of the classroom. To go along with this advocacy I have also be actively conducting research and development in and out of the classroom because like you I believe that I have a moral right to be apart of the movement that I want to see. I want to share with you a little project I have been working on at ASU because I believe it is applicable to this topic and reply. 

The important thing to keep in mind about accessibility is that is very different for everyone depending on their abilities, disabilities, experiences, needs, and wants. As a developer it is difficult to account for everyone's different needs and wants in every instance. Likewise when I began my educational career at ASU I quickly realized they were trying to use the one size fits all approach to accommodations for all blind students. This meant they were trying to give me Braille text books, extended time on exams, a notetaker, and even assistance to my classes. Although this might have been necessary for some students or preferred by others, it was unnecessary for myself. The problem was not that they did not want to help but more about that they did not fully understand how to help. They were trained how to assist blind students by sighted professionals. Instead of complaining about what they were not providing me for the last 4 years I began working with them to demonstrate how to provide not only what I needed but how they could better approach providing what other students need. One way I did this was by asking to do an independent study with the chair of the software engineering department to develop a curriculum for the department. The way I approached this is from the inside out. I began this project by making a simple claims that accessibility had to be taught early on then developed throughout the program. Accessibility cannot be an after thought but a plan from the beginning. To cut to the chase I decided to have the professors instruct on what accessibility is and how it works. After this understanding was made I asked them to teach how to develop software with software as a part of the overall design. In the upper division classes I asked the professors to require that their students submit universally designed projects. By teaching what accessibility is and how it works then requiring accessibility to be implemented the intent is that universally designed technology will become a standard rather than an after thought. 

The reason I share all of this is because it is one thing to approach a problem by stomping your feet and pointing fingers, and a very different thing to get involved and help to make the change. In Changemaker Central we use this tag line "be the change you want to see". We can all be the change in our own way but just as ASU could not use the cookie cutter approach to provide me accommodations not everyone can provide change in the same way. The NFB provides change in the way they can by advocating and lobbying for our rights as Americans. I do not believe it is their responsibility to construct the revolution that will be the future of accessibility. If you are an engineer or advocate in any way for the disabled community I would encourage you to use your knowledge and energy to begin this revolution together with organizations such as the NFB and the members of this mailing list for example.


Go Devils!

Bryan Duarte
ASU Software Engineering Graduate Student
QwikEyes CEO



> On Jan 17, 2016, at 1:28 PM, Peter Donahue via nfbcs <nfbcs at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Peter