Notes

I take notes and document my own engagement with the things that I learn every day. I'm primarily recording the ideas of other people here in a way not intending to be outwardly presentational. If you want to see my own ideas, head to Entries.

In contrast, Notes is a place for me to keep myself accountable. Practically nothing here is proofread and the main audience of the things here is intended to be me.

Table of Contents

Chapter 2: Unicornization

Chapter 1: Journey to CPACC

Chapter 0: The Beginning

Reminder to self: Failure is a Win Condition.

Instructional Design Day 5/5: Brett Kirkpatrick, Elearning Essentials: Storyboarding

Noted Thursday, March 20, 2025

Storyboarding: What Is It?

Storyboarding is a way to document work as an ID that makes it super easy for SMEs and other stakeholders to understand your plan. It's a communication tool used for working in teams, with a heavy focus on how the project will look.

Even if you're working by yourself, storyboarding can function as an landscape to organize your ideas. Given an eagle's eye view of the project can help you catch errors early on, and being able to represent the whole design for the instruction reduces scope creep (defined as uncontrolled growth of a project).

A storyboard is a good place to prototype how the product will appear visually and gather assets you want to use.

The Intro Sheet: Before the Storyboard

The first page of your actual storyboard should be a background information page, and you should include the following elements:

In identifying a target audience, ensure that you write down the baseline knowledge they have and their current skills. You might have to dig to find this, or send out surveys, or do some field research.

Note that the Goal is the parent accumulation of all the Objectives. Objectives should be measurable, and achieving all of them should lead to the learner achieving the Goal.

Kirkpatrick notes that it is important to know what would happen should the training not be delivered. This is a clarifying way to revisit the objectives and outcomes you've stated.

When you write the script, keep the tone conversational, human, and concise. Try not to use buzzwords unless it's appropriate. Also remember to stick to examples of what to do instead of what not to do. People will remember very little, and it would be bad if they took away the 'what not to do' part as actual guidance.

The Storyboard and its Elements

Storyboards can be hosted on whatever software, and even using pen and paper. The methods that the instructor suggests here are not vetted for accessibility and I haven't ever come across good accessibility practices when it comes to graphic organizers.

Storyboards generally include the following elements:

Back to Notes contents.

Intructional Design Day 4/5: Michael Allen: Components of Effective Learning

Noted Monday, March 17, 2025

Introduction

Allen introduces the thesis/hook of his course: presentation of information does not equal teaching the information! Computers have the ability to aid this problem, but also further dull opportunities for the creative presentation of eLearning (for example, some trainers will simply slap an 'interactive' quiz at the end and feel like they've checked the box for engaging content).

Allen says that we need to provide training that is meaningful, memorable, and motivational.

Boring is Failure

The field of ID tends to tolerate more boredom than should be tolerated. Boredom ultimately causes a learner to stop paying attention; an ultimate ceasing of the learning process! Nothing will get in!

ELearning is particularly susceptible to the problem of boredom, as our learning is not being supported by a "nurturing" face-to-face instructor.

When learning does not happening, there is a chance of something else happening: discouragement and a break of self-esteem in the learning. This will make follow up learning even more difficult and other cascading negative consequences.

Even from just one bad learning experience, people sometimes form a lasting and limiting self-concept.

Allen's conclusion? If your instruction is boring, it's ultimately worthless and a failure on many fronts.

Allen identifies three elements to three pervasive ID practices that might be unknowingly contributing to the boringness of content.

  1. Content-first design that only considers engagement, relevance and authenticity as an afterthought.
  2. Teaching people things they already know, or not adapting to provide individualized challenges, is immediatly boring.
  3. Plowing through content without pausing or checking in with the learner to see if they are keeping up.

The bulk of learning happens when learners solve problems and uncover transferable principles for themselves.

The Limits of Tell and Test

This is the predominant method of teaching. Tools make the facilitation of tell and test easy.

Individualized learning/adaptive learning, in which the relevancy and authenticity is customized to the individual, is another paradigm that could be facilitated better with technology. Instead of testing at the end of the lecture, test before to then determine what content needs to be used to fill in the gaps.

The failure of tell and test as a model for learning has sprung up to two common practices: Remedial education iterates through the tell and test model until mastery can be presumed, while selective education picks out individuals who are likely to succeed with tell and test in the given area, and only educates them. Common for businesses who want to limit costs.

As an alternative to tell and test, Allen presents CCAF or Context, Challenge, Activity, Feedback. By presenting information in this way, the learners can understand what the program is intended to do for them in a way that is far more effective than just listing learning objectives.

CCAF: Context

It is important to both present context AND not be boring at the very start of the training. Don't just list learning objectives because that is boring. Especially because its the first thing there, we really want to make a meaningful and memorable experience.

Instead of telling learning objectives, show them the learning objectives. It is much more clear, motivating, and sticky.

Some powerful framing devices are found in Project Zero's Thinking Routines developed by Harvard. Allen also recommend his personal website. It's fascinating, one of Allen's recent courses is particularly about digital accessibility. Neat coincidence.

Building a context is kinda like building a narrative. We can relate this to what Brownlee was trying to get at earlier with defining a specific place and time. But instead of engaging in passive learning, we are activating a more active framework of roleplay.

Situations should be:

CCAF: Challenge

Adding a slight edge of risk into an activity makes our attention sharpen up and encourages us to 'think at full speed.'

Note the emphasis on 'slight.' Too much risk is too much as it encourages disapointment, and bad learning attitudes stemming from feeling overwhelmed or failing constantly.

Ensure the challenge is energizing, not energy-depleting. Put it at the front of the lesson instead of the end to maximize the energizing potential.

In keeping challenge at an appropriate level, consider incremental performance goals, or levels. In judging what an appropiate skill level is, try to make the goal be that the learner learns new skills (as in, encounters something novel that they have to think to get over) instead of just handing out a victory. Setting a challenge at a level that a learner will learn from is more important than setting a challenge that a learner is guaranteed to win. Failure should motivate, and not overwhelm the student.

CCAF: Activities

Authentic activity. For an ativity to be authentic, we must set tasks that require the same cognitive activity as would be necessary in the real world. Backwards design will help with this. Endeavor to create these activities because it is the terrain where real learning happens. Even if you don't have a budget, there are certainly some parts of this that you can integrate.

We want our learner to be engaging in actual activities. This means thinking beyond the multiple choice paradigm. We have to present scenarios that are able to let the user feel free to activate those cognitive pathways, to generate options of their own. Allen notes that he doesn't consider the successful retention of facts to be a good performance metric.

Some of Allen's suggestion for alternate options in Elearning include the use of text entry fields, sequencing objects, clustering related objects, and stopping a playing video when a performance error is detected.

CCAF: Feedback

Kinds of feedback are not restricted to simply 'judgemental feedback,' which focus on whether something was good or bad. It comments on output, and nothing about processes. Explanatory feedback focuses on the process and gives informative explanations to support the person to do better next time. Consequential feedback focuses on the end result, and is the most memorable feedback that is most easily activated in experiential activities.

Feedback is where the bulk of learning happens in CCAF. Proponents of CCAF has found that delayed feedback is highly effective at building capacity for self assessment, which is an underrated skill necessary for the development of any form of mastery.

Conclusion

At the conclusion of the course, Allen links to the Serious eLearning Manifesto he's developed with fellow instigators to that centers around the necessity of CCAF.

Back to Notes contents.

Instructional Design Day 3/5: Samantha Calamari: E-Learning Essentials: Instructional Design

Noted Friday, March 14, 2025

Intro to Elearning

Elearning bypasses the costly need of accomodations and travel expenses and gives the learner lots of flexibility and personalization.

Commonly, eLearning is used for either training specific skills, training for specific problem-solving guidelines, or awareness building.

Roles to make ELearning

SME and ID must have a symbiotic relationship.

Instructional Design Models

ADDIE

Analysis: Articulate instructional goals (organizational needs + existing knowledge gap) as a vision after understanding the learner's perspective and needs. What background knowledge are they coming in with, and what is the best tone to use to connect with them?

Design: Set learner outcomes and assessment, start organizing the content and determining what materials and resouces will be needed.

Development: Make the content. Dedicate the most time to this phase.

Implementation: rolling it out to the audience. This stage is full of practical logistics.

Evaluate: the easiest phase to skip over, but essential to determine if anything needs to be fixed or revised.

SAM

Quick, agile, continuously iterative.

After a very quick preparation phase used to gather background information, iterate through protypes of designs that you revise until you are satisfied, whereupon you develop that design, reviewing until you are satified with the final product. The team might jump between the development phase and iterative design phase as needed. Finally, release the beta, then the alpha, when your course is gold, it's time to roll it out.

Backwards Design

As the name suggests, here we are identifying a goal we want to achieve and moving backwards from that goal. It is important to decide on what counts as acceptable evidence that the goal has been met. The robosity of this evidence is likely to chart out the scope of the project.

Principles of Andragogy

The thesis behind this is that adults have unique learning needs as compared to children. They need to see the value and immediatly applicability of their learning, they need task-based and project-based instruction instead of just rote memorization, they need to feel seen in the content, and they need to discover things for themselves.

These to me sound like also applicable to children, but perhaps the distinction to be made instead of adult/child is time. Adults are busy and have less time to do things, so it is harder to catch their attention. They are not trapped in the room, unlike the case of children.

Bloom's Taxonomy

Bloom's taxonomy provides a mastery-oriented cognitive hierarchy representing different stages of mastery that must be ascended one by one without skipping steps. Each of the 6 are associated with action verbs.

Stages of Bloom's Taxonomy and Associated Action Verbs
Stage Associated Action Verbs
RememberDefine, duplicate, list, memorize, repeat, state
UnderstandClassify, describe, discuss, explain, identify
ApplyExecute implement, solve, use, demonstrate
AnalyzeDiffrentiate, organize, relate, compare, examine
EvaluateAppraise, defend, judge, support, value
CreateDesign, assemble, construct, develop, formulate

Determining Scope and Setting Goals

A Note on Learners

They are not all going to have the prowess of power users, are not all going to be self-starting and internet savy. Communicating clear expectations at the beginning of the course is really important, as is ensuring we are engaging a learner base outside of just our power users.

Being specific about time requirements and 'what's in it for me' are easy steps one can take to appeal to a larger base, even if the content itself might be harder to tailour within a 'universal learner' paradigm.

Wording a goal

There are two parts to this. Scope is the overall birds-eye summary of the goals of your project. It is further elaborated with learning objectives. You should have a couple of them.

With learning objectives, start off with, 'The learner should be able to,' followed by an action verb.

From this, we've kinda pointed towards some checkpoints we can evaluate. You should also think ahead to how these checkpoints will be evaluated, as this will support the organization of your content, the medium of the content, and what additional learning materials you will have to provide (quizzes, for example). Really lean on backwards design and consistently return to the goal to ensure you are in focus with your target.

Back to Notes contents.

Instructional Design Day 2/5: Joe Pulichino: Instructional Design Essentials: Models of ID

Noted Thursday, March 13, 2025

Defining ID

The field has its roots in training military pilots, first texts out of the academy emerged in the 60s. Instructional Design is synonymous with Instructional Systems Design, and Instructional Development.

Instructional Design is the systematic development of instructional specifications using learning and instructional theory to ensure the quality of instruction.

ADDIE (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate)

This is the most foundational model. It is a sequential and linear process, though can be adapted to be more iterative and agile. ADDIE arose rather organically between instructional designers who have thus gone on to try to dictate what it is and isn't, but do not be deceived: It's not a branded model and is inherently very nonspecific.

Analysis Phase

The analysis phase of ADDIE is the first phase and is just about what it sounds like. Designers like to zero in on determining the audience, content, and delivery by asking questions, gathering resources. In more iterative implementations of ADDIE, the analysis phase can revisit the evaluation results from the previous iteration. Ideas for delivery will come from ideas for content. Ideas for content will become apparent as the audience and goals of the project are determined and set, all of these informed by the project's budget, timeline, dependencies, roadblocks, and resources. Within large companies with a large scope, this analysis phas might involve things like focus groups and interviews.

Design Phase

In the design phase, our we will explore structure, strategy, and evalutation through prototyping, brainstrormin, and testing. Writing out learning objectives is key in this phase, and you will likely chunk out the content and develop an outline in this phase. You can also wrap up a formal plan of the course instruction. Additional content that might be prototyped include participant guides, storyboards, activities, user interface features, and assessments and evaluations.

Development Phase

Alas, it is time to write out the content and create the final product! With the plans and objecties as our north star, we develop the actual experience in this most lengthly step.

Formal prototyping, iterating and refining to the point polished deliverables are important. Ensure that the tools you are using are within your arsenal are accessible to you as a resources (financial, ability-wise) and that they are actually necessary.

Implementation Phase

If an ID is not teaching, they should be testing and collecting data and throughout the duration of this phase.

You should also do the work to prepare the learner and instructor to approach the work during the implementation stage. The implementation is basically your last chance to collect data needed to proceed into the next phase, so collect what you can!

Monitor and adjust the situation because things will come up, and it is the ID's job to fight these fires.

Evaluation Phase

Start this planning for in the analysis phase. Consider the Kirkpatrik model of measuring results, change, outcomes, and reactions.

Formative (process evaluation) and summative (outcome evaluation) evaluation are assessed differently and require different data. You should also evaluate the efficiency of your design/development/implenetation process.

Summary: Phases by Focus

Where Your Focus Should Be at Each Stage of ADDIE
ADDIE stage Factors
Analysis Audience, Content, Delivery
Design Structure, Strategy, Evaluation
Development Experience, Delivery of Plan and Objectives
Implementation Size, Scope, Complexity
Evaluate Process, Experience, Outcomes

Leaving ADDIE for SAM

An iterative prototyping model, that has ADDIE in it asa backbone. SAM's preparation phase, iterative design phase, and development phase, as associated with more specific deliverables than ADDIE is. It is also explicitly to be charted out as a rapid iterative prototyping model.

In the SAM model, a protype is called a 'successive prototype.'

SAM also encourages a Savvy Start event in the preparation phase of the project, consisting of a team brainstorming event where the preliminary prototypes will be fleshed out.

Leaning on Learning Theory

How learning has been understood has shifted through time. It started off by looking at how animals learn, shifted to reflect human interiority and critical thought.

Behaviorism

Learning happens in response to external stimuli, the successful learning is the development of predictive behaviours.

Cognitivism

Learning happens in response to external stimuli, successful learning happens when new knowledge has been successfully transmitted to the brain.

Constructivism

Learning happens when people internally construct new understanding and critical skills in their own minds through problem-solving, experiential learning and social learning.

Back to Notes contents.

Instructional Design Day 1/5: Brownlee

Noted Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Introducing Instructional Design

Why Instructional Design?

I was recently tasked with creating some training. While I already am pretty confident in my ability to create presentations, I want to brush up and get some inspiration for training tactics that are currently outside of my particular training style.

I'm also thinking about the Universal Design for Learning Guidelines and feel that learning about more options for specific teaching techniques will help me create training that extends to minds that think unlike my mind thinks.

The material

We're following the 'Build Your Skills as an Instructional Designer' Learning Path on LinkedIn Learning. I happen to have a subscription through a youth employment readiness service, and we'll emerge from this with a certificate. There's 8 hours of content for this basic stream composed of 10 lectures or 'courses', and then there's an advanced learning path if we want to dive even further.

David Brownlee: Quick Start Guide for Professional Training

Goals and Objectives

The crucial first step of any training program is Establishing the Training Goal. What specific behaviours do you want participants to gain by the end of the program? Center on behaviours, instead of what knowledge the participations should have.

Use the SMART paradigm and provide a strong rationale for the goal that you set that is salient to the participants.

Training Mediums

These are the broad five types and are appropriate for different goals and contexts.

  1. Synchronous, in-person, classroom style. Involves engagement and participation from the participants.
  2. Synchronous, in-person, keynote style. Shorter (45-90min), requires little to no participation from participants.
  3. Online live webinar, can be recorded for asynchronous.
  4. Video training. Shoot it once, zero feedback from an audience.
  5. Written training. Can be lengthly and arduous for participants.

We currently live in a very video-forward culture. It's a very effective technique, and can be integrated into all the other forms of training. And videos are evergreen, especially when they are produced with quality. VIdeo can also be used as an external sensory aid, that might not be super relevant to the actual training.

Basic Elements of Training

Need a very compelling title. Make a bold claim that grabs the attention of your learners. Purposefully engaging your learner is important. Tell an anecdote. Then dig into the small details. Do this for various subtopics, and then recap all of the points before the training is over.

Learner Engagement

You really need to have good energy and enthusiasm. Upbeat presenters encourages upbeat learners.

Use external sensory aids.

Encourage movement, especially if they've sit still for 20minutes.

Encourage group interaction.

Anchor information through team-building exercises.

Appeal to VAK: visual, auditory and kinesthetic kinds of learning.

Trainers must be Good Storytellers

Storytelling is an incredibly human phenomenon. Lock into this. We retain more information from stories than bulletpoints.

Leaving your audience on a cliffhanger, sneaking in some bullet points, and then filling out the rest of the narrative, is a hacky but effective way to tap into this.

Stories are good when supplied with a time, a location, a main character, a goal, a challenge, and a resolution.

Knowing this, when is the most effective way to integrate a story? Starting with story is good. Start the talk? Storytime. Start a new concept? Storytime. Closing the talk out? Storytime.

Importance of Design

The look and feel of the training is an important consideration. It can increase engagement or decrease engagement.They really do need to look professional if you want to maintain credibility.

Consider, if providing training for a specific company, to use their brand colours and images from their internal image library. Match emotion. If you want to evoke anger, or happiness, use design to match on an aesthetic level.

Back to Notes contents.

Getting Off the Ground

Noted Saturday, March 8, 2025

On Marketability

I've been absent the past week, and ought to explain why.

First and foremost, I got a job and needed to work on that. Obviously can't post anything from there.

Secondly, I realized that I needed to put some effort into job searching. I do have a client and a workshop lined up for sometime at the end of next month, which means the ball is finally moving and I need to sharpen up.

It is getting quite hard to actively pursue the curation of this blog, as it is written far too honestly and personally. It is poor marketing material. There are sections that I can likely migrate over to create a more professional presence, and that would allow me to continue to be super frank over here.

Imagining that a prospective employer is reading these words is rather scary. It makes my fingers freeze up. It makes me avoid writing this blog.

Back to Notes contents.

While Auditing Today, I Learned: Day 5/5: It's not Wix! It's not Wordpress! It's... Oncord?

Noted Sunday, March 3, 2025

I've been in and out of it the past couple of days, focusing on projects unrelated to accessibility. I also dabbled slightly in picking up Bootstrap, and attended a bunch of axe-con talks. Still debating whether I should make a bunch of formal write-ups. I do want to revisit some talks that I missed, there were many instances where there were multiple talks I was interested in, followed by a session where I really had no energy to participate.

Introducing the Foreign Language School Site

Today we're looking at a website for a Foreign language school. It's a relatively big site: there are probably over a hundred pages here. It has integrated eCommerce where students can purchase classes, lessons, and educational tools. The site is built using Oncord, a CMS I haven't heard of before.

I'm not going to get to every single little detail, but let's cover some basic things, and some interesting things, about the accessibility of this page.

Obvious Failures

The site is mostly in English, but there are lots of instances of French. These are never marked up with a different lang attribute. Failure of SC 3.1.2 Language of Parts.

Every page has zooming and scaling disabled. Failure of SC 1.4.4 Resize Text.

Page links are all styled red, the underlines removed. Color is the only identifier used to signal that links are not normal text. Failure of SC 1.4.1 Use of Color.

The 'Cart' icon and 'Search' icon in the top nav are completely missing accessible names. Failure of SC 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value and SC 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context).

Nearly all images on the site have null alt values. This is inappropriate for non-decorative images, especially when images are used to convey sponsors or partners. This occurs on at least three separate pages. Failure of SC 1.1.1 Non-Text Content.

In addition, the 'About Us' main page have a whole bunch of images with no alt attributes whatsoever. Failure of SC 1.1.1 Non-Text Content.

The last 1.1.1 failure pertains to the main logo, used as a link to the home page, which has the alt text of 'Logo.' This is an inappropriate alternative for this link. Failure of SC 1.1.1 Non-Text Content and SC 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context).

This website underwent an upgrade somewhere between now and 2019. There are still some pages accessible via 'Search' that use the old website style and navigation. The site owners should ensure that all of these retired pages get properly archived. Failure of SC 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation.

This isn't a WCAG failure, but it is a usability issue that the breakpoints for certain multi-column layouts aren't set very well, leading to intense word breaking when in 'tablet' view. Nothing gets clipped off or disappears completely, but it does become exceptionally hard to read and looks aesthetically horrible for what is otherwise a very clean-looking site.

There are some invisible links, including one prominent one in the footer, that link to a sister language school. Likely this happened because the Oncord template was developed first for the sister language school, and then this language school received the filled template and just changed the content. There must have been some copy-paste mishaps at that time that led to this. Failure of SC 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context).

Many links are stylized as rounded-off buttons with white text against cherry red backgrounds. The small text contrast is 3:88:1, lower than the 4.5:1 minimum. Failure of SC 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

Quite a bit of time-based media. None of them have audio description or captions. Failure of SC 1.2.3 Audio Description or Media Alternative, SC 1.2.5 Audio Description, and SC 1.2.2 Captions.

There are also some minor and miscellaneous one-off Info/Relationships failures including non-header text being marked up with an <h3> tag, a 'Show More' link that should be a button, a very strange mark up pattern for a list where every entry is a full unordered list containing a single element, and a table that really should have role="presentation" on it. Failure of SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

I also wanted to note that the main page presents an image caroussel. Clicking on it does pause it so it meets Pause, Stop, Hide. But the affordance for this could be made more clear. Going from image to image in the caroussell ca be accomplished via keyboard only, and there is no keyboard trap.

I'm probably also missing a large text contrast failure. The page has a pattern where it uses CSS background images against white text for <h1>. I tested a sample of five pages and they all met contrast, but there's a lot of pages like this and probably one or two among them that fail.

Back to Notes contents.

While Auditing Today, I Learned... Day 4/5: Described Images and ECommerce

Noted Saturday, February 22, 2025

Day off yesterday to take care of other business. I plan to work tommorow as well.

Intro to the Donut Shop Website

I have a penchant for sweet baked goods, so today we're looking at a doughnut shop website made by a freelancer from Quebec. I actually found a small write up about the site in the freelancer's portfolio!

It has integrated ecommerce built on WooCommerce and while on WordPress, features much more semantic HTML than I am used to seeing!

I've never really dug into the nitty-gritty of a eCommerce user flow before, so we're gonna see how things go.

Obvious Failures

Language of Page is one that I didn't expect to see on a site that otherwise looked pretty clean, because it shows that an accessibility checker likely wasn't used. None of the pages feature a lang attribute in the <html> tag. Failure of SC 3.1.1: Language of Page.

Some subtitles are marked up as headings, some headings are marked up with <strong>. Failure of SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

The Breakfast/Lunch menu is a JPG with no transcription. Failures of SC 1.1.1 Non-text Content. Since text is relied on in this instance, failure of SC 1.4.5 Images of Text.

We got lots of 'Click here' links. All of them have surrounding context, but it is considered best practices to provide non-generic link text.

In the footer of the website, there's a small list of hours and weekdays that the shop is open. It is marked up as one <br> element with <br> elements to create line breaks between the different list entries. It works but it would be nicer if it was a formal list.

It would also be nice to have a formal skip link. Not a 2.4.1 failure, since semantic headings are provided in the document, but heavily recommmended as best practice.

Links to the donut shop's socials are presented as logos of various media sites that have accessible names such as 'Link to Twitter.' As there is no visible text, this case is inapplicable with 2.5.3 but having the name just be 'Twitter' instead of 'Link to Twitter' is much more usable in terms of voice control activation, and is also less verbose in terms of screen reader output.

img and aria-describedby

The 'About' page features a captioned image. The typical pattern for this would be to use figure and figcaption. Except, that is not what this page does.

Instead, <img> has alt="" and aria-describedby pointing to a <p> element directly next to it. This element is functionally a caption

As aria-describedby exposure is sometimes inconsistant and is best used for interactive elements, I would switch this to aria-labelledby. aria-labelledby is part of the accessible name calculation, and has a higher chance of getting exposed.

I didn't test this robustly, but here is what I got in 5 minutes:

Orca/Firefox
Screenreader Output: [description]. image.
Orca/Chromium
Screenreader Output: [description]. Unlabelled image.
Talkback/Chrome
Screenreader Output: Unlabelled image. [description]
Talkback/Firefox (Unrecommended pairing)
The image is not exposed at all, probably because the null alt attribute makes it think that it is a decorative image.

There are screenreader settings that one can activate to disable descriptions from being read. It's my prediction that a screenreader user who had that activated would still have access to the caption, but the image itself would get totally ignored as decorative, just as it happened with the Firefox/Talkback pairing. But of course, test to confirm.

In any case, the caption/text alternative is programmatically associated with the non-text content, so there is no SC 1.1.1 Non-Text Content failure here. One could argue that it is a SC 1.1.1 failure due to it not being a robust programmatic association. Personally I fail this under SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships because even if the description is exposed, the caption-image association is not clear programmatically.

eCommerce

Prior to being able to view the catalog, one is first prompted for a date via combobox. Then, there is a prompt to choose between doing a delivery order, ordering pickup at the donut shop's first location, or pickup at the donut shop's second location.

This location prompt functions as three radiobuttons, but it is purely marked up with an unordered list of three anchor links, with no ARIA roles whatsoever. The inputs are exposed as links. This is a 1.3.1 failure that would become a 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value failure if not remediated right. This should just be radio inputs in a fieldset. They could also go ahead and do some kind of ARIA radio pattern if they aren't going to use semantic inputs.

There is a status message that is sent once the time is confirmed. This should be implemeneted in a way that a screenreader user would be informed it exists. It currently isn't implemented this way. Failure of SC 4.1.3 Status Messages.

Each entry in the catalog is implemented as a list item. Each list item contains an image marked as decorative, a heading for the name of the donut (eg: "Coconut Cream"), followed by the price, a 'Description' button that opens a little pop up when you activate it, and a small component labelled Quantity with a plus button, a minus button, and a spin button labelled Quantity.

The Description button and price tag both have low contrast. Failure of SC 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

The images here are doing more than decoration. I just know that if I was ordering this online and couldn't see the pictures, I would really miss out on understanding what the names of some of these flavours mean. Alternatively, the person could provide more robust descriptions of what these donuts are. There is a little description pop-up box to put text into. Everyone would benefit from this, especially folks with allergy concerns. But for now... Failure of SC 1.1.1 Non-Text Content.

Speaking of the description button pop-up, it does not have the right ARIA roles indicating an expanded state, which it must have. It would also be nice to have aria-haspopup. The developer may consider an implementation using the popover API. Failure of SC 4.1.2 Name Role Value.

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While Auditing Today, I Learned... Day 3/5: An Overlay!

Noted Thursday, February 20, 2025

I'm actually starting this on Wednesday.

Intro to the Disability Nonprofit Website

Today we're examining an industry-specific disability coalitionary nonprofit. This site was made in Wordpress.

The organization is very concerned with accessibility, but it specializes in accessibility for the Deaf/HOH community and physical accessibility. There is an "accessibility" overlay widget present on the site. The widget is broken. The widget cannot be opened by mouse or hover, but it is exposed to the accessibility tree. It is good that the widget is broken. I have previously done some work on a site with this particular vendor, and the widget made the site less usable, especially for keyboard users.

Though the overlay widget itself is broken, the vendor also injects a 'Skip to Content' link at the top of the page. This is useless because for one, the Wordpress theme already includes a skip link. More importantly, the redundant skip link provided by the overlay vendor actually does not 'Skip to Content.' It does not provide the right link.

Obvious Failures

There are several instances of low colour contrast. Some contrast failures occur due to text on top of CSS background images. Others are more traditional contrast issues that arise due to the Wordpress colour theme. On the homepage, there is a link that has a contrast of 3:30:1 in the normal state, and 1.85:1 in its hovered state. Both do not meet the 4.5:1 required for small text. In another example, all three of the pay mechanisms on their 'Donation' are in a nice little flexbox with background colours that all have below-minimum contrast. Failure of SC 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

There are also instances of the text being made the exact same color as the background upon hover. I'm not sure if this fails Contrast (Minimum) because there is literally zero contrast to measure, the ratio is 1:1. Bad for usability, however.

Some pages in the site use structured headings in a logical and hierarchical format. Other pages use headings of various hierachy levels for emphasis. Sometimes headings are only marked up with the <strong> element.In one instance, there are two level-two headings. One of them, the parent heading, has an underline to indicate that it is a heading of a higher level, but this is not indicated programmatically. These are all failures of SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Their 'name' field in their contact form is broken two inputs. The first input is labelled 'First' and the second is labelled 'Last.' There is a third label visually above them, 'Name' that is not programmatically associated with the two child labels. Normally one would do this with a <fieldset>. Since that third label is not correctly associated programmatically, this fails SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (note to self: not a 2.4.6 Failure).

There are a few elements that have had their user agent hover states eliminated and not replaced by anything. Failure of Success Criterion 2.4.7 Focus Visible.

There are also a few places where while a focus state is set, it is not easily distinguishable. One text input is a white text box on a black background. In its normal state, it has a grey border. The border width is set to 1px. In its focused state, that thing grey border changes to black and blends into the background. I could only tell that there was any difference at all by looking at the source code. While this does not fail Focus Visible, it certainly doesn't meet the spirit of this criterion.

While it does not create a WCAG failure, many links on this site are presented as full URLs. This is not considered to be accessibility best practice.

There are a couple instances of French text not being programmatically marked as such. Failure of SC 3.1.2 Language of Parts.

alt text

There are some instances of non-decorative images having no alt text or text alternatives, particularly in the 'Sponsors' section of their homepage. Failure of SC 1.1.1 Non-text Content.

But these instances are rare. More commonly on the site, images have very lengthly descriptions in the alt text, and they don't write the alt text in ways where the most important information comes first.

This is especially true for their event posters. They provide transcriptions for the event posters, but they do not mark the poster itself as decorative. Instead they very excessively describe the font styles, font size, colors, and exact decorations on every event poster using the first person plural like, "We open on a red textile background that appears hand-stitched. On top, with large swirly golden font, we see written 'EVENT GALA COMING SOON.' Looking downwards and to the left, we proceed with the next paragraph in a smaller and darker font, 'BLAH BLAH BLAH'" and it continues on for a hundred more words. Not a WCAG failure, but if we view the practice of writing good alt text as an extension of good copywriting, this certainly isn't good alt text or considered best practice.

Blog Posts Previous/Next Navigation

On each of their blog posts, they have links to the previous and next articles. Here's a heavily reduced version of what the markup looks like.

  
<a href="link-address">
  <span class="small-text black-color orange-hover" aria-hidden="true">
    Next
  </span>
  <span class="sr-only">
    Next Post
  </span>
  <span class="block large-text blue-color black-hover">
    [Article Title]
  </span>
</a>

The resulting output essentially gives the impression that Next and [Article Title] are two separate links. They have separate colors, hover styles, and sizes. In reality, they are two span elements in one link.

Given that user interface component is determined by the perception of a single control for a single function, I think this pattern technically fails under SC 2.5.3 Label in Name. However, for remediation purposes, the thing that actually makes this all wonky is the perception of two components when there really is only one, hence a failure of SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships. If this was clearly styled as a single link, there would be no failure of 2.5.3, and if it was two different link elements entirely, there would be no failure of 2.5.3.

Back to Notes contents.

While Auditing Today, I Learned... Day 2/5: Halfhazard Hamburgers and Video Controls

Noted Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Back from the long weekend! Let's do our second case study!

Intro to the Small Bakery Page

Today, we've got a small bakery page with a small website, six pages. This site was also built in Wix, though it is much less complex than last day's site.

Obvious Failures

The bakery provides their menus in image format. Their breakfast menu, their lunch menu, the food menu for their satelite location, their sourdough schedule, their bread menu, and their catering menu (posted over four images with the helpful alt text of 1.png, 2.png, 3.png, and 5.png-- what happened to #4?) are all in image format and labelled with inappropriate alt text. Failure of SC 1.4.5 Images of Text.

They also have file names for alt text on about half of their images, though they have managed to account for decorative images about half of the time. Failure of SC 1.1.1 Non-text Content.

Things that are not headings are marked up as headings, and all heading hierarchy structure is totally all over the place. Failure of SC 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Not super obvious, but testing for SC 1.4.12 Text Spacing using a bookmarklet causes the navigation to create a subnavigation node, where we see the exact same thing happen as we saw yesterday with Wix's inaccessible subnavigation pattern and all of its corresponding WCAG failures. I'm inclined to fail this under SC 1.4.4 Resize Text as one would only be exposed to the inaccessible component if text had been manually changed.

Mobile Hamburger Navigation

A basic description

A hamburger menu. Hit enter on it and it opens. It initially did not seem to respond to click events, but I tested and it's fine in Chromium and on Firefox mobile. I'm going to chalk this up to my Firefox being out of date.

Opening this makes visible a navigation laid on top of the content. Hitting the same button closes the navigation.

Description of implementation

It's a semantic button with aria-haspopup="true" The button's content is just an SVG of the three hamburger lines. The button is contained in a nav region with aria-label="Site".

When activated, the button gets aria-expanded="true", when closed it gets aria-expanded="false". It does not have this attribute set to false when focus first lands on it, it requires interaction to get this attribute.

Upon activation, the site inserts an unordered list of links into in the same nav region, but before the button in the DOM order. Focus is not managed.

Problems with this implementation.

As the button contains but a SVG, there is no accessible name for the activating button. This does not entirely break the experience: Orca announces this as "navigation site button opens menu." TalkBack announces as "menu pop up button unlabelled graphic" in Chrome and "button menu double-tap to change" in Firefox mobile. Regardless, this too is a failure of SC 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

It doesn't manage focus correctly. The expanded content is placed before the trigger in the DOM, so where tabbing would normally direct focus into the expanded content, it instead tabs into the page. This honestly should be implemented as a modal, given that the navigation overlay takes up more than half of the page and obscures content. Failure of SC 2.4.3 Focus Order.

Additionally, hitting Esc does nothing. It is best practice for modals or layers that appear to be able to close on Esc.

More importantly, all of the links have the worst contrast that I've ever seen. With a foreground of #000000 and a background of #272521 bringing us to a whopping 1.37:1. Failure of SC 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

Autoplaying Video Component

Basic description

A custom video component that autoplays upon load on the main page. It appears like you can only click on it to pause and play. However, upon tabbing in you can access a series of controls. There's a video slider, audio control slider, full-screen button, and pause/play toggle. All of these controls are actually obscured though, and to actually use them with any ease, you would have to enter full screen mode or use a screen reader.

It appears that these controls are intended to be hidden, but they've only tried to do so by overlaying some div with a background color on top of it so one can't see it. The controls are still very much there.

Controls are fully visible on the mobile view, this seems to be a desktop-only thing.

Description of the implementation

I don't think it's worth it to flesh out every aspect of how the controls relate to the video and canvas elements that actually hold the video itself. There's a whole bunch of stuff held in a wrapper div with tabindex="0". The important part to note are the roles and markup of the various controls within the bottom block of the component.

Problems with this implementation

First off, it's completely baffling that all of the controls are so half-hazardly hidden on Desktop view. Why even hide them at all? Probably for aesthetic purposes? Providing controls does meet Pause, Stop, Hide. But the half-hazard hidden-ness of these controls on Desktop is a failure of SC 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum).

I believe that Focus Not Obscured doesn't quite convey the direness of the problem, and am thinking about whether this fails SC 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum). Because there actually is no target here, and therefore no measurable target size that can be failed for being too small. Because it's literally gone. The 2.5 guideline's intent is that all components should be operable by pointer devices, but there's nothing that explicitly checks whether that is the case. It kinda just assumes. I'm satisfied enough by just failing this under Focus Not Obscured, but it's weird that there's nothing else that address this.

This video-only component does not at least provide description identification of the non-text content, which fails SC 1.1.1 Non-Text Content.

And of course, we come to all of failures for SC 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value on account of missing roles. The progress bar, volume control bar, and wrapper div all fail due to missing roles. The progress bar and wrapper div fail due to missing names.

Back to Notes contents.

While Auditing Today, I Learned... Day 1/5: Dialog Dilemna and Shocking Subnavigations

Noted Saturday, February 15, 2025

Introducing WATIL

I've had a few days to marinate in the sauce of uncertainty over what direction I should take. I've decided that I seriously want to zero in on my WCAG auditing skills. This series is called "While Auditing Today, I Learned" or WATIL for short. Each entry will tackle new wacky WCAG cases that I will (hopefully) solve out in the open.

I'll never actually link to the site in question. Instead, I'll try my best to learn how to describe the pattern as precisely and technically as possible each time.

I'm also not going to be able to test every single criteria each time. I will get bogged down easily if I set that out for myself. The goal instead is to identify the areas that are most problematic and problem-solve through weird code things, WCAG wording, and valid ARIA implementation.

Intro to the ME Museum Page

Today, we've got a website for a small local museum. It's built in Wix.

Obvious Failures

This site was not built to do reflow. Its mobile view was also implemented weirdly. Normally, you can just minimize a browser window or zoom to enter a mobile view, because it knows what CSS to use base on media queries. It appears that the ME Museum page determines upon loading whether the view is for mobile or desktop, and then no matter how much you try to resize things, it will not show you the alternative layout. Additionally, its iPad view hides content by default. Failure of Success Criterion 1.4.10 Reflow.

All the images on this site derive their alt text from their file names, and they aren't good file names. Failure of Success Criterion 1.1.1 Non-text Content.

Headings on this site are really random. Sometimes they are semantic, sometimes they are not. Sometimes there are several h2 on the page with no h1, sometimes there are several h1 and no h2 at all. They are absent in several key user journeys (such as trying to find the hours that the facility is open, or finding the admission fees, where headings like 'hours of operation' and 'admission' are all styled without semantics). Failure of Success Criterion 1.3.1 Info and Relationships.

Running axe-core and WAVE, I got no contrast errors. But there actually was a contrast error hidden in the footer that went undetected. It was so bad that I could tell it was a contrast error just by looking at it. It was rgb(67, 100, 134) foreground with rgb(0, 46, 93) background with small text, contrast of 2.19:1. It looks like it didn't get detected because the 'background color' is actually set by an element that was overlayed onto all of the other elements. As far as axe and WAVE knew, the background was white text. I tracked down which inline style sheet was responsible for this, and file name indicates that it is part of some Bootstrap class.

In addition to this weird contrast error, there was another prominent link that had below-minimum contrast on hover. Failure of Success Criterion 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum).

I've identified two components that could be problematic, but I actually am not as versed in the ARIA-specification as I need to be to assess whether these roles are being used correctly. Let's tackle them one at a time.

Custom Modal Dialogue

A basic description

There is a sticky button attached to the lower right side of the page labelled 'Visit Us.' Opening it causes a modal to open up, with various visitation details and a Google Map iframe.

Implementation description

The 'button' that triggers the modal is not a button element. It's an anchor element with role="button" and aria-disabled="false".

Click events on the button causes all the existing content on the page to get tabindex="-1" and a new window to appear, overlaid on the existing page.

The wrapper for the popup has role="dialog" and aria-modal="true".

The first element in this wrapper is a <div> with tabindex="0" and role="button" along with both the title and aria-label attributes set to "Back to site.

The modal can be dismissed by pressing the Esc key.

Problems with this implementation

Ideally, the button triggering the modal dialog should have the role aria-haspopup="dialog" but this is not technically a WCAG failure.

The dialog itself does not have an accessible name. On Orca, this creates an experience where the entire contents of the dialog are read out when the dialog is opened, but no dialog role is actually conveyed. Can't currently test this with NVDA because my virtual machine is broken. I am inclined to fail this under SC 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value, though Deque categorizes this as a best practice failure and not a WCAG failure. The APG page on accessible names uses language that implies accessible names are required for dialogs as a matter of WCAG compliance. The dialog element requires an accessible name as a matter of HTML validation, while the dialog role does not require an acccesible name to be validated. In any case, the dialog would be made more accessible if aria-labelledby was used on the dialog wrapper to point to the heading element that is in there.

Most guides for building custom dialogs suggests some form of focus management. There is no focus management within the dialog itself, though closing the dialog lands us back on the button that opened it.

There is a coding error here. Going backwards in the tab order causes the navigation to appear on top of the modal dialogue. A mouse user can click on the navigation in this state, a keyboard user cannot get to it. Ideally, nobody should be able to access it and it should remain hidden.

Lastly, the 'close' button has the aria-label of 'Back to Menu' instead of 'Close,' which may cause usability issues.

A Weird JavaScript Subnavigation

I had to bring in my software engineering friend to actually determine what was going on here. This one is a doozy.

Basic Description

There are two nested subnavigations in the main nav, and they are coded in the same way.

The excerpt we are looking at have these text nodes:

Clicking on 'Events' brings us to the Events page. Clicking or hovering 'Blog' and 'Support' only opens up the subnavigations. Blog and Support are basically buttons and do not link to pages. Instead, the subnavigation nodes are links.

In keyboard navigation, all elements open naturally as one moves through the natural tab order. We go from Blog, inside the first subnav to Posts, back to the main nav for Support, inside the second subnav to Donate.

Just straight-up removed from the accessibility tree.

Implementation description

It is marked up as a unordered list. While the links are all normal, Blog and Support are div with tabindex="0" and aria-hasapopup="false" and no semantic role assigned.

The subnavigation unordered list elements have aria-hidden="true" and the inline style display: none. Whenever a subnavigation needs to be displayed, the Wix site creates a clone of the subnavigation node at the bottom of the DOM, uses position: absolute to place it underneath the button that opened it, and manages focus accordingly.

Problems with this implementation

I cannot fathom why it does this weird duplication trick. In any case, it is totally unusable when JS is disabled.

The button needs to be a semantic button or have a button role assigned to it. On Orca, no semantic role means that the name is also not read out in this case. Failure of SC 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value.

The content that appears on hover has no alternative dismissal mechanism than removing the pointer. Failure of SC 1.4.13 Content on Hover or Focus

Back to Notes contents.

Celebration & Performance Review!

Noted Monday, February 10, 2025

Not going to lie, I'm quite exhausted. Still polishing up my CPACC guide, doing spell check things, Javascript things, reflection-adjacent things. I don't have donuts with me right now (though my family got a dozen from Krispy Kreme to celebrate).

Today we're dealing with a longer period than we ever have before.

Dec 30 - Feb 6 Accomplishments

Time Logged

I logged 106 hours from December 24 to February 9. If we distribute this to every offical work day within that period (Jan 6-onwards, 5 workdays per week), we end up 4.25 hours per workday. This is up from last period!

64%, or 68 hours, were spent on CPACC-related activities. I also dedicated about 15 hours of this time to general 'Blogging.' Speaking of which...

Wordcount and Blogging

27k in 'Notes,' 3k from 'Entries,' 7k from CPACC 'information posts.' 37k words in total, and this may be slightly undercounting it. My pace last period was 312 words/hour, while my pace was 342 words per hour. This levels out to a average 'workday' wordcount of 1480 words. Last period, my average workday wordcount was 1050.

I published one Entry, "Another Good Reason to Be Weary of Placeholders," and made good progress on a second one. I am very close to polishing my CPACC guide.

I am particularly proud of Domain 1BC. I feel like I only hit my stride for what formats the posts should take when tackling the section on disabilities. I feel that in general, the quality of my writing is better than when I started. I feel myself being more mindful as I'm writing.

Actual Output

Here are all the things that got separate articles:

Exam Completed!

Also I actually took the CPACC itself! Major confetti with that one. Felt pretty good about it, time will tell!

HTML, CSS, Javascript

I spent some amount of time doing auditing practice. I found a weird quirk in placeholder color, which inspired the blog post. Learned quite a bit through that process. First time including code blocks on this blog.

I got my Javascript Flashcard Quiz to a stage where I was satified with it. Showing it to my friend was kinda terrifying but she gave me some feedback. I also used JS to format the Legislation Compilation page, though I ultimately chose to reduce the need for interaction on the page and just present all three engagement options altogether like it was Neopolitan ice-cream.

I made more than one table in the past little bit. Good to brush off the cobwebs already eager to settle there.

Dec 30 - Feb 6 Areas Needing Improvement

The Time Distribution

Not going to lie, the actual distribution of numbers week over week is far less pretty than the calculated average. What lessons may be found here?

Productivity Week by Week
Week # Hours Recorded +/- % CPACC
1 21 hours 47 minutes Excess 50%
2 18 hours 17 minutes Deficit 36%
3 13 hours 55 minutes Deficit 79%
4 17 hours 41 minutes Deficit 84%
5 31 hours 27 minutes Excess 75%

Over the five weeks in this period, three weeks ended in a deficit of time, and two weeks resulted in excess of time spent.

So-called 'weekends' were thrown out of the window. I simply took a break when I felt I needed to. There was one time were I took two break days in succession. I will pause before I immediatly condemn this as a bad things.

Given that weekends (Sunday/Wednesdays) were not respected at all, it's important to note that only 14 days from Jan 6 to Feb 9 exceeded a total work time of 3 hours. This is 41%. If we compare this to the daily completion rate from last period (67%), that's a notable decrease!

Let's also talk about week the Week #5, where we saw the biggest excess of time that we have seen thus far. Given that the daily completion rate and weekly completion rate dropped off from last period, it is only due to the grace of the 10 hours over quota provided in Week #5 that we managed to increase our daily average overall.

The conditions of Week #5 were also exceptional and will not be replicated easily. It was exam week and the deadlines were real. Speaking of which, let's talk about deadlines.

Goal-Setting Strategy Fell Through

Last period, we observed that setting strict timelines for CPACC module completion was a highly successful strategy to boost total output and productivity, but we also noted the fragility of such a system. This time, Goal-Setting was nearly useless.

Something happened this reporting period. Previously, I would start the day by making a new post, for example, 'Study Day #2 out of 20,' and then start a new one the next day. This resulted in some topics being split over multiple days. You can verify this for yourself by looking at the table of contents. Organizational Management has 3 entries, International Standards also has 3, UDL guidelines have 2. This also means that some 'Study Days' covered multiple topics.

But almost immediatly starting January 6th, I switched to a model of one-topic-per-post. Cognitive Disabilities took a severely long time to finish: something like 4 days. But it is only notated as one day within the table of contents.

This made it hard to observe the extent to which I was keeping pace with the schedule.' Consider the fact that I only took two days off in the past 34 days. There are not 32 'Study Day' posts. There are 20. Many of those days, I was working on multiple 'study days' simultaneously.

Reviewing old 'Reflection posts' it looks like I was keeping relative pace with the goals I set up until January 17th, which is at the tail end of Week #2. There was immediate failure to keep pace with set-goals after January 17th. Week #3 was simply a mess.

Friday January 24th is emblematic of that mess. I slept in and missed my first shift at Real Job, felt like utter garbage the entire day, so much so that I basically slept all through Saturday where I also made the absolute worst batch of Tofu Udon that I have ever made in my entire life.

I attempted to recuperate on January 27th with a new output schedule, but this too was utterly fruitless, because I underestimated how long it would take me to cover the Cognitive and Visual Disabilities. Week #4 did see improvement from Week #3, but I would have liked to see more.

Output remained alright in Weeks 4 and 5, because there was an actual deadline in place. And it was that deadline that took precedence over the scaffolded artificial deadlines that carried little weight.

Here are some takeaways from this:

New Goals for a New Chapter

I've had a couple days to mull it over, and I believe I've determined the new theme. Chapter 2 is going to be called 'Unicornization' in reference to the common idea of being an accessibility unicorn. I'm going to be developing many skills. One approach I might take is engaging in short sprints every three weeks focusing in on one skill at a time. Alternatively, I may work on multiple areas simultaneously. For this first bit, I'm going to focus on refining my auditing skills.

v

I'm still unsure how I'm going to accomplish setting that focus.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 44/44: Final Review

Noted Thursday, February 6, 2025

I am mostly going to spend my time writing questions, brushing up on legislation, and reviewing my memorized data.

Also re-reading through all my notes, running everything through spellcheck in Google Docs, editing the HTML directly. So tedious.

There are some places where I am not satisfied with the end product. Notably, the section on Demographics, and the section on Disability models, which don't have notes on every single source linked. The rest of the guide is fairly comprehensive, even though spelling mistakes abound.

I hope it will be useful to someone. Time to write some questions.

It's interesting that it took me 44 "days." Ah, who am I kidding? It actually took more. We'll talk about that more in my reflection. But 44 is very similar to Amy Carney's journey.

I'm most scared for any specifics there will be on the UCRPD. I'm actually wracked with nervous energy and can't properly assess what I'm scared about most. But the UNCRPD is pretty scary. I don't know many specific articles except for Article 9.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 43/44: Further Readings

Noted Wednesday, February 5, 2025

Well, this is poetic. Two more work days before my exam. This is also the 99th entry in this blog, the hundredth entry will be written tomorrow, on the day of the exam.

I've been reviewing all the memorizable entries and have been generally cleaning this blog up. I do feel relatively ready, but we still have this last slog of further reading entries to go.

I'm not worried about getting through the further readings. I covered many of them as I was going through Domain 3 in the first place, so this will be good review.

Emmployer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion: Creating an Accessible and Welcoming Workplace

Broken link, not a good start to the day. The wild thing is that some of these broken links have been broken since before the BoK was updated in October 2023. This link, for example, shows signs of broken-ness starting in March 2022.

The Employer Assistance and Resource Network, or EARN as they are called, emphasize that it is the employer's obligation to provide an accessible application process and to accommodate Disabled employees. These are required under the ADA.

They also cover Section 508 obligations to make tech accessible, and point to resources that can help business owners achieve accessible physical and technological environments.

EARN's most important contribution is how they go about emphasizing attidudinal barriers, which isn't something we've seen a lot. We saw a little bit of this in the charity model of disability, and a little bit in Disability Etiquette.

Attitudinal barriers include positive assumptions and generalizations, and some have to do more with the culture around disability. EARN names classic attitudinal barriers such as inferiority, pity, ignorance, and backlash. But they also name these:

ITU: ICT accessibility assessment for the Europe Region

The ITU is the International Telecommunication Union. This is their report on the state of ICT accessibility amongst their member states with respect to a few ITU Targets. They note which of their members have signed onto the UNCRPD, the UNCRPD Optional Protocol, the Marrakesh Treaty, which have implemented anti-discrimination laws, recognized sign languages, mandated accessibility for websites and electronic communications. They also note which of their members provide accessible time-based media features, like captions, audio description, and sign language interpretation.

The majority of the document outlines different existing frameworks for ICT Accessibility implementation, and showcases examples of successful implementations.

Their goal is to have 'enabling environments ensuring accessible telecommunications and ICT' established in all countries by 2023.

To this end, they make a long string of recommendations at the end focusing on all the areas I've already mentioned, alongside calls to create capacity in academia, industry, for strong monitoring, and for more training capacity to be emphasized by policy makers. They basically call on member states to continue their efforts an implementation of the CRPD and various EU related regulations and directives, while also working with and involving Disabled people.

ISSA: ICT-Enabled coordinated service delivery

I'm confused by the relevance of this article. 'ICT-enabled coordinated service delivery' essentially translates to whenever multiple bodies collaborate together in the delivery of social programs. It does seem like an extension of 3F (organizational management,) however this article is completely based on the public sector.

Under the heading, 'critical success factors,' they agree upon elements of management essential to delivering coordiating services, and it mirrors slightly what we saw in the organizational management. Just look at some of their major points:

John Hopkins University Press: The Diffusion of Disability Rights in Europe

Content from this article was covered in the Cyprus and Denmark sections in the National-Level Standards notes.

European Commission European Network of Legal Experts in Gender Equality and Non-Discrimination: Combatting disability discrimination and realising equality

PDF is 100 pages long. We're going to look at the Executive Summary and Conclusion.

The primary documents that are being compared are the CRPD, and the Employment Equality Directive (EED). To date, there is no general anti-discrimination directive in the EU. The authors are concerned about the extent to which the EED and the CRPD are in line with each other, the extent to which EED provides coverage of the CRPD, and the points where they diverge.

They emphasize this is super important because member states in the EU might be under the false impression that in tranplanting the EED, they have met their obligations for equal employment under the CRPD (to which all member states are ratifying bodies: they all ratified independently in addition to ratifying as the EU itself).

Key differences between the CRPD and EED

The report basically goes on to say that EU law doesn't fully implement the CRPD and this ought to be changed at some point. Additionally, the CJEU has opportunity to make future rulings that are more in line with the interpretations and spirit of the CRPD, and the report encourages case law to move everyone further in the direction of CRPD-based interpretations.

They also note that a general equality directive extending non-discrimination beyond the domain of employment would be a nice thing to do.

University of Pretoria: #RatifyADRP: Call on African leaders to ratify

Material here was covered under Africa: Regional Standards

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights: EU Framework for UNCRPD

The EU has created its own internal monitoring framework to monitor EU competence with its CRPD obligations. This does not replace national-level monitoring frameworks, which also exist.

They are essentially a working group bringing together together the European parliament, European Ombudsman, EU agency for Fundamental Rights, and European Disability Forum. They meet twice a year, there's a chair and a secreteriat. All the different agencies have their own responsibilities regarding monitoring, promotion of the CRPD, protection of the CRPD, and they all set their priorities together year after year.

ESCAP: Incheon Strategy

Material here was covered under Asia: Regional Standards

UN Economic and Social Affairs: International Norms and Standards Relating to Disability

This is a review of all the international norms regarding disability prior to the CRPD. This is a good article to read if you want to sort of imagine the problem that the CRPD was meant to address. There's a lot of things written but practically no legally binding things, despite things like the Decade of Disabled Persons.The one exception might be the Convention on the Rights of the Child article 23, which focuses on the rights of Disabled children specifically.

Here is basically a list of what existed prior to the CRPD in terms of things that could be enforced:

Additional Programmes mentioned, unenforceable

The shift to the social, human rights-based model started to be seen in 1982 and picked up from there.

WIPO: Summary of the Marrakesh Treaty

Material here was covered under Marrakesh: International Standards.

United Nations Office of the High Coommissioner: Universal Declaration of Human Rights

This fact sheet actually covers the International Bill of Human Rights, which consists of the UDHR along with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), with two optional protocols appended to the latter. The first optional protocol provides a complaint mechanism. The second optional protocol prohibits the death penalty.

The UDHR was conceived alongside a vision for some form of implementation mechanism, first called a 'convention,' later renamed to a 'covenant.' The UDHR itself was completed first, and the two Covenants were introduced later. Much later. There was about a 25 year period where the UDHR was the only international standard for human rights.

So, to re-emphasize, the UDHR is not in and of itself a legal obligation, while the Covenants are explicitly legally binding upon the states that ratify it. This also means that the UDHR is "truly universal in scope." It is viewed as being applicable to every situation for every human being, regardless of whether a jurisdiction has or has not formally recognized it. The Covenants, on the other hand, are only legally binding on states that have ratified them.

Pair this with the other Conventions, that also take from the spirit of Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The implications of the UDHR are enshrined across these instruments, and embedded into national and regional legislations.

France, Law of equal opportunity, participation and citizenship, 2005

Material here was covered under France: National Standards

India, Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (R.P.W.D.)

Material here was covered under India: National Standards

Japan and Sweden: A Comparative Perspective of Disability Policies

Material here was covered under Japan: National Standards and Sweden: National Standards

Korea: Act On The Prohibition of Discrimination Against Persons With Disabilities And Remedy Against Infringement Of Their Rights

Material here was covered under Korea: National Standards.

World Wide Web Consortium: Web Accessibility Laws and Policies

Here we got a table where we can easily compare law and policies available across countries. Additionally, one can browse the countries and regions available for more detailled information .

On larger screens, you can browse all the countries through the sidebar. On smaller/zoomed screens, the sidebar collapses into a hamburger menu and it's very unintuitive. The hamburger menu is basically the first item in the tabbing order, but it opens in the main content underneath the site navigation so if you're tabbing or using a screen-reader, it can be quite disorienting.

This page is only updated through user contributions, so a large portion of it appears to be not be up-to-date. Especially considering the overhaul that EN 301 549 will bring to harmonizing standards not just in the EU, but in 'canada' and Australia, might be best to check in on the websites of governments. Laws are changing rapidly right now.

US Federal Communications Commission: Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act

Speaking of changing laws, it is still uncertain whether Section 508 will still have any salt at all through Trump's second term.

This is just the full text os Section 508. See Domain-Specific and Procurement Law, or ICT Regulations and Standards for more on Section 508.

I realized that I didn't know how Section 508 was enforced. It turns out that people should file complaints directly to the offending agency. The Access Board encourages all govenment agencies to include a web accessibility policy somehwere site. Here's the Web Accessibility Policy from Customs and Border Protection as an example.

European Commission Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion: Accessibility Standardisation

Material here is basically covered in ICT Regulations and Standards.

US Department of Justice: Accessibility of State and Local Government Websites

Old article from 2003, clarifies that under the ADA, services and programs provided by State and local goverments must be accessible. Has some classic examples of web accesssibility blunders and points to some resources. Goes to show that digital accessibility has been around for a long time. Even Skip Links have been around for a long time!

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 42/44: Further Readings

Noted Tuesday, February 4, 2025

Three more work days before my exam.

Braddock, Rizzolo, Thompson, and Bell: Emerging Technologies and Cognitive Disability

This source is more than twenty years old at this point.

Summary

At the dawn of a bunch of new innovation happening in the field of tech, this is a paper that speculates as to what new technology can do for people with cognitive disabilities. They also include 'severe and persistent mental illness' in this category.

Under the 'Personal Support Technologies' heading, they speculate on the efficacy of interfaces that can guide a person to do various daily living, vocational, or educational tasks. They also talk about potential advancements in AAC. However, they do say that "a wearable data glove has been developed by an engineering student at the University of Colorado that translates American Sign Language." It is misinformation at worst, and a sloppy mistake at best, to include this example. It feels like every other year some engineering student makes some glove or program to interpret 'American Sign Language' when all it does is sometimes get some fingerspelling right. We're in the LLM age and still, we haven't gotten at all close.

They also acknowledge the technology gap between the Disabled and non-Disabled peopulation, still a persistent problem (especially on an international scale), but not to the same extent as it was in 2001.

Under the subheading 'Assisted Care Systems Technology,' the authors talk about smart houses that can care for aging family members and people with cognitive disabilities, including speculation on how effective such systems could be made with machine learning. They also talk about 'smart transportation' systems that could be integrated into public transportation, as well as trackers that can be planted on older adults to prevent them from wandering. Personal robots are suggested as a way to fix the anticipated surplus of beds in nursing homes. VR is explored as a way for people with cognitive disabilities to gain daily life skills and vocational training in a safe setting.

Some Commentary

The vision that this paper puts forward, though it comes across as 'optimistic,' is actually quite disturbing at times. It seems to want to point out every single juncture at which the provision of face-to-face care could be automated away to robots, task assignment devices, and even smart homes that maintenance themselves. The systems that these researches suggests should be accompanied with plenty of caveats underscoring the essential human task that care provision is (it's incredibly valuable work, and the support providers who do it deserve to earn so much more than they do). I would have appreciated some skepticism in here, or some indication that the authors didn't see disability merely as 'a problem that can be fixed if we throw enough robots at it.' I have yet to read Against Technoableism but I feel like the speculative 'optimism' of this paper includes arguments that would be broadly classified as technoableist.

I suppose I need to back that accusation up slightly more. This article mostly frames the group benefitting the most from this kind of technology not as the people with cognitive disabilities, but the relieve of burden of care for family caregivers and for the nation state's economy broadly. The implications that more independence among people with cognitive disabilities leads to more people with cognitive disabilities being able to enjoy all their human rights is the argument that should have at least been pointed to. There is an argument to be made here, that emerging technology can help facilitate the independent living movement and the deinstitutionalization movement, which were front-of-mind at the time of the article's writing. But that is not what is being celebrated throughout the article. It's about cutting costs, reducing perceived burden, and minimizing risk.

It's also a very old article and I really do wonder why the IAAP included it, given its very speculative nature. I'm sure there are articles out there that are far more evidence-based.

European Commission: Technology for people with cognitive, learning, and neurological impairments

This is a list of EU-funded research projects that are meant to be directed at developing tech for people with cognitive, learning, and neurological disabilities.

So the page lists out a bunch of different projects and links to all of them. Unfortunately, every single link is broken. Don't you worry. I dug them all up on Wayback.

Insension (2.256 million Euros)
Using AI to try to track and interpret 'unconventional behavioural signals such as specific body movements, facial expressions, or vocalizations.'
Easy Reading (2 million Euros)
Currently, the project appeals to be a kind of Chrome or Firefox extension that appears as an overlay onto web content and offers '16 tools' including text to speech, reading mode, screen-rule (to show where to read), injects symbols into paragraphs, changes the font or background color, a picture dictionary and word dictionary, among many others. The actual goals of the project would be to create software that improve the legibility of web content for people with cognitive disabilities, among other research activities. All of Easy Read's deliverables are available for download. The team has apparently also worked on COGA with the W3C.
GABLE (1 million Euros)
A project that developed a series of 'serious games' intended to improve balance in children with Celebral Palsy. A serious game is a game that has a motive other than just amuzement, in this case the goal is balance rehabilitation and physical therapy. As CP children have a range of functionality, the series of games that the GABLE team developed included a highly customized level editor that could be edited to give the game an appropriate intensity and progression to each individual child. The games were had single-player and multi-player modes, intending to foster social development alongside physical capacity.
DE-ENIGMA (4 million Euros)
This project centers mostly around this child-like robot doll, called Zeno, who is used to train Autistic children in how to recognize facial expressions. The doll can make a bunch of facial expressions, and presumably, is less threatening than an adult engaging in the same kind of training. The DE-ENIGMA training recorded a whole bunch of interactions of Zeno and Autistic children. I personally presume that it is those interactions that will be the most siginificant deliverable of this project, as the interactions with Zeno are very formulaic and are a great data set for researchers to work with.
FocusLocus (1 million Euros)
FocusLocus is another 'serious games' project targetting children with ADHD. Their platform, REEFOCUS, is this little marine virtual world that has a bunch of mini games in it aimed at developing skills in delay aversion, inhibitory control, sustained attention, motor coordination, working memory, and selective attention. Children do these games while wearing a headpiece that can monitor electric brain waves. This, in addition to clinician assessments, monitors their progress.
MaTHiSiS (6.5 million Euros)
The weird acronym stands for "Managing Affective-learning THrough Intelligent atoms and Smart InteractionS." MaTHiSiS's website has been hacked so I couldn't glean more than just basic details: The project aimed to create a platform that promoted non-linear schemes aiming to engineer a universal leaning approach appropriate for those with mental difficulties including IDD and Autism, and that they were going to use AI to do it. A lot of the material is in Greek, and I don't speak Greek.
InLife (1 million Euros)
InLife is a project that integrates 'serious games' intended to teach basic life skills with feedback from technology in a Smart Home (like a smart freaking recycling bin for example). One example they give is a game that rewards a child every time you put recycling in the recycling and garbage in the garbage. The project was divided into two wings, with one wing specifically targetting at building 'serious games' to help Autistic children develop social skills
Able to Include (1.57 million Euros)
The Able to Include project developed a set of open source tools that can be used as an 'accessibility layer' catering to the comprehesion needs of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This layer can be integrated into existing programs and is released as open source software. The tools include a mechanism that translated text to pictures, a mechanism that simplifies text, and a mechanism that reads text aloud. It is primarily a Spanish language project. The accessibility layer can be integrated into social media apps like Facebook and WhatsApp. The team also created Kolumba, which they dubbed the 'easiest mail client in the web.' It is intended to provide an easy interface with few functionalities, with the primary goal of promoting labour integration for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In many ways, the Able to Include followed similar goals to the Easy Reading project. But while the Easy Reading project created an overlay, the Able to Include project provided developer functionality to integrate this kind of assistance into apps natively.
Poseidon (3 million dollars)
Poseidon developed a bunch of apps and conducted research on ways that people with Down Syndrome can benefit from ICT-based assistive technology. Their main platform provides assistance in task setting, event setting, and route tracking. It is a platform with two sides. Support providers can control user settings and add new contet (such as tasks, events, and routes) on Poseidon's interface for carers, available as a website. Users with Down Syndrome access their account on a mobile app. The app also provides a training mode for people with Down Syndrome to learn the route before they exit the house, and also provides support for shopping and money handling.

Georgia Tech, AMAC: Every Moment Counts

Another broken link. The amount of broken links is frankly undignified.

The biggest takeaway from this slide deck is that it proposes different functions that assistive technology for mental health might have.

The slide deck gives a bunch of examples of apps, many free! that you can download and use today.

Association of University Centers on Disabilities: Portrayal of People with Disabilpractice before they go to the shop. Shoppingities

Another broken link. Just speaking of accessibility for mental health and cognitive disabiltiies, these broken links really drive a wedge through me. Not to be dramatic, but I do feel like I'm being sawed in half with every new link that turns out to be broken.

Material here was basically covered under Disability Etiquette using other sources. It does talk about the End the Word campaign, which is another part of historical context.

Studies in Health Technology and Informatics: 360 Degree Films for Cognitive Inclusion at Workplaces

First Reaction

First reaction is a gut-drop. I have a Mastodon thread that got picked up and passed around a bit where I complained about the usage of dyslexia simulators. From that, some folks pointed me to resources that showed the very negative effect that so-called "disability simulators" have and I was even exposed to one unfortunate "autism simulator" that made me absolutely reel.

This article opens with the statement that three 360-degree films were developed as an exercise in "increasing awareness" amongst the non Disabled population and promises good results. It also has the keyword tag "empathy exercises" which puts me instanty on high alert. Let's see how bad (or good?) this is.

Things This Article Gets Right

Eftring and Kjellstrang, the authors of the article, are actually aware of the 'Crip for a Day' article that reports disability simulations lead to increased feelings of confusion and stigma, among other things. Eftring and Kjellstrang suggest that the reason their project was successful lies in the fact that their 360deg immersive films focus ultimately on the solution and accommodations that would ammeliorate the situation, rather than the "disability simulation" itself.

And Not Right

Unfortunately, the videos that this project created are not findable online. They do include this excerpt regardng some of the content, however

When editing the pilot film, some effects were added, including noise from the traffic outside and when a person eats crispbread and a red beating heart with changing frequency, indicating stress level. The film also included thought bubbles to visualise the thoughts of the person at the centre of the scenario.

The fundamental issue is that simulations really, really fail. Thought bubbles cannot capture abstract thoughts. A red beating heart cannot actually show you what stress looks like or feels like. It will always be half-baked and bad and even when it's good, it will only illustrate one person's way of perceiving things. To pretend otherwise it to give non-Disabled people the impression that they know more than they actually do.

When "disability simulators" are developed, I believe that it should be entirely be spearheaded by one Disabled individual given full artistic freedom. At the very least, Disabled people should be in charge of it. But Eftring and Kjellstrang's methodology was to solicit kinds of scenarios from Disabled folks, and then do all the artistic work themselves with a team of non-Disabled people.

Imagine if a group of white cisgender men did a half-day fact-finding mission with a focus group of women trying to figure out ways that women feel the workplace didn't accommodate them. Imagine if they contracted a proceeded to turn some of that feedback into an immersive 360 simulator of 'what it's like to be a woman in the workplace,' and then show to a bunch of cisgender men in middle-management. It's a ridiculous prospect.

Get your goddamn empathy by listening to people talk about their experiences, don't try to make some shoddily edited simulation. The IAAP should link to testimonials of what it's like to be a cognitively Disabled person in modern workplaces, and not this bullcrap.

Buddy Project: Marketplace for assistive technologies for people with cognitive disabilities

The Buddy project's main deliverable was to create a cognitive-friendly app where people with intellectual disabilities and other cognitive disabilities could view their options for assitive technology. The Buddy project identified a barrier, in that most cognitively disabled people received assistive technology passively through their support network, and instead wanted to create an experience where people with cognitive disabilities may browse the options for themselves, and use the app independently.

In the Buddy project's final report, they detailed several steps that made to make their platform more friendly. For example, user testing revealed that email confirmation was too confusing. Instead, Buddy project used a Honeypot strategy to try to combat bots registering accounts en masse, which allows people to creative an account without verifying their email. Another step they took was different methods to assess user needs. Users could either fill out a multi-step form, or complete a series of minigames to assess what kinds of AT might be suitable to recommend to them.

Nine 'user need' areas were decided on; they range from reading to calculation to memory and time management. The Buddy platform annotates each of the entries in the AT database with one or more of these user need areas, and then tailours experience to user using the assessment data.

Extensive user testing is a real win in this project.

G3ict: Smart Cities for All Toolkit

This is listed as a Domain 2 supplement. Though there's a few materials here in this toolkit, I think the most salient resource that is being pointed to is the package titled, "Communicating the case for a stronger commitment to digital inclusion in cities". I believe this pairs best with the notes we've already taken on the Benefits of Accessibility.

Summary

The package details a bunch of points, accompanied with statistics, that one can use to selectively build a case for the inclusion of digital accessibility within city planning, though the arguments are applicable to basically all domains.

Here are points they made, quoted verbatim.

  • Persons with disabilities are significant drivers of city economies.
  • Older persons are also significant drivers of city economies.
  • ICT accessibility supports employment rates in cities.
  • ICT accessibility benefits all citizens.
  • Cities that commit to ICT accessibility are technology leaders.
  • Persons with disabilities have worse socio-economic outcomes.
  • The UNCRPD recognizes ICT accessibility as a basic human right.
  • ICT accessibility can support the right to participate equally.
  • Persons with disabilities have the right to participate equally.
  • Cities can be disability rights leaders.
  • Commitment to ICT accessibility provides real technical benefits.
  • Digital accessibility offers cost savings.
  • Accessibility improves maintenance processes and efficiency.
  • Reduction of server load.
  • ICT accessibility is not expensive for cities to implement.

Some Commentary

For city planners, arguments like 'Cities can be disability rights leaders' blur the distinction between traditional business-case and human rights arguments for ICT accessibility. A novel argument that I haven't quite seen before is the one regarding 'reduction of server load,' where it is argued file size of each page is reduced when made accessible, and that accessible websites can be browsed by users with low bandwidth connections.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 41/44: Further Readings

Noted Monday, February 3, 2024

At this point I've mostly been reviewing, but I need to actually ensure that I read all the further readings. I've read some of them as I progressed through the various topics, but definitely not all of them. I also need to think about all the recommended study activities.

United Nations: Chapter V: Breaking Down Barriers

We open with a cautionary statement on demographics. Throughout this article, the authors will repeatedly emphasize that more practical data needs to be collected regarding the prevalence of disability and the living conditions of Disabled people, as well of the efficacy of the programs that are on the books in different nation states.

How many Disabled people are poor, and how many poor people are Disabled? There's a high correlation, but we don't know how high it is internationally. Disabled people are less likely to be employed and Disabled children are less likely to go to school, especially in developing countries. Inaccessible employment and education options excarbate this state of affairs, but not all barriers are physical: attitudinal barriers concerning the capacity and worthiness of Disabled people also lead to troubling outcomes.

Disability Benefits: Comprehensive Coverage

The UN has identified various kinds of coverage that support three stages of life. Care/support benefits (additional budget to cover AT, support workers, and rehabilitation) should be provided throughout.

A child disability benefit should be provided to a Disabled child's parents through their childhood.

Disabled adults should have access to income replacement benefit, disability-related costs benefit, partial or full disability pension, and employment injury compensation.

Older Disabled adults should have access to an old age-pension in additional to disability-related costs benefit.

Disability Benefits: Effective Coverage

Comprehensive coverage is not the same as 'effective coverage.' A program may be comprehensive but it's only effective if Disabled people know it exists and can be accepted into their program. Apparently, only about 28% of people with severe disabilities receive disability benefits, with South-East, Central, and Southern Asia having particularly low percentages.

The authors note that "notable strides" have been made since the CRPD, but the numbers speak clearly for themselves: More work is to be done.

Disability Benefits: Adequate Coverage

When coverage is adequate, disability benefits are sufficient to guarantee income security.

Many countries, however, purposely set disability benefit values below the minimum wage in order to avoid any potential negative impact on the employment of persons with disabilities

Apparently Uzbekistan and Brazil are the best went it comes to this. Speaking from my perspective, it is not uncommon to hear, especially from Disabled people in America and Canada, that one cannot live off of disability benefits provided. There are also many people who lose the ability to qualify for disability benefits if they get married, if they receive gifts of money, if they hold a part-time job or do gig work. The support offered is highly conditional, meaning that Disabled people cannot supplement inadequate resources lest they risk losing all the benefits they are granted. People in this situation are trapped.

Another hole people can fall through is when their disability is not recognized as such. In places like India and Japan, as we've learned from other readings, the actual percentage of Disabled people is estimated to be higher. In India, this may be due to the fact that only a limited amount of disability types are recognized.

Disability Benefits: Who Qualifies

Disability assessments and knowledge of disability programs stand in the way between Disabled people and these benefits. Shifting eligibility criteria compounds the problem.

Recent disability social protection reforms have concentrated on removing benefits for persons who have disabilities but a significant capacity to work.

The authors note that doing this effectively results in less Disabled people in the labour force. They note that Australia and Ireland have tried to combat this progressively; Australia allows pension receivers to work up to 30 hours/week without losing the benefit. These efforts have been more succesful in increasing labour participation than reforms that attach benefits to participation in training and job-searching activities.

Conclusion

The article concludes with a call to research the impact of disability benefits on a global scale, and recommends that whatever social protections offered to Disabled people should not hinder the the larger goal of social inclusion of Disabled people in the workplace and in public life.

Additional Commentary

I think this article conclusion operates from a rehabilition first mindset that prioritizes the health of the economy over the quality of life of Disabled people. The article's conclusion should finish with a call for effective, comprehensive, and adequate coverage by provided to all, but perhaps the authors shy away from this in recognition that this is a large jump ahead from what many developing countries are able to procure.

It's a pragmatic conclusion and non-preachy conclusion, but I think they could have crafted a similar idealistic call using the CRPD and SDG frameworks that would still come across as motivating and realistic.

WHO, Assistive Technology for Children with Disabilities

This document has an easy-read version, good to get a gist of the general argument before you jump into the statistics and paragraphs.

Summary

If it estimated that only 10% of Disabled children in low-income countries go to school. The main argument of this paper is that access to assistive technology is a major reason for this statistic. They emphasize assistive technology as a "precondition for achieving equal opportunities" and that the right to assistive technology is enshrined in the CRPD and Convention on the Rights of the Child, with particular reference to Article 23 of the CRC.

Assistive technology helps Disabled children with mobility, vision, hearing, communication, and cognition. Children who use AT have higher confidence and are viewed with 'better attitudes from community members.' It also may reduce broader economic burden from formal support services or caregiver responsibilities.

The global need for AT has not been identified statistically. For example, the number of people who need hearing aids and number of people who have hearing disabilities is not the same.

Current barriers to getting AT include financial barriers, lack of national programs, lack of awareness of AT solutions, lack of regional supply, and inaccessibility that might make the AT less effective.

The WHO recommends that AT provision programs should be developed under the principles of availability, accessibility, affordability, adaptability, acceptability, and quality, and while engaging in international cooperation.

Some Commentary

I would have liked if they would have covered something related to how products marketed towards Disabled people or as AT have an enormous markup. It also seems a bit distasteful to imply that AT can be a replacement for more formal service provision. Some clarification on the interaction of support services with AT would have been appreciated, or it may have been better if the scope of this article was widened to the provision of formal services and AT to children.

Under the CRC and CRPD, children have a right to both. They also aren't easily separated from one another. For example, an audiologist might work with a speech language pathologist to determine appropriate technology for a Deaf child. Additionally, all of the suggestions for what characterize good AT provision programs indeed also apply to the provision of formal services.

Project IDEAL: Speech or Language Impairments

Content from this section already integrated into my page on Speech and Language Disorders.

Scottish Muscle Network: Information about Fatigue Management

Content from this section integrated into my page on Mobility Disabilities.

University of Florida: Teaching Students with Disabilities: Orthopedic Impairment

Summary

An orthopedic impairments include neuromoter impairements, degernative diseases, and musculoskeletal disorders. This article argues that instructors teaching students with an orthopedic disability ought to make their teaching accessible, because it likely won't be accessible by default. It calls on instructors to collaborate with the student's support team to understand how accommodations should be incorporated, to stay creative and flexible, and to take special consideration in hands-on learning settings like labs and field trips.

Some Commentary

A lot of this article emphasizes communication with the student's support team, mentors, and individualized education plans, but it doesn't really emphasize the need to collaborate with the student themself. Like, I would really hate if someone just emailed my orthopaedic specialist without my consent or consultation, and assumed my orthopaedic specialist knew how to best accommodate me. No, my experience with that guy is very sour and he is not the best assessor of my access needs (he couldn't even assess my treatment needs properly). The authors of this article need to give the Disabled student more of a role, more voice, and more autonomy in their recommendations here. Especially because the article seems to be aimed at university instructors, where the students are adults.

On another note, orthopedic disability is a great term and really encompasses most of the things that IAAP's Mobility/Flexibility/Size-and-Shape category tries to speak to. I think the IAAP should change the name of this category to Orthopedic Disability in the future.

European Agency for Inclusive Education: Country Information for Europe

I have no idea what we are supposed to glean from this source. In terms of applying this to recommended study activities of Domain 1, I see literally zero relevance. Perhaps familiarizing with disability statistics for different countries, but this is a horribly clunky way to do it.

I'm skipping this one. I swear if they ask me 'What are the European Countries with the highest rate of children enrolled in inclusive education programs,' I am going to absolutely mauld.

Cognitive Ctiteria Project: Prototypes of cognitively accessible features for websites

This is another non-source. There is no link, and Google searches retrieve nothing. Skipping.

ETSI EG 203 350 V1.1.1 (2016-11): Guidelines for design of mobile ICT devices and their related applications for people with cognitive disabilities

This is a technical document, 86 pages. I recommend reading Annex A where is lists the usage needs, or the skill gaps that people with various cognitive disability profiles might have. I also recommend Annex B, which lists the principles underpinning the project. In the next section, I list each of the principles underpinning ETSI EG 203 350 and compare them to principles we see in WCAG 2.X, the Universal Design for Learning Guidelines 2.2, and the Universal Design Principles.

Conformity with user expectations.
Similar to WCAG 3.2 Predictable, UD Principle 3b "be consistent with user expectations and intuition." Shares some similarity with UDLG 3, 'Provide options for Comprehension.'
Support for Individualization
WCAG 1.3 Adaptable is what comes to mind, but the most one to one is probably the Level AAA SC 1.4.8 Visual Presentation, which is filed under WCAG 1.4 Distinguishable. In terms of UDLG, look to 1.1 'Offer ways of customizing the display of information.'
Perceivable
Shares a name with the first WCAG Guideline, Perceivable. Similar to UDLG 1, 'Provide options for Perception.' Also similar to UDL 4, 'Perceptible Information.'
Understandability
Shares a name with WCAG Guideline 3: Understandable. Lots of overlap with UDLG 2'Provide options for Language and Symbols' as well as UDLG 3 'Provide options for Comprehension.' Minimal overlap with UD Principle 3b, 'Accommodate a wide range of literacy and language skills' and other guidelines under Principle 3, 'Simple and Intuitive.'
Controllability
Maps pretty cleanly onto WCAC Guideline 2: Operable.
Error Tolerance
UD Principle Tolerance for Error is most relevant here.
Compatability with Other Systems
Most relevant here is WCAG 4.1: Compatible. Also adjacent would be UD Principle 4e: 'Provide compataibility with a variety of techniques or devices used by people with sensory limitations.' Also might be relevant is WCAG 2.5 Input Modalities.
Suitability for Learning
This one exclusively maps to WCAG SC 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions.
Freedom from Distractions
Most relevant here is UDLG 7.3 Minimize threats or harm. Also relevant is UD Principle 5d 'Discourage unconscious action in tasks that require vigilance.' In WCAG, one of the big ones for this is Pause, Stop, Hide.

Institute of Entrepreneurship Development: Learning difficulties in Europe

Very short post on dyslexia, this may be the source for some of the statistics we have seen pushed by the Body of Knowledge. This article acknowledges that dyslexia can be an even more serious issue for people living in a countries that use a language other than their native language, or have alot of language diversity, or frequently use multilingual communication.

IACEP: References Cognitive Education, Dynamic Testing & Assessment

Literally no idea what this is doing here since it's just a portal to a bunch of different websites selling courses and programs.

From what I can gather, the IACEP is an organization primarily focused on something called 'Dynamic Assessment' which is a supposedly culture-neutral way to see if children are struggling cognitiviely. It measures a student's ability to learn a skill in an interactive proceess. This is opposed to traditional intellectual testing, which assumes a static intellectual quotient and ultimately fixed capacity.

But if that was the point, this is a horrible webpage to point to. This website assumes you are already familiar with what dynamic assessment is. Highly strange.

National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Facts about Intellectual Disability

Broken link, but I found it on wayback. I found that the material here was sufficiently covered by the notes on intellectual disability that I have in Cognitive Disabilities.

I personally learned one new thing from this article. There's an implication here that if a child had some kind of brain injury at 17 years old, they would be considered to be have an intellectual disability. But if a person had a brain injury at 18 years of age, they would not be considered to have intellectual disability, but maybe just brain damage. I am curious as to what the formal diagnosis would be in such a case.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 40/44: Visual Disabilities

Noted Thursday, January 30, 2025

Demographics

2.2 billion people have vision impairment, of which 1 billion have a vision impairment that either could have been prevented, or has yet to be addressed.

Most people with a form of vision impairment are over the age of 50.

1 in 12 people assigned male at birth have red-green colour vision deficiency, as opposed to 1 in 200 people assigned at birth (among people with Northern European ancestry).

1 in 10 000 people have blue-yellow colour vision deficiency.

246 million people (3.5% of the population) have low vision, and 90% of which live in low income settings.

Medical Details

There are many, many conditions that can cause a wide range of vision problems. Although it is not explictly linked to, I'd encourage anyone to read the America Foundation for the Blind's Glossary of Eye Conditions because it can give a sense of the sheer range of variation.

The Body of Knowledge charts out visual disabilities as disabilities that include any or some of the following: loss of vision to different degrees, loss of sharpness/visual acuity, loss of sensitivity to colours. But read through the Glossary, and you will find so many other different manifestations. For the purposes of the exam, we're going to look at three kinds of profiles: colour vision deficiency, low vision, and Blindness.

Low Vision

While there are technically very specific numbers and measures that define what is and isn't 'low vision' in (for example) legal contexts, the AFB alongside a selection of practitioners prefer a functional definition. In Low Vision and Legal Blindness Terms and Descriptions, a linked BoK source, the AFB defines low vision as basically being "not enough vision to do whatever it is you need to do" which can truly vary from person to person.

People with low vision can use technology intended for low vision people like magnification.

Low vision can range "from moderate impairment to near-total blindness," as defined by the Glossary I linked to earlier.

Blindness

Many Blind people retain some degree of light perception, or the ability to see vague shapes. Some Blind people have total vision loss which is known as 'NLP' or 'no light perception.'

Blindness is a spectrum and can range from some vision loss, nearly complete vision loss, and complete vision loss.

Clarifying Low Vision vs Blindness

Astute readers will have already picked up on something fishy going on here. Low vision is a spectrum, from moderate impairment to near total blindness. Blindness is a spectrum, ranging from some to total vision loss. How the heck are these two things different?

The most obvious difference is that people with total vision loss will definitely not be using the term, 'low vision.' For people with some vision and/or light perception, the question is a bit more nuanced. While the general trend is that people with more functional vision will tend towards identifying with the 'low vision' label and people with less functional vision will tend towards identifying with the 'Blind' label, we should take some time to describe the different aspects of these words that might influence an individual person's identification.

Low vision and blindness have strict definitions when used in medical and demographical contexts. There is a number cut off between low vision and what is commonly called 'legal blindness,' but I feel 'medical blindness' might be more appropriate, as it is defined in the International Classification of Diseases, 11th edition. For example, the WHO used ICD-11's number cut off when they were determining how many low vision people there are globally. Here's an excerpt from their 2012 announcement.

WHO estimates that the number of people with visual impairment (presenting vision) is 285 million (65% of whom are aged over 50 years). Of these, 246 million have low vision (63% over 50) and 39 million are estimated to be blind (82% over 50).

In using the cut-off, there is absolutely no overlap between people defined as 'blind' and people defined as 'low vision.'

But the medical definition is not the only one used, nor is it the only definition used to assess 'legal blindness' across nation states of the world. Nations and jusridictions also may have their own definitions of 'low vision' and 'blindness' to use in the field of education, as an indication of what kind of schooling has been determined to be most appropriate for the child.

The word, Blind, is also sometimes taken up as a marker of social identity. People who have low vision or medical blindness have historically had a very similar position in society. They share common experiences and barriers, and access resources from similar organizations such as the American Federation of the Blind and other members of the World Blind Union. Not as many laypeople are entirely familiar with words like 'low vision,' and so Blind as a term may come across as honest and accessible term.

We can see this identity version of the word 'Blind' well at work in the case of the word, 'DeafBlind'. DeafBlind is a label taken up by people who have a wide range of functional vision and functional hearing. One never hears about a person who is Deaf-low-vision, or Hard-of-hearing-low-vision.

In this blog, I often use the word in the expanded social identity sense to refer to Blind people as it aligns with the general convention that this blog takes to the promotion of the identity model of disability. I hope this is obvious, but do respect the preferences people have with what they would like to be called. Some people out there fully prefer the term 'visually impaired' as opposed to 'blind,' perhaps feeling like the word carries a negative connotation or stigma. Others feel oppositely. Some people with a small bit of functional vision will gravitate towards the 'low vision' label, others will feel that they are Blind.

To summarize, low vision and blindness have strict medical definitions. Used non-medically, both words are recognized as being applicable to people who still retain various degrees of light perception and vision. The decision to embrace one label or the other is largely cultural and ultimately comes down to personal preference.

Colour Vision Deficiency

According to Medline Plus, a linked BoK source, colour vision deficiency is commonly referred to as colour-blindness.

The most common type is red-green, where shades of red, yellow, and green, may be difficult to distinguish from one another.

Blue-yellow or tritan defects make it hard to distinguish blues from greens, and dark blues from black. This condition is rare.

Blue cone monochromacy features severly reduced color vision, alongside a slew of other symptoms including loss of sharpness, sensitivity to light, nearsighedness, and involuntary eye movements.

Achromatopsia and blue cone monochromacy may be considered to be variations of the same condition. Achromatopsia is more severe, having similar vision symptoms but sometimes resulting in total lack of color vision.

Colour vision deficiency is most often a condition experienced from birth, where it is often hereditary. However, people also may gain colour vision deficiency later in life after some kind of injury: after retinal detachment, laser eye injuries, radiation treatment, and brain tumours affecting the optic nerve.

Accommodation

Colour Information

In accommodating people with colour vision deficiency, the most common advice is to simply not rely on colour to convey information. For example, error messages that rely on only a red outline is not an acceptable pattern, as it violates SC 1.4.1 Use of Color in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. Links that are only distinguished by colour also fail this guideline.

There are so many things that commonly use colour to provide information. Many pie charts and complex graphics rely on colour to distinguish between groups of data. Traffic lights. The use of red or green to indicate that something is finished charging, or a TV hub or home assistant that uses a green light to indicate it's been configured properly. The identical condiment containers, red and yellow, for ketchup and mustard. The colour of sports teams jerseys.

Some things naturally give information about themselves through colour. Ripe fruit, especially bananas and tomatos. Is this steak meat rare or medium? Does my child have a sunburn?

Some people with colour vision deficiency wear special contrast-enhancing contact lenses or glasses. They might use colour-changing themes or high contrast mode when browsing the web. They may also rely on apps that can tell what colour things are from a picture.

Solutions that Fit the Situation: Low Vision Tech

There are a lot of assistive technology and accommodation strategies ot there. The appropriateness of these situations is always going to be different from person to person.

There is a class of assistive technology often referred to as 'low vision assistive technology' that is meant to be used by those with some remaining vision left.

We're talking mostly about different kinds of magnifiers and zooming technology. They can be portable handhelds, such as a literally magnifying glass, to video magnifiers (or 'CCTV') that can project very large images onto walls, to screen magnification settings on phones or computers that can magnify and zoom to very high levels like 1500% (sometimes paired with large monitors), screen-magnification programs like ZoomText that provide contrast themes alongside magnification.

High contrast themes are another example of AT intended for the low vision population. Originally known as Windows High Contrast Mode, Windows has since migrated and renamed the feature, and different devices and platforms and extensions now supply their own version of this effect. Web designers can specify certain stylings to only appear when high contrast themes are active through the use of a @media query.

People with low vision also might prefer materials provided in large print. For example, large print phones and keyboards, large print calendars, large print keyboards.

Tech for No Vision

Accompanying this is a bunch of assistive technology and techniques that do not require any vision to operate. People with some vision left may also use this tech in conjunction with tech that does rely on some remaining vision.

Braille

Braille is a way to encrypt letters, numbers, sound abbreviations, and even full words, into six tactile dots arranged into a two-by-three vertically-oriented rectangle. Braille codes change depending on what language the text is written in. For example, Luxembourgish Braille actually relies on an eight-dot system, arranged in a two-by-four rectangle.

Children often pick up Braille faster than adults. The percentage of Blind and low vision people who are proficient in Braille is actually quite low. Learning Braille requires Blind people to have high sensitivity in their fingers, which not everyone has, and learning it as an adult requires some patience as the tactile sensitivity that is needed takes time to develop and acquire. Nowadays, when people lose their vision later in life, they might prefer using synthesized speech instead of endeavoring to learn a whole new system.

However, Braille remains essential to developing good literacy for Blind children and achieving equivelant academic outcomes. It's the only way for them to really learn the ins and outs of spelling and arithmetic, and as the amount of people who actively learn Braille is on the decline, Blind advocates continue to push for its promotion, especially to parents of Blind children who are making decisions about their child's education. DeafBlind people also rely on Braille to access text.

Braille might be written with a slate and stylus (kinda like the equivelant of Braille handwriting), with a mechanical Braille writer (kinda functions like a typewriter), and a Braille embosser (like an ink printer, but for Braille). Braille embossers and Braille writers are several thousands of dollars each. Even Braille labelers, that output small labels that can be used to label things like pantry items and skincare products, can literally cost more than a thousand dollar. There are cheaper ones available on Amazon for less than a hundred, though.

Refreshable Braille displays can be hooked up to a computer to display output from a screenreader. Following the trend, these too are very costly. Wait, what is a screenreader?

Screenreaders

Screenreaders software is not the same as text-to-speech software. A screenreader is a piece of software that converts computer interface and web content provided from browsers into a text-only interface. Output from screenreader software can either be voiced through synthetic speech (text to speech), or sent to a refreshable Braille display. A person using a screenreader will generally use the keyboard, instead of a computer mouse, to navigate. In doing so, they have access to a bunch of keyboard shortcuts that they can use to jump between components and sections of the interface or content.

Here are some questions or directions that can be quickly asked and answered through keyboard shortcuts:

Here are some popular screenreaders:

Browsers and screenreaders work very closely together. Browsers create a version of the content, referred to as the 'accessibility tree' that the screenreader uses to generate output. Each screenreader has a browser that it works best on and each has their own little quirks and tricks. If you are working with screenreader testing, or would like to get a taste about considerations in UX for screenreader users, read Don't Override Screenreader Pronounciation by Adrian Roselli.

To work properly, websites need to be designed in ways that are screenreader-friendly. They need to be fully keyboard operable. They need to use proper semantic marking for interactive components. Graphics and media should have textual alternatives. There are lots of ways to fuck this up, and many screenreader users regularly struggle with accessing content on websites.

Household Tech

I already mentioned Braille labelmakers. There are various pieces of assistive tech that have been developed to address some unique challenges that one encounters as a Blind person going about life.

Voice note recorders and home assistant devices may also be used for everyday tasks.

Orientation and Mobility

Orientation and Mobility training is offered by many organizations and reinforces skills in navigating independently through new and old spaces. O&M trainers will typically perform an assessment on their trainee, taking into consideration their current navigation skills, functional limitations and goals. Some people, especially those who have lost their vision later in life, already know the layout of their neighbourhoods and points of interest, and just need help learning how to traverse safely. Other folks may be more interested in gaining more advanced navigation skills to navigate new environments independently with confidence.

The signature O&M tool is the cane, and it comes in three types. All three types are generically white with a red stripe near the bottom, serving as an identifier to other pedestrians that a person has some kind of visual disability. Unsightly Opinions's YouTube Short on cane types really helped me visualize the different kinds.

  1. Identification cane, or ID cane. Also sometimes called 'symbol canes.' Thin and straight, like a pool cue for billiards. It's used by people who don't need a full mobility cane, but still would like to let other people know that they have low vision. It's largely symbolic, held off the ground in front of the self, and can also be used for simple probing.
  2. Support cane. A version of identification cane that one can use to support their body weight, usually used by people who are physically disabled or older adults.
  3. Mobility Cane or 'long cane' is swept in front of the self to search for tactile feedback. They are much thicker and durable. They come in various materials, some heavier and some lighter, some more rugged, and others more chic. Some have a rolling ball at the end, some have a collapsible spring that prevent people from getting punctured in the gut. The most common type of mobility cane folds into about five or six sections, but others can collapse into itself like a telescope, and others don't fold down at all.

The other classic O&M tool is the guide dog. A guide dog is very good at avoiding obstacles, stopping for overhead obstacles, stopping for changes in elevation, and leading people using what's called the 'straight line principle.' Guide dogs are not meant to replace the need for an individual to build their own O&M skills. People who navigate with guide dogs usually first receive training to navigate with a mobility cane. Here are some resources if you'd like to learn more:

Guide dogs cannot set new routes. They aren't GPS. Audio-based navigation interfaces that use actual GPS can help people determine new routes. New routes may also be learned through tactile maps, or human navigators.

The Built Environment

O&M training and tools work best in accessible environments. These environments have tactile markers on the to indicate changes in elevation and the start of a crosswalk, audio or tactile interfaces and sound cues at pedestrian crossings, tactile signage and tactile floor maps, and pathways clear of obstructions or hazards.

But they also must contend with hostile environments, which lack all of these things, are not properly well lit, are too noisy, feature low hanging architectural features, have incorrectly printed Braille or have accessibility features that have been broken and not repaired, the list goes on.

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Exam Scheduled, or Goal Setting #4.5

Noted Monday, January 27, 2025

Exam Scheduling Process

There were less available time slots than I had anticipated there would be, but I've scheduled it for the evening on Thursday, February 6. I am glad that they offer timeslots in the evening. The other times listed would have interfered with my day job. The email they sent gives us instructions on how to reach the test center. They also linked to a 'what to expect.' The 'what to expect' video was captioned and necessary. I think I would have been absolute thrown for a loop if I had to exactly replicate the signature as signed on my ID without being forewarned about it.

I've been struggling for the past couple days on gearing up motivation. But now that I have a solid deadline and less uncertainty overall about the process, I think I can throw a good schedule together. I will postpone the celebrations until Feb 7, which I will designate as Goal Setting #5. This will signify a new chapter for me and for this blog.

I will not touch the CPACC section of my website after I finish the exam except to write out an 'exam reflection piece.' So part of my work is not only to study for the exam, but to make the CPACC section presentable for a general audience that may (or may not) find it useful.

New Work Schedule

Sunday Jan 26
Finish Mobility Disabilities, Complex Disabilities
Monday Jan 27
Finish Cognitive Disabilities
Tuesday Jan 28
Finish Visual Disabilities
Thursday Jan 30
Finish Disability Demographics
Friday Jan 31
Work on Further Reading
Saturday Feb 1
Finish Further Reading.
Monday Feb 3
Review
Tuesday Feb 4
Review
Thursday Feb 6
Exam Day.
Friday Feb 7
Celebration Day.

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CPACC Study Day 39/44: Multiple/Complex Disabilities

Noted Sunday, January 26, 2025

Demographics

Data from the UK and Australia estimates that 10 to 15% of Disabled people have complex needs.

Medical Details

Differing Defintions

On its face, it seems like we can define multiple/complex disabilities a referring to any person who is multiply disabled. Cognitive, psychological, mobility, seizure, visual, speech and language, hearing. We've identified these as our categories, so mix and match, right?

Not really. Multiple/complex disability is basically a funding allocation defined differently in various jurisdictions. In the US, DeafBlind individuals do not experience multiple/complex disability, because people categorized as 'DeafBlind' and people categorized with 'Multiple disabilities' have different funding allocations.

Sometimes there are other parameters placed on the funding allocation. According to Project IDEAL's page on Multiple disabilities, a linked BoK source, in the US, a person who has depression and limited ambulation will not be given the 'Multiple disabilities' in the educational setting. This is because the 'Multiple disabilities' designation is only given to people who require extensive support 'that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the impairements.'

However, if that same person was applying for the disability tax credit in Canada, they would likely apply as a person with complex disabilities (experiencing mild-to-severe limitations in two of the many official realms of functioning essential for everyday life: cognitive functioning and walking ability).

On the other hand, according to Sense, a UK source linked by the BoK, defines 'complex disability' quite rigidly. One has complex disability if they report their life is impacted by their disabilities and they have two or more of the following: sight loss, hearing loss, autism, and learning disability. In other words, a DeafBlind person has complex disabilities in the UK, but is not considered to have multiple disabilities in the US!

The Important Takeaway

I hope this exposes you slightly to the administrative hoops that governments force Disabled people to jump through in order to qualify for different programs and support.

People can be and often are disabled in multiple ways. Ashlee M. Fisher/Boyer's piece, "Disability is not a Single-Selection Field" provides insight on how the assumption of a single disability can be alienating.

I really resonate with her piece.

Accommodations

People who are multiply disabled may not be able to accommodate themselves the way a person with a single disability would.

The clearest example of this is DeafBlindness. Not quite accounted for in the visual Deaf world, or the audio-oriented Blind world, they have had to blaze their own path in creating tactile-forward support systems and languages.

Perkin's video Assistive Technology in Minutes for Students Who Are Blind with Multiple Disabilities , linked in the Body of Knowledge, suggests that some people face barriers so unique that the right assistive technology won't be available on the market. You have to DIY your own devices.

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CPACC Study Day 38/44: Cognitive Disabilities

Noted Thursday, January 23, 2025

Demographics

Intellectual disability is held by about 200 million people globally.

Dyslexia is the cause of 70%-80% of cases of reading difficulty.

Dyslexia rates are estimated at 5-10%, but sometimes as high as 17%.

Dyscalculia rates are estimated at 3-6%.

ADHD rates in children are between 2-7%.

ADHD rates in adults is at 4%.

Autism has a prevalence of 1 in 100 people.

NVLD has a prevalence of 1 in 100 amongst children in the USA.

Medical Details

A Note on the Category Itself

The IAAP defines cognitive disabilities as those that interfere with the mental functions required for cognitive processing. Separating out cognitive disabilities, speech and language disabiltiies and psychological disabilities is how the IAAP does it, but different organizations and thinkers make distinctions in different ways. For example, some would consider aphasia to be a cognitive disorder instead of a speech and language disorder. Some would classify anxiety disorders as cognitive disorders instead of psychological disorders. For the purposes of the examination however, stick to what the IAAP tells you. Classifying specific conditions into their appropriate subtypes is one of the areas the explicitly test you on.

The disorders presented in this category vary in presentation but deal in impairment in one or multiple of the following areas:

Intellectual Disability

Diagnosis

According to the AAIDD, a linked BoK source, one meets the requirements for intellectual disability if they have impaired intellectual functioning (assessed by a low IQ score, generally lower than 75) and impaired adaptive behaviour existing prior to them being an adult (22 years old). Adaptive behaviour refers to conceptual skills (reading, writing, arithmetic, navigation), social skills, and practical skills (occupational skills, financial skills, personal care, following instructions).

The IQ number changes from juristiction to juristiction, as does the age that determines adulthood. While it an official diagnosis in the DSM-V, more relevant to the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disability, these are the criteria that determine eligibility for support.

There are various specific disorders associated with intellectual disability, but many just receive a general 'intellectual disability' label with unknown causes.

According to the American Psychiatric Association, a linked BoK source, intellectual disability may be present alongside another conditions, such as autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, ADHD, anxiety and depression.

The Current Situation

Given the way that society is structured right now, many people with intellectual and developmental disabilities continue to legally not be entitled to many of the rights that the mainstream population is given.

For example, many of them work for subminimum wage or for free. When people abuse them, their cases are handled by a segregated court and not by the normal justice system. Many live in group homes or straight-up prison-like institutions where abuse runs rampent. Those who don't often will not even have keys to their own house or apartment. Many have their rights restricted unfairly by their caregivers and are offered no way to gain their rights back. This treatment (besides abuse) is largely fully legal. Society really, really needs to do better.

As an accessibility professional, you should at least be semi-aware that this is going on in your backyard.

Obligatory note on IQ

Here's a piece from Big Think titled, Is IQ a load of BS? that I recommend you read to understand what IQ is and isn't. The piece neglects to note that IQ testing itself is highly, highly variable. People will get different IQ scores depending on whether they have had a bad day or not, they can train to 'game the test' and get a higher score. There's also multiple versions of IQ testing.

Dyslexia

Dyslexia is not the sole cause for disability related to reading difficulty, but it accounts for a large portion of it (other causes might be things like language processing disorders). The actual mechanism for dyslexia is unclear, but it effects reading, writing, and spelling. Most people think its primary mechanism is difficulty in phonological processing, but it also might interfere with verbal working memory, and rapid naming and sequencing skills.

Dyslexia is not considered to be an intellectual disability. Instead, we can consider it a kind of information processing disorder.

According to the European Dyslexia Association, a linked BoK source, dyscalculia, developmental language disorder, anxiety disorders, depression, and ADHD are commonly diagnosed alongside dyslexia.

Although usually present from childhod, adult-onset dyslexia may occur in the context of dementia or brain injury.

Dyscalculia

According to Understood's article on dyscalculia, a linked BoK source, dyscalculia is known alternatively as mathematics learning disability, mathematics learning disorder, math dyslexia, and number dyslexia. Individuals with dyscalculia might have an impaired ability to think in terms of 'number sense.'

Number sense is composed of a few things, notably

Autism Spectrum Disorder

ASD is a neurological condition characterized by impaired ability to engage in social communication and interaction, and repetitive behaviours.

Symptoms must be severe enough to interfere with daily life, symptoms cannot be explained the presence of another conditions, and symptoms must be present as the autistic person was growing up.

ASD is diagnosed at ASD Level 1, ASD Level 2, and ASD Level 3 to indicate the level of support the autistic person might require on an ongoing basis, but these are not considered separate disorders. The 1-2-3 classification supercedes what used to be a set of different disorders, including Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, Asperger's, and Rhett Syndrome. All of these disorders are now considered deprecated within the DSM V, all of them falling under the broad spectrum of ASD.

There is a tendency for people not well-versed in the matter to think of the 'spectrum' as meaning that everyone is "a little bit autistic" in their own way. This is not the case. The 'spectrum' refers to the idea that those that fit the criteria for the disorder are a very heterogenous population with a wide variety of support needs. The various ways that social impairment and repetitive behaviours manifest themselves are multitudinous. If you've met a person with ASD, you've met one autistic person. There are a lot of autistic people in my life. Trust me when I say that our diversity cannot be understated.

Some autistic people also have intellectual disability. According to the US Centre for Disease Control, a linked BoK source, other comorbodities may include hyperativity, impulsivity and inattention, seizure disorders, anxiety disorders, and gastrointestinal issues.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

ADHD is fundamentally a neurological disorder of executive functioning or the ability to sustain attention towards a directed goal. The DSM V criteria for ADHD, as linked in the BoK, sketch out two three types: predominantly inattentive, predominantly hyperactive, and combined type.

The inattentive type is associated with poor listening skills, forgetfulness, carelessness, diminished attention span, and inability to complete assignments.

The hyperactive-impulsive type is associated with restlessness, fidgeting, inability to wait one's own turn, tendency to interupt another's activities or speech.

According to ADHD Mythbusting, a source linked in the BoK, while everyone may display some of these behaviours at some point or another, ADHDers display them with greater intensity, severity, and chronicity than people without ADHD. To receive a diagnosis, symptoms must be present before the age of 12.

The Mythbusting website also clarifies that ADHD is not just an excuse for laziness, it is not something that is commonly grown out of, it is not overdiagnosed, nor is it caused by 'bad parenting.'

According to the National Resource Center on ADHD, linked in the BoK, ADHD in adulthood is associated with depression, mood disorders, and substance abuse. More than two thirds of children with ADHD have at least one anther co-existing condition.

Non-Verbal Learning Disorder

NLD, while not listed in the DSM-V, is a proposed disorder fundamentally characterized with an inability to manage visual-spatial information. This results in struggles with learning (especially mathematics), visualizing concepts, recognizing patterns, executive functioning issues, social impairment (especially when it comes to concepts like 'personal space.'). A child with NLD might struggle to tie their shoes, ride a bike, and tell their left from their right. Classically, NLD children are hyperverbal and have a large vocabulary.

NLD shares a lot of common characteristics with ASD, to the point that they are frequently mistaken for one another, anecdotally highly co-occuring, and some folks even believe that NLD falls within ASD's 'spectrum.' Such speculation is possible because, as a proposed disorder, it remains under-researched, under-funded and consensus for diagnostic criteria remains very, very open.

Accommodations

We've covered a wide range of profiles, so predictably, accommodations will be highly specific to person.

If I had to identify a common theme, people with cognitive disabilities benefit from guidance. Many people with cognitive disabilities receive guidance from designated support workers, counsellors or therapists. But for the purposes of universal and inclusive design, 'guidance' is a very general heading that boils into making expectations clear and allowing tolerance for error. In what ways may we build guidance and tolerance for error into the system itself?

Supporting Reading Ability

Reading can be hard for anyone, but it can be particularly challenging for people with intellectual disabilities or dyslexia. Providing alternatives to reading, such as audio explanations, videos, or images, may be an option, but it is not always going to be feasible.

When you do provide communication, consider using plain language. The Plain language institute offers this definition, which is formalized into an ISO standard on Plain language.

A communication is in plain language if its wording, structure, and design are so clear that the intended readers can easily find what they need, understand what they find, and use that information.

Let's isolate and point out a few key points in this definition.

Plain language is related to but not synonymous with the concept of 'easy read.' Easy read is a format intended for people with intellectual disabilities or very low literacy. If you're writing in the plain language spirit and your intended reader consists of people with intellectual disabilities, you might reach for easy read as a framework for your text.

Wikipedia boils down the UK Government's easy read guidelines into this concise paragraph:

Easy read advocates sentences of no more than ten to fifteen words, with each sentence having just one idea and one verb. Active sentences are used instead of passive sentences. Easy read is closely edited to express ideas in a small number of simple words. Any difficult word or idea is explained in a separate sentence

Easy read materials are frequently accompanied by illustrations or images to support the deciphering of the text.

Writing in plain language, or creating easy read texts, is more of an art than a science. Whether something is readable is only determined the second that the intended audience reads it. Guideline 3.1 of WCAG, Readable, suggests three techniques for making your text more readable: define unusual words, define abbreviations, and ensure text doesn't surpass lower-secondary education reading level (and if it does, to provide an accessible alternative). These are all Level AAA criteria, and not required to meet what most jurisdictions feel is a basic minimum standard.

The UDL Guidelines for Language and Symbols as well as Building Knowledge also offer some ideas on how to support reading ability.

Supporting Navigation

Offer hints on how to navigate through both physical and digital spaces. Highlight important information or locations, ensure signage or links are large and clear. Use tactile, graphic, architectual cues to support wayfinding in the physical world. Rely on skeumorphic design and common navigation patterns, breadcrumbs, sitemaps, and search bars in the digital world.

Supporting Task Completion

Instructions should be clear and easy to read. Limit distractions when sustained effort is needed for task completion. And ensure the that there is enough time to complete the task. For example, a person with ADHD might fill out half a form and then leave the tab open for four days trying to convince themselves to go back and finish it. It would be heartbreaking if all their progress was lost. Speaking from first-hand experience here.

Supporting Cognitive Functions through Assistive Tech

Assistive tech that support reading ability can include:

Assistive tech that support task completion include:

Accommodating Cognitive Disabilities Benefits Everyone

The CPACC Body of Knowledge really does take time to stress this point. Supporting reading ability, navigation, and task completion bolsters usability.

In my view, it also is beneficial because temporary cognitive dysfunction can literally strike anyone at anytime, this is just human nature. Sometimes we do it to ourselves intentionally, for fun. Sometimes it is out of grief, or because we're overwhelmed or stressed. And I think a non-insignificant portion of the population has various degrees of long COVID-related brain fog.

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CPACC Study Day 37/44: Mobility Disabilities

Noted Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Mobility, Flexibility, and Body Structure Disabilities

Demographics

11% of adults in the US have mobility disabilities.

No stats on manual dexterity issues or body structure disabilities.

Medical Details

A Large Category

There are so many conditions and specific presentations that can interfere with a person's ability to move around, and the CPACC doesn't really have time for all of them.

Instead of focusing too much on the individual conditions that cause movement disabilities, we are encouraged instead to look at three symptom profiles: impairment in manual dexterity, impairment in ambulationn, and muscle fatigue.

The IAAP also lopes in the specific consideration of 'size or shape' disabilities in this category. Examples of these include gigantism and acromegaly, alongside dwarfism. And obesity.

Manual Dexterity

Manual dexterity or fine motor control describes the ability to do intricate hand and wrist movements. With fine motor control, a person can write, use a keyboard, manipulate small objects, and tie knots.

Some people completely lack manual dexterity due to paralysis or a limb difference. Others may have poor manual dexterity due to physical injuries like RSI or broken bones. Poor manual dexterity also might from ataxia, loss of motor skills due to neurological things such as cerebral palsy or a stroke. Then again, a person may lack the cognitive ability to execute these detailled movements, as might be the case with Autism Level 3.

Ambulation

Ambulation is the ability to walk.

Impairment in ambulation is a spectrum. There are some people who can walk some of the time. There are some people who can walk with the use of a cane, walker, crutches, or a prosthetic. There are people who have no walking ability. There are people who walk without devices, but require frequent breaks.

According to Case Western University, (linked in the Body of Knowledge), four common causes of impaired mobility are congenital diseases, missing/malformed legs, spinal cord injury, and neuromuscular disorders.

Muscle Fatigue

According to Healthline, a linked Body of Knowledge source, muscle fatigue is a symptom that decreases your muscles' ability to perform over time. Muscle fatigue results in soreness, localized pain, shortness of breath, muscle twitching, trembling, cramps, and weak grip strength. Altogether, it can result in difficulty performing daily tasks. It isn't abnormal when people feel it after exercises, but it can also develop in people who have anemia, fibromyalgia, hepatitis C, mood disorders, and many others.

Acromegaly

According to Mayo Clinic's article on Acromegaly, a linked BoK source, Acromegaly is when your body produces too much growth hormone. It's an uncommon hormonal disorder and is primarily caused by the prescence of noncancerous tumours at the pituitary gland.

Acromegaly is what it's called when growth hormone is overproduced in adulthood. In children, it is called gigantism.

Children with excess growth hormone have an increased height. Adults with acromegaly don't gain height; instead the bones in their hands, feet, and face often lengthen, their voice may drop, and they may exeperience increased health problems including muscle fatigue, pain, mobility issues, amongst others. The condition may have a very slow progression, which makes it hard to recognize.

Dwarfism

According to Mayo Clinic's article on Dwarfism, a linked BoK source, Dwarfism is a classification one receives when they have an adult height of 4'10" (147cm) or less. People with this classification are commonly referred to as little people.

For most little people, dwarfism is the result of some genetic condition, many of which happen due to spontaneous mutation. Most people have the disproportionate type. For example, the limbs may be disproportionally shorter than the torso, and the head may be disproportionally larger to the rest of the body.

People with the proportional type are more likely to have had their dwarfism caused by some kind of growth hormone malfunction.

Both types can result in further health complications. The folks with the disproportionate type tend to have more mobility complications, while folks with the proportionate type tends to have more issues with internal organs.

Obesity

The Body of Knowledge also considers obesity to fit into this category. I am compelled to comment on this.

Currently, the mainstream medical paradigm obligates us to consider obesity as a disease in and of itself. This idea is thought of as being 'common sense' and we are nearly never invited to question this.

Obesity is viewed as a disease primarily because people who are fat get sick and die much more easily than people who are not fat. Their rate of disability is much higher than the thin population. But is this entirely because of extra adipose tissue?

For example, Indigenous people get sick and die more easily than the white settler population does. Their rates of disability are much higher. But does this mean that being Indigenous is itself a disease? No. It is societal factors, not biological factors, that account for the sickness, mortality, and disability rates of Indigenous people. It is not intrinsic to the fact that people are Indigenous. If we fixed the way that society functioned, those rates would stabilize.

When we discuss the sickness, mortality and disability rates of fat people, we often hyperfixate on 'symptoms' and 'comorbidities' and we don't talk about the controllable societal factors that lead to poor outcomes. Research shows that fat people experience high rates of clinician disengagement, clinician tunnel vision, and clinician aggression. Medical equipment is literally not designed to hold fat people. Medical care will sometimes be withheld from people on the condition that they 'must exercise' or 'go on a diet' first.'

When medical professionals conduct obesity research, they do not control for the medical mistreatment that fat people routinely face and rely on outdated paradigms (BMI for example). This is not surprising. The stigma against fatness is such a foundational belief to not just the medical establishment, but to society at large. Critical fat studies scholar Monica Kriete puts it this way:

Obesity is a particular way of thinking and communicating about fatness. It centers some beliefs and some evidence about fatness and health while excluding or cropping out other information, particularly methodological critiques and evidence about the futility of pursuing intentional weight loss. The illness construct of obesity makes the public health goal of obesity prevention sound logical and necessary, but it sets us up for a cultural pattern of belief that fatness is bad, fat bodies are disgusting, and fat people need intervention to initiate healthy behavior

Critical fat studies does not count out the fact that there are likely health risks associated with excess adipose tissue, but it agitates for a rethinking about how these issues are researched, for a push to rethink which correlations are in fact causation, and pushes for doctors to take the health of their fat patients seriously.

Accommodations

In the Physical World

People with ambulatory issues may use manual or electric wheelchairs and motorized scooters. They may use walkers, canes and crutches. They may not be able to use stairs so ramps, lifts and elevators are necessary for access. Walkways that are too narrow or obstructed and doors that don't open easily or automatically can also bar someone from entering a space.

Chair users may also have the additional concern of requiring tables that have enough clearance underneath, reachers or roll-out inserts that help them reach into the very back of cupboards, cupboards that aren't placed too high, etc. Many products and equipment require a standing positions to operate.

Little people may share some access needs with chair users in that things may be located too high or out of reach in order to operate or perceive.

In the Digital World

There are thousands of assistive technology devices out there on the market. Here are a few different kinds available.

Voice Control
Software like Dragon Naturally Speaking is software that allows a person to control the computer by speaking commands aloud. Users may experience problems when the programmatically associated names of controls do not match how they are labelled visually.
Eye-tracking Devices
Eye trackers watch the movement of your eyes and control your computer that way. Sometimes a person using eye tracker can 'click' by making a noise with their mouth. It can also be set up in different ways.When feasible, eye trackers may be paired with voice recognition software. They are quite costly, however.
Mouth Stick
Mouth sticks are very inexpensive. A person can control a keyboard or touch device with a small stick with a rubber tip at the end. Users may experience issues when touch targets are super small and require intense precision.
Head Wand
Similar to mouth sticks, but the stick comes out of a headband hat thing and requires you to perform larger movements to achieve a similar effect.
Switches
Switches are used by people with very limited mobility. They are these big buttons that can be placed by the area where the person has mobility. A person can make selections with this button. Switch control depends on all interactive components on a page being accessible via keyboard.
Sip-and Puff
This is a kind of switch device, but instead of a button, 'on' and 'off' states are indicated by a person who sips and puffs into a little straw by their mouth.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 36/44: Seizure Disabilities

Noted Monday, January 20, 2025

I submitted my exam application right on the 15th and it still hasn't been approved.

At this point I am down to completing four topics: Visual Disabilities, Mobility Disabilities, Seizure Disabilities, Cognitive Disabilites, and Complex Disabilities. From then on it's tackling every single entry in the further reading, and ensuring I am covering all my bases.

Spent about an hour polishing up the testable demographics page. I assume that content is testable. I should honestly make a separate game just dealing with legislation names and purposes.

Seizure Disabilities

Demographics

50 million people globally have epilepsy, of which 3% have the photosensitive type.

Medical Details

What is a Seizure?

According to Mayo Clinic, a linked BoK source, a seizure is a sudden burst of electival activity in the brain that causes changes in behaviour, movements, feelings and levels of consciousness.

Before a seizure, some people experience an 'aura' or hard-to-describe sense that a seizure may happen. Post-seizure, a person may feel confused, dizzy, anxious and frustrated. Recovering from a seizure can take minutes to hours.

Some seizures happen in just one area of the brain. These cause changes in awareness (as if in a dream-like state) or change how both mental and physical phenomena are experienced (eg. changes in taste, emotional changes). People experiencing these 'focal seizures' may exhibit bizarre or repetitive physical movement patterns.

Seizures that involve all areas of the brain are more easily identifiable by their physical symptoms-- causing sudden muscle stiffness, loss of muscle use, jerking or twitching muscle movements, or passing out.

Another form of these full-brain seizures common in children is an 'absence seizure,' a short seizure that causes a child to temporarily space out for 5-10 seconds. These come in clusters, and can happen up to hundreds of times per day.

According to Merck Manual, a linked BoK source, non-epileptic seizures may be triggered by infection, head injury, or reaction to a medication. A person can also experience a 'psycogenic nonepileptic seizure,' or 'pseudoseizure' which feels very similar to a seizure, but is caused by mental disorders and not strange electrical activity in the brain.

Epilepsy

According to the WHO's page on epilepsy, a linked BoK source, epilepsy is a diagnosis gien to people who have two or more unprovoked seizures. A one-off seizure doesn't count. They explain that epilepsy can come from many different disease mechanisms. For example, meningitis can infectiously cause epilepsy. Brain malformation can genetically cause epilepsy. Brain damage from head trauma can structurally cause epilepsy. It may also stem from metabolic, immune, or unknown causes. It is generally treated using antiseizure medications.

Merck Manual also reports that there are different kinds of epilepsy sub-types that can be diagnosed, such as Dravet syndrome, Noncunvulsive status epilepticus.

According to Epilepsy Action, a linked BoK source, Photosensitive epilepsy is an especially rare type of epilepsy where seizures are caused by photosensitive triggers. People with photosensitive epilepsy will have differeent degrees of sensitivity to photosensitive triggers. While flashing lights are the most well-known example of a photosensitive trigger, photosensitive triggers may also be things like:

Flicker rates of 16 to 25 times per second are the most likely to be photosensitive triggers. However, it really does vary between individuals. Additionally, people with photosensitive epilepsy will often also have seizures that are not caused by photosensitive triggers.

Accommodations

Out and About

People with epilepsy have to be especially careful when participating in activities where a loss of consciousnes could cause serious harm. A person with epilepsy might swim only when they have a lifejacket on, or might request supervision when using power tools.

People with epilepsy will have differing comfort levels. Some will be very comfortable in recognizing the aura of an oncoming seizure and working through seizures independently. For other people, seizures may come on less predictably.

On the Web

People with photosensitive epilepsy in particular must engage quite carefully with the web. There are many websites that do not provide controls to stop or turn off video and animations. Four WCAG Criteria are in place to support people with seizures: Pause, Stop, Hide and Three Flashes or Below Threshold are considered essential, minimum Level A criteria. They are also two of the four 'non-interference' criteria, as failure to meet with them can interfere with any use of the page. Three Flashes and Animation from Interactions are considered advanced, Level AAA criteria.

Assistive Technology

Epilepsy Australia, a linked BoK Source, shares some technology that a person with a seizure disability might use to help monitor and reduce risk.

Seizure detection
There are smart-watches that are specifically built to detect seizures, and basic electrical heart sensoring functionality is built into Apple Watches. Specific technology might be warranted for specific types of seizures. For example, a headband that detects absence seizures, or a under-the-mattress monitor for convulsive seizures.
Injury prevention
Helmets and harnesses may be used by people who have drop-attacks to lessen the amount of bruising or injury caused by sudden and unexpected falls.
Alert wearables
In the case of a seizure, medical jewelry with notification features may be used to call a caregiver or paramedical support.
Photosensitive reduction
Includes things like flicker-freemonitors, flare guards, and non-glare glasses.

Update

My CPACC application was approved! That's good news!

The course material was done with and adapted for the Chrome browser. The 1st rule of web development: Always keep the Developer Console open on your web browser. On macOS, open the console by pressing fn-F12 or option-cmd-i simultaneously. On Windows or Linux, open the console by pressing Fn-F12 or ctrl-shift-i simultaneously. The console can also be opened via the context menu.

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CPACC Study Day 35/44: DeafBlindness and Accessibility ICT

Noted Saturday, January 17, 2025

Reflection

I'm behind.

I'm two days behind on the goals I set in Goal Setting #4, which does mean I need to play catch up today. I spent most of yesterday working on National Standards legislation. Where did things go wrong?

First, my entire week was offset due to feeling fatigue on Saturday, and then working on Sunday.

Then on Tuesday I got very distracted writing networking applications.

Then on Thursday, I got very distracted by placeholder attributes and how weird styling them is, resulting in a new blog entry.

But primarily it's because this is really hard material for me to get through. It's stressful. I feel like I can't ever cover it right. The Body of Knowledge generally wants you to 'state the purpose of each.' But what if it was poorly formulated? Take the Ontarions with Disabilities Act. It had very little promise from the get-go. What was the purpose of it? One might say that it was largely for optics. The Body of Knowledge doesn't want you to go that deep into it, and I know this. But I can't shake the feeling that they're going to ask me something very specific about these pieces of legislation!

Very well. I have ushered myself to a Burger King and we're going to freaking get some stuff done. I am going to give myself six minutes to plan, and then we are going to crack down.

Pomodoros will be 25/5.

First Hour

Pomodoro #1
Sweden, ICT in America
Pomodoro #2
DeafBlindness: Medical

Second Hour

Pomodoro #3
Accommodating DeafBlindness
Pomodoro #4
ICT in the EU

Regarding the Usability of this Website

I don't know whether I would prefer to write this in markdown or not. Honestly, the HTML is endearing. I also think more images on the site would maybe make it more fun?

DeafBlindness

Demographics

Between 0.2% to 2% of the world's population is DeafBlind.

Medical Details

Range of Presentation

DeafBlindness is a spectrum. Most people who are DeafBlind are not completely Deaf and completly Blind, but rather are placed somewhere on the spectrum of Deafness (hard of hearing to total hearing loss) and Blindness (low vision to total vision loss).

For example, a person who has vision loss in one eye and one ear might identify themself as DeafBlind.

Children who are born DeafBlind and adults who become DeafBlind will have different challenges. Notably, in the development of language and capacity for navigating spaces physically. For example, a DeafBlind adult who was raised Deaf and lost vision at a later time is more likely to use tactile signing than a DeafBlind adult who, as a Blind child, went through Blind education and learned written communication skills through Braille.

Causes of DeafBlindness

According to Barbara Miles' Overview of Deaf-Blindness, a linked BoK resource, DeafBlindness can be caused by Usher Syndrome, and developmental conditions like Down's Syndrome, Trisomy 13, CHARGE, and fetal alcohol syndrome. A person can become DeafBlind after bad cases of encephalitis and meningitis, after a stroke, and after they are asphyxiated or suffer head trauma.

According to Deafblind International, a linked BoK resource, some cases of DeafBlindness are caused when a person is a fetus. When a fetus develops their eyes and ears, those are actual in a commmon area during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. A gestating parent who has rubella, cytomegalovirus (CMV) or toxoplasmosis during this time might produce a DeafBlind child.

For example, in the case of CMV, a common virus that is spread primarily by asymptomatic carriers, the rate of serious disability for the fetus is only about 5%.

Toxoplasmosis is a parasite that comes primarily from cat dung. Gestating parents have a 40% chance of passing it to the child through the placenta. The toxoplasmosis may cause deafness and damage to the retina that might not actually start causing issues with vision until the affected person is in their late teens.

DeafBlindness can also result in very rare disease profiles like Goldenhar Syndrome (facial deformity) and Alstrom Syndrome (life threatening, degnerative, and hereditary condition).

A Communication Disorder?

According to Barbara Miles' Overview of Deaf-Blindness, a linked BoK resource, DeafBlindness interferes most strongly on one's ability to develop language skills. Cut off from sound and sight, traditional approaches from Blind education and traditional approaches from Deaf education are typically not sufficient enough to have 'comparable language stimulation.' Children born DeafBlind will have trouble navigating physically through spaces.

The emerging trend of DeafBlind education through the Protactile approach is a new emerging paradigm that the BoK doesn't touch on. DeafBlind children have historically been taught ASL (a visual language) or English (a sound language). By teaching a tactile language like American Protactile, perhaps we'll see an increasing institutional capacity to meet the language needs of DeafBlind children.

Accommodating DeafBlindness

DeafBlind individuals each have unique solutions to the barriers they encounter in the world. As the severity and progression of symptoms differ so widely, there really isn't a single approach that will be appropriate for everyone.

Let us address the range of solutions that might be used for the biggest barrier: the communication barrier.

Communicating while DeafBlind

People with total DeafBlindness have two modes for communication:

Considerations in ICT

Descriptive transcripts are the only meaningful way a person with no functional vision or hearing can access time-synchronized media. Not captions.

In order to access a computer, a person might hook up a refreshable Braille device to a computer with screen-reading software installed. There are also Braille computers specifically designed for this kind of functions. Material can be printed into Braille for a person to read.

Haptic alerts and feedback are preferred to audio-visual alerts and feedback.

There are lots of specialized devices that arise, but some low-tech solutions also exist. For example, use of a communication card or booklet to use during small predictable interactions. A person might offer a small card that has their coffee order and informs the worker that they are DeafBlind, so please tap them when the order is ready.

Amy Mason, a linked Body of Knowledge source, reports that sometimes screenreaders are not really designed to be operated by DeafBlind people. A DeafBlind person requires assistance to pair a refreshable Braille display with a computer like a screenreader. The advantage of specialized devices is that this step can perhaps be circumvented. Speaking in 2024, Mason noted that 'BrailleBack,' the version of TalkBack optimized for Braille output, was 'badly hampered' and that one should 'steer far clear of Android.'

Navigation

Like a Blind person, a DeafBlind person may use a cane or guide dog to navigate independently. They benefit when the environment is designed with tactile navigation aids. They also may use a support person or DeafBlind intervenor to navigate.

USA: Accessibility in ICT

In the US, there are two laws that are used to enforce ICT accessibilities.

Section 508 draws its standards from WCAG 2.0. Through Title II of the ADA, it applies to government websites on the federal, state, and local level.

Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination based on disability 'in the activities of places of public accommodation.' This applies to basically everything including e-commerce and public mobile applications.

It is enforced through lawsuits. People can bring violation claims and sue organizations through the US DOJ Civil Rights Division. Cases against educational institutions are brought to the US Department of Education Office for Civil RIghts.

EU: Accessibility in ICT

So there are some names of legislation that we have to learn. All of things work together to provide full coverage of things.

But how do we tell what is an isn't accessible?

Harmonized Standards

EN 301 549 lays out the criteria that determines whether a digital product is accessible .

Other harmonized standards that may be relevant to the domain of ICT.

Reflection

I feel like I could have gone harder in on the ICT-related ones, but we'll put that slightly on the backburner. I want to start writing up a bunch of questions to add to the Flashcard Game.

I recently came across a 'CPACC' trainer game with a very similar premise, but the person apparently generated all the questions via LLM. I think it's worth it for me to really start reviewing at this stage. If I plan to take it in February, the days are counting down.

I'm going to publish what I have for the day, and immediatly grease up my elbows. We're going in.

Gonna make it a goal to write a question for every single thing that has its own separate page.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 34/44: National Standards (Asia)

Noted Thursday, January 16, 2025

Korea:

This is a anti-discimination law for disability in all aspects of life. A translated version of the full Korean text is linked to in the BoK.

Passed in 2017, it covers a very wide range of domains.

It includes special provisions for Disabled women and children and those with cognitive disorders.

India: Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (2016)

Passed in 2016 to fulfill UNCRPD obligations, India's Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act is an anti-discrimination legislation that set up new special courts to deal with violations, makes humiliation of Disabled people literally a jailable offense, expands the range of listed disabilities, as well as addressing the accessibility of public buildings.

In India, you are only qualified as Disabled if you have one of 21 listed conditions. Before the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, there were only 9 listed types of disabilities. The author of the article expresses that 21 is still not enough to provide comprehensive coverage.

Japan

The BoK directs us to read the article, Disability policies in Japan and Sweden: A comparative perspective to get a feel for the situation in Japan. Disability in Japan is seen as a family problem. Disability benefits are paid not to the individual, but to the family.

In Japan, the medical model reigns surpreme in the assigning of disability status. You must be determined to be disabled by a medical professional. You get a card and you can use that card to access limited benefits. Owing to the rigidity of these parameters for classification, scholars note that the Disabled population reported in Japan is surprisingly low.

There are a few important laws that support Disabled people in Japan.

Back to Notes contents.

CSS in Depth Notes

Noted Tuesday, January 14, 2025

A Year of Strength

Increasing self-confidence and self-reliance to sharpen mental and physical persistance to start and complete tasks.

I'm still trying to define what 2025 means to me.

I feel bored with CPACC material, and I also spent an absurd amount of time today writing resume material. So we're gonna review some CSS fundamentals as a self-soothing exercise.

Border-Box

box sizing: border-box; is a line I'm accustomed to writing because it makes box behaviour more 'predictable.' Keith J Grant explains what this actually means: more control over height or width. If you don't have border-box, setting height and width sets the height and the width of the content before padding, border, and margin are added.

Introduction to CSS

Writing CSS can be difficult at scale. Grant makes the argument that good CSS is predicatble CSS. While there are many ways to accomplish the same thing, doing things in consistent ways where you have control over the final output is essential.

The output of your CSS shouldn't surprise you.

The Cascade

Origin Priority

Selector priority

This is why specificity notion is written how it is. The syntax is "[number of ids], [number of classes], [number of tags]."

0, 2, 0
Has two classes.
9, 1, 2
Has nine IDs, one class, two tags.
1, 2, 3
Has one ID, two classes, three tags.

It doesn't matter if they're attached together half spaces between them or use combinators. It's simple. Just count the number of things present.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 33/44: National Standards: Europe

Noted Monday, January 13, 2025

Thoughts on this Webpage's Structure

As the total wordcount of the Notes sections balloons past sixty thousand words, I'm re-thinking about how I can make this more usable. Maybe I can have options for viewing this. I was thinking about an accordian-style view, but the sheer length of some of these notes don't merit that. The titles of many of them aren't descriptive. I personally use this by just searching keywords and then finding what pops up. Hashtags might be one way to make this system slightly more formal.

There is no content management system here. It's just this one HTML page that offloads a portion of what my brain has been thinking about in the past three months. It's also a personal diary, evident in entries like this one.

Need to think more about it. Let's get into CPACC stuff.

EU Countries

All EU member states employ laws based on the Employment Equality Directive, passed in 2000, that requires reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities in the realm of the employment.

However, the Anti-Discrimination Directive proposed in 2008, that would have expanded reasonable accommodation into all domains, has not been adopted. Country to country, different countries have different policies that apply to different domains of life. Some prohibit discimination on the basis of disability, some require reasonable accommodation, some do both, and some accomplish neither.

France: Loi pour l'égalité des droits et des chances, la participation et la citoyenneté des personnes handicapées (2005)

The French translates to the 'law of egality of rights and of opportunities, participation and citizenship of Disabled individuals.' Acccording to Cleiss, it does what it says on the tin. Public facilities must be accessible. Though the law was passed in 2005, in 2015 it became a criminal offense to not be accessible. You can file criminal complaints with the police commisserat, whereby a prosecutor will be assigned to your case.

The French don't fuck around.

Denmark Has Work to Do

Denmark is featured in the BoK's extended readings in an article comparing the evolution of its legislation which the development of anti-discimination legislation in Cyprus. The article is called The Diffusion of Disability Rights in Europe by Lisa Vanhala.

Denmark's laws essentially stem from the EU's mandated implementation of the Employment Equality Framework directive. Denmark's version of the law was implemented (past the deadline) in 2004 and did not go beyond the absolute minimum of the directive. As you may recall, the Employment Equality Framework is restricted to the realm of employment. This left Disabled people in Denmark relatively unprotected legislative.

And this is very unexpected, given that Denmark's neighbours and that region in Europe is known for being quite progressive when it comes to implement robust social welfare programs. Why would it lag on anti-discrimination provisions?

Vanhala argues that Denmark's Disabled community was engaging in a different kind of activism. From the period of 1965 to 1972, the Danish Disability Council intervened on a policy-by-policy basis to increase the disability benefit, essentially forming a kind of disability 'lobby.' Vanhala calls this a 'corporatist' approach, which differed widely from 'rights-model' that underpinned efforts like the the ADA and UNCRPD.

The Danish Disability Council would argue against the rights-based model. They saw the fact that people only got what they deserved when they fought for it in court, and the DDC viewed this as an approach reflective of 'extreme American individualism,' unsuited to European societies. When the EU went forward with the Employment Equality Framework Directive, advocates of the Danish Disability movement were split on the anti-discimination approach and the traditional Danish approach.

Movements for a more robust anti-discimination policy in Denmark were seen again in 2006, moving into the 2010s. The most contemporary information can be found on Disability IN's Denmark page.

Cyprus: The Cypriot Persons with Disabilities Act

Cyprus is also featured in The Diffusion of Disability Rights in Europe by Lisa Vanhala. Cyprus and Denmark are identified as contrasting cases. Denmark, with a reputation for progressive legislation, is a 'legislation laggard' when it comes to anti-discrimiation provisions for Disabled people. Cyprus, with a tenuous political climate and reputation for being otherwise 'backwards,' was before its time in introducing this kind of legislation.

The Cypriot Persons with Disabilites Act was passed in 2000 and is an "explicitly rights-based" piece of legislation, that "clearly predated and go far beyond the scope of standards set" by the same EU directive that gave Denmark its absolute minimum standards.

Vanhala notes that two Cypriot umbrella organizations representing a coaltion of self-advocate organizations and and a coalition of traditional disability advocacy organizations competed with each other through the 1980s and 1990s because there can only be one. But the merging of the two organizations in 1999 formed a relatively powerful body that was able to secure legislation that was quite ahead of its time.

Vanhala notes that the prescence of progressive legislation doesn't guarantee good outcomes for Disabled people in Cyprus, and the promises of anti-discrimination have not been delivered due to "low levels of awareness of human rights understandings of disability and associated concepts."

Sweden

The BoK directs us to read the article, Disability policies in Japan and Sweden: A comparative perspective to get a feel for the situation in Sweden.

In terms of anti-discrimination law, Sweden's first anti-discrimination law in the realm of employment was created after an action plan was developed in 2000. The name of the action plan deeply reflects the shift from a medical to social model: From Patient to Citizen. Although initially constrained in scope to the realm of employment in workplaces with more than ten employees, following the spirit of From Patient to Citizen, accessibility of public spaces was included in a 2015 ammendment.

The Disability Reform of 1994 was not an anti-discrimination measure. Instead, it emphasized personal assistance and homecare, access to assistive devices, and rehabilitation programs as a human right.

The article notes that despite the reputation of Nordic countries to have robust social programs, the safety net provided to Disabled Swedes has been undergoing a conservatising process, whereby the eligibility requirements for Disability-specific welfare policies are being interpreted far more strictly than they were before. The article calls these programs, 'formerly generous.'

Back to Notes contents.

Which to use: aria-required or required?

Noted Sunday, January 12, 2025

Learning about legislation is very exhausting so I'm going to do something else for a while.

I've finally figured out how to allocate things as code really quickly. It's eight key strokes for me: Ctrl+EM (custom shortcut for surrounding some text with an element generated by Emmet abbreviation) and then code+Enter.

Which to use: aria-required or required?

Roselli's post on marking radio buttons as required is from 2022 and doesn't really answer my question. But it does show a use of aria-required and the radiogroup role in action. He notes that 'this is one scenario where aria is required.' Things might have changed since 2022, but that's fascinating to know. He doesn't reach for required, because it is simplynot allowed on a radiogroup role.

Scott O'Hara's post on Required attribute requirements notes that while the introduction of aria-required perhaps implying to developers that required is insufficient to provide accessible value states, the he notes that in 2019, all modern browser/screen reader combinations successfully read out required with the exception of TalkBack, and that aria-required didn't work with TalkBack either.

More Google searching reveals that aria-required is really only recommended when working with legacy material or to cater.

Smashing's article on Accessible Form Validation notes that if you want to build a custom validation, you can't use required because it will trigger the native browser form validation. In this case, you have to rely on aria-required to ensure the screenreader gets valid notification of states.

In conclusion, aria-required is only required for niche cases. Use required in most cases, especially if you're forced to use the radiogroup role. Using both, like Deque does in their Form Labels, Instructios, and Validation course, is a bit redundant.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 32/44: National and Provincial Instruments: Body of Knowledge Sources

Noted Sunday, January 12, 2025

Preparing

I'm working on Sunday instead of Saturday. I did do about 2 hours of accessibility work yesterday, but I felt incredibly fatigued and didn't go all-in. So we're playing catch-up again. If I do five hours today, I'll make my 20 hour quota. I'm going to go to an external location to try to support finishing this goal.

Before I head out, I want to finish up the tiny bit of stuff left to go for the Speech and Lang Disorders, and then I want to finish up with the Equality Act.

Okay, Speech and Lang Disorders is done. I've spent a few minutes making the table of contents on the national and provincial instruments' cpacc page. That's a fair amount of content. Well, to eat a whale you have to start somewhere. I'm just gonna take it step by step.

'canada': Ontarians with Disabilities Act of 2001

Don't mistake this with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). The Ontarians with Disabilities Act or the ODA was released in 2001 and affirms the right of Disabled people in the province of Ontario to equal opportunity and to be free from discrimination.

The Body of Knowledge links directly to the full text of the ODA.

It prescribes that educational institutions and hospitals, public transporation organization, and government buildings be accessible.

Wikipedia's article on the AODA mentions that this was quite a weak piece of legislation as it had literally no enforcement, penalties or deadlines. Though they also mention that the ODA mandated that all provincial websites be made accessible by 2002, which is a little 'before-its-time.' This act certainly paved a way for its successor, the AODA, which was much more comprehensive (though we've yet to see how successful it truly will be. See "Ontario was supposed to be accessible by 2025" by CBC News).

The Equality Act (2010)

2010 is rather recent. The Equality Act supercedes what was a bunch of disparate anti-discrimination legislation and provides a uniform complaint mechanism for all of them. All organizations are subject to the Equality Act if they are 'carrying out a public function.'

Characteristics protected by the Equality Act look a little bit different than some of the other anti-discrimination laws that we've seen, likely due to its time period. Marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maturity, and gender reassignment are characterics alongside more traditional ones like age, race, religion, sexual orientation, and of course, disability.

The Body of Knowledge links to the UK's primer document on the Equality Act.

Specific provisions are made in respect to disability including ensuring accessibility in public transport and education, and anti-discrimination in the workplace. Hiring people can no longer ask questions about disability and health in most cases.

US: Americans with Disabilities Act (1990)

The ADA puts anti-discrimination protections in place for disability status.

The preamble to the ADA, which the Body of Knowledge quotes at length, notes that Disabled people have traditionally had no redress against discrimination that has been exercized against them, resulting in many Disabled people being segregated and exposed to constant exclusion from public spaces and opportunities.

It ends by noting that the dependency and non-productivity of Disabled people costs the United States 'billions of dollars in unnecessary expenses.' The argument here is not just moral or on the basis of human rights; it is an economic argument.

According to the ADA National Network (linked to from the Body of Knowledge), the ADA is organized into five sections, or 'Titles'.

The ADA was ammended in 2008 following a bunch of lawsuits that kept on restricting the definition of what it meant to be disabled. The power of the ADA had been drastically weakened. The ADAAAA (the ADA Ammendments Act) made the definition more flexible again.

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CPACC Study Day 31/44: Auditory Disabilities

Noted Friday, January 10, 2025

We're gonna lock in today. Our goal is to wrap up Speech and Language as well as auditory disabilities (gonna keep speech and language in yesterday's entry because I already set up for it.) It's gonna be a lot of material but I anticipate Auditory won't be so difficult. I already know quite a bit about the Deaf/HoH community and about late-deafened experiences and assistive technology.

Demographics

Central Auditory Processing Disorder has a global prevalence of 5%.

Disabling hearing loss is experienced by 430 million people globally.

The EU estimates that 750 thousand people use sign language as their first language. Note that there are many hearing children of Deaf adults that might figure into this number.

According to the World Health Organization (linked source in the BoK), the quality of life of people with hearing loss is more impacted in developing countries that developed countries; many are limited in opportunities for education and employment.

Medical Details

Central Auditory Processing Disorder

Folks with CAPD have trouble interpreting sounds, not hearing sounds.

This is not a hearing disorder per se. This is a neurological disorder that affects different audio processing skills such as locating the source of a sound, learning sounds, understanding speech, and diffrentiating different sources of sound. We might think of it as a listening disorder.

ASHA (source linked in the Body of Knowledge), offers a very detailled profile of this diagnosis. It can vary wildly in its presentation, and standardized diagnostic criteria and procedures don't exist. Due to this fact, the figure of 5% global prevalence is a bit suspect. CAPD is sometimes accompanied by language disorders.

ASHA offers functional definition of CAPD where impairment is seen in some or many of the following skills:

The Biology and Social Dimensions of Hearing Loss

According to WebAIM (linked in the BoK), hearing loss has many types and degrees of severity. Loss can be mild to profound, with mild hearing loss causing some difficulty in understanding daily speech, moderate hearing loss perhaps requiring a hearing aid, severe hearing loss requiring a hearing aid and it still might be enough, and profound hearing loss being almost no sound at all.

This hearing loss is caused by two mechanism: nerve damage in the inner ear (referred to as sensorineural hearing loss) and damage in the outer or middle ear (referred to as conductive hearing loss). When there is both nerve damage in the inner ear and damage to the outer or middle ear, we call that mixed hearing loss.

ASHA (linked in the BoK) outlines some scenarios that might cause conductive and sensorineural hearing loss. Conductive hearing loss might caused by infection, a hole in the eardrum, or a malformed ear. Sensorineural hearing loss may be caused by illnesses, repeated exposure to loud noises, and even just old age.

That's a lot of the phrase 'hearing loss' being stated over and over again. It's important to note that many members of the Deaf community feel uncomfortable about this medical nomenclature. They've responded to it with the phrase 'Deaf gain' which frames deafness as a positive attribute which enriches both the self and the entire human population.

Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, deaf, Late-deafened

These words have medical and social definitions.

The Body of Knowledge, relying on a medical definition, wants you to understand two concepts: Deafness, and Hard of Hearing. According to them, the primary distinguisher between a person who experiences deafness and a person who is hard of hearing is degree of hearing loss. Deafness indicates severe to profound hearing loss. Hard of Hearing people have mild to moderate hearing loss. Many use hearing aids and can use the phone.

The social definition of these words indicate one's status and relationship to a Deaf community.

Deaf communities are linguistic minorities that use a sign language as their main means of communication. There are many sign languages! According to the EU Knowledge Center on Interpretation (linked in the BoK, broken link accessed via Wayback Machine), there are 31 national sign languages in the EU. Some countries have multiple sign languages (for example, people residing in the place known as 'canada' have four and maybe even more: American Sign Language ASL, Quebec Sign Language LSQ, Martime Sign Language MSL, and Inuit Sign Language IUR).

WebAIM (a linked source) draws attention to the fact that sign languages used across the English-speaking world vary. British Sign Language and American Sign Language are from two separate language families: as differennt as French is from Japanese.

The Deaf Anglosphere uses the terms Deaf, deaf, Hard of Hearing (HOH), and late-deafened to describe different degrees of fluency in the language and culture of the Deaf community. Capital-D Deaf refers to people who have hearing loss and sign fluently, are entreanched in the community, etc. Lowercase-d deaf refers to people who have severe to pround hearing loss, but no fluency in sign language. HOH refers to a person with hearing loss, but not full fluency in Deaf culture. Late-deafened describes deaf people who become deaf to do age related hearing loss, and who don't pick up sign language.

But this only really refers to how a few select Deaf communities treat the words and it varies around the world. Additionally, some members of the community have recently been trying to get rid of the uppercase-lowercase distinction on the basis of it being too exclusionary.

Accommodations

Accessible communications is of prime concern when it comes to auditory disabilities. A person might use hearing aids have a cochlear implant or use a personal listening device. Bright lighting conditions are essential if the person if relying on 'lip-reading.' Use of CART or STTR to provide live transcripts and captioning are good in live presentations. Culturally Deaf people will often prefer sign language interpretation.

Transcripts and captions are important to include in time-synchronized media. Additional, announcements should be available in visual form. This is of prime concern at a place like an airport.Deaf people will also often use flashing doorbells, under-the-bed shaking alarm clocks, and haptic alerts to receive notifications.

A person with CAPD might require slightly different accomodations. For example, Understood (a linked source in the BoK) suggests systems that equally distribute sounds throughout a room, noise-councelling headphones that can filter out background noise, use of text-to-speech voices that the person is more skilled at interpreting, and audio-recording presentations that the person with CAPD can review them later at a slower frequency or different pitch.

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CPACC Day 30.5/44: Speech and Language Disabilities

Noted Thursday, January 9, 2025

Separating this out into its own entry for legibility's sake. It's still Day 30, just Part 2 of it. Yes, we are breaking rules.

Demographics

Speech sound disorders in children depend on age group, ranging from 5 to 25%. In adults, the prevalence is 1 to 2% of the population.

Selective music affects 0.47% to 0.76% of the global population.

Aphasia, while the global incidence in not known, affects 2 million people (at least) in the United States, and 250 thousand people (at least) in Great Britain.

Medical Details

Speech disorders affect the way people make coherent vocal sounds that can be identified as words to other people. Language disorders concern the ability to form create and share ideas independent of the vocal medium. They are often lumped together because a having a language disorder almost always affects speech, while people with speech disorders do not necessarily have disordered language ability.

It's actually a pretty vast umbrella with many umbrellas underneath it. Something like Huntingon's can be referred to as a language disorder. But for the CPACC, we're going to zero in on four non-specific profiles, three of them speech disorders, and the fourth is a language disorder.

Organic Speech Sounds Disorders

Organic speech sounds are when there is a speech impairement that can be explained.

According to ASHA (linked in the Body of Knowledge), three explanations may be offered: motor/neurological, structural and perceptual.

Apraxia of Speech (AOS)

According to the NIH (a linked BoK source), apraxia of speech is a motor/neurological organic speech sounds disorder. People with apraxia of speech know what words they want to say, but they cannot properly plan and sequence the required speech movements. There are two types: childhood apraxia of speech, and acquired apraxia of speech. Symptoms range from mild to severe.

Dysarthia

Dysarthia is another motor/neurological organic speech sounds disorder. According to ASHA, while apraxia interferes at the level of planning, dysarthia interferes at the level of execution, where the muscles and nerves lack enough coordination to perform the movements that the brain is telling them to do. Dysarthia is especially hard to diagnose when it is comorbid with apraxia (which can indeed happen!)

Structural Organic Speech Sounds Disorders

According to ASHA, these disorders can result from orofacial anomalies such as a cleft palate. They can also happen due to trauma or surgery. For example, some people must undergo a laryngectomy (surgical removal of the voicebox). In relearning to speak with a technique like esophageal speech, their voice may sound raspy and potentially indistinct.

Perceptual Organic Speech Sounds Disorder

Children who have severe hearing loss will naturally struggle to reproduce oral speech because they have no reference for it and must result to unconventional means of learning, such as laying a hand on the throat to feel the vibrations, and learning the theory of how different letters are produced. They are unable to acquire oral language naturally. They can acquire sign language naturally, and most people would recommend this approach nowadays.

It is often the parents who make the decision for deaf children whether they want them to learn to speak orally or not. There are many children who first learn language skills through sign language (whereupon they are able to learn oral languages like English more easily). Historically, parents following the advice of educators have forced their children to learn with an oral-first approach. This is risky, as many children do not take well to this approach. It often leads to language deprivation and language disorders.

Functional Speech Sound Disorders

No identifiable cause is attributed to functional speech sound disorders (we straight-up don't know how they happen, how interesting!)

According to ASHA, (linked in the BoK), functional speech sound disorders have historically been referred to under two different profiles: articulation disorders, and phonological disorders. Errors in articulation disorders are random and involve swapping sounds, distorted sounds. Errors in phonological disorders are predictable and rule-based (ie. consistent deletion of a final consonant).

No Speech

Also known medically as 'mutism.' Abscence of speech can be caused by brain injury, in which case it is called 'neurogenic.'

This is in contrast to the 'psychogenic' type, where the causes are psychological. Elective mutism (choosing not to speak), selective mutism (able to speak only in certain situations) and total mutism (no speech at all) are three types of psychogenic mutism.

According to ASHA, selective mutism is primarily seen in children, through it can follow one into adulthood.

Aphasia

Aphasia is caused by neurological ingury, and is therefore a neurogenic disorder. But unlike other neurogenic disorders like dysarthia and apraxia of speech which deal with the production of oral speech, aphasia interferes with one's ability to wield language itself. People with aphasia experience deficiencies at the level of comprehension, production, reading ability and writing ability.

Caused by brain injury, most people who experience aphasia get it after a stroke. But it can also result from brain tumours, infections, head trauma, etc.

According to the National Aphasia Association (linked to in the BoK), there are nine distinct profiles of aphasia based on the prescence or abscence of three separate language-impairment symptoms:

A person whose speech is fluent, who comprehends spoken messages, and can repeat words or phrases has the mildest form of aphasia, characterized by a constant groping for words: 'a persistent inability to supply the words for the very things they want to talk about.' On the other hand, aphasia can leave one with a total abscence of speech and comprehension. It's a very broad spectrum of severity.

Accommodations

As we've just learned, there's a broad range of presentations for language and speech disorders. As always, each individual will have their own strategies that make life easier for them.

Supporting Speech

People who struggle with speaking vocally benefit from being offered more time, patience, and understanding when in one-on-one communication environments. They also benefit when text-based alternatives to speaking are offered. For example, a business has the option of using a real-time text chat with employees for people who'd prefer not to call in traditionally.

There are technologies out there, according to the linked source Common Assistive Technologies for Speech Disorders, that can apparently help people with a vocal stutter speak fluently by playing the sound of the user's voice back at them. They are called 'Electronic Fluency Devices' and their reception within the stuttering community on the subreddit r/Stutter seems to be mixed.

Augmentative and Alternative Communication

Those who do not have access to speech and language reliably may rely on AAC to get their point across. It was a little bit hard for me to find a consistent definition of AAC, but across my reading, here's my understanding of it.

AAC is a descriptive definition, rather than a prescriptive one. There are a bunch of methods and instruments that have popped up in order to solve one particular problem. The word 'AAC' can be referred to use to these techniques collectively.

AAC is 'alternative' communication, in that it is specifically meant to address those who cannot access mainstream forms of communication due to a speech or language disability

AAC may be 'augmentative' in that the bring in tools and techniques outside the scope of mainstream communication protocols.

In describing the kinds of AAC that are out there, I rely primarily on the Common Assistive Technologies for Speech Disorders (linked BoK resource) as well as ASHA's page on AAC.

Unaided AAC

This refers to methods that don't require any technology or props. Gestures and facial expression. The person also may be able to make small vocalizations or know a few words or signs. These can also be incoporated.

Aided AAC

These methods require the use of props or technology and are divided into 'low tech' and 'high-tech' solutions. Sometimes the person just needs pen and paper to write on, or they point to various images on a cardboard picture board. High-tech solutions include Speech Generating Devices (SDG), tablet applications, specialized devices.

Mixed AAC

Often, individuals will use a combination of aided and unaided AAC. This is the approach that I personally use when I have verbal shutdowns. I have a speech generator app on my phone, and I have very good miming skills. It's much easier though if the people I'm around know sign language.

Are signed language a form of AAC?

Deaf communities have historically fought again their languages being considered 'tools' or 'instruments' that merely facilitate communication with the hearing world. For a long time, linguists seriously thought that sign didn't constitute a language of its own. William Stokoe first used the phrase 'American Sign Language'' in 1965.

Calling sign language 'AAC' also downplays the sophistication of world sign languages. In all the techniques we've mentioned so far, the AAC-user isn't speaking a different language than the people they are communicating with. If their companions are speaking English, an AAC-user may point to different English words. It would be a bit odd if their AAC system relied entirely on Japanese while all the members of their community didn't speak that language.

But that's kinda the case for American Sign Language, which has a grammatical structure more similar to Japanese than English, and which has an enormous amount of influence from French sign language. Sign languages are indeed languages and people learn sign languages for personal, non-accessibility related reasons.

In summary, I would argue that sign language is not AAC for three reasons:

  1. Signed languages are sophisticated languages, not mere 'methods' or 'tools.'
  2. The primary aim of signed language isn't just to communicate with people who "speak normally."
  3. The users of signed languages don't consider it to be AAC.

However, there are artifical signing systems such as Makaton that are specifically designed by educators to function as AAC. Deaf and hard of hearing people are not the primary target of Makaton: it's aimed at people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. As the Wikipedia page puts it, 'Makaton is not a sign language.'

Accommodations for Aphasia

In addition to all the other accommodation techniques listed above, people with aphasia (depending on the profile) may require support in comprehending speech. Offering plain language materials and otherwise reducing the amount of uncommon words in your speech is one way to support language reception.

They also may have trouble with writing, which can be supported through the use of writing templates, organizational tools, word prediction and spell checkers.

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CPACC Study Day 30/44: Organisational Management

Noted Thursday, January 9, 2025

Scope of Today

Today we're polishing off all of the sections of organizational management that we haven't touched yet. Also probably going to clean up the form entry in the CPACC notes.

I am also unsure as to the extent that I need to memorize this material. It all seems rather generic, so I might refrain. I'm already memorizing implementation strategy, and all of this new information compliments those strategies quite nicely.

The notes in this section are already bullet-pointed, so I guess all I'm going to do is really just try to condense them as much as I can.

Internally-Oriented Accessibility Activities

Building up Accessibility Champions

Appoint them as role models throughout the organization and help them guide a larger organization-wide culture-changing initiative. These are the ones that should guide the adoption of a maturity model.

Hiring for Accessibility

There are two ideas here: hiring for people who have accessibility skills, and hiring Disabled people. Why not hire Disabled people with accessibility skills?

When hiring Disabled folks, be proactive about ensuring your postings are accessible, your facilities are accessible, that your posting is viewable in disability-focused job boards. Also do internal education on the benefits of bringing Disabled people in and ensure non-Disabled employees know how to not be ableist assholes.

Useful skills that you might ask of an accessibility professional include (depending on the position) knowledge of CSS, HTML, JS, frameworks, automated evaluation tools, manual testing practices, screen readers, WCAG, PDF/UA, and document remediation practices.

Evaluating for Accessibility

Evaluate formatively, summatively, and continuously, and include Disabled users in your testing, and don't feel afraid to reach out for outside help if you need it. Use manual and automated tools.

Catch flaws early by creating accessible templates and prioritizing accessibility in the design phase.

Externally-Oriented Accessibility Activities

Public Communications

Ensure all your communications are accessible. Make a style guide or standard to ensure the product is accessible and the content isn't ableist. Caption your videos. Also build internal understanding of why it is important to do this.

Managing Legal Risk

Make sure you know what laws apply to you and develop an ICT accessibility plan to meet those responsibilities. Small orgs might want to reach out to a lawyer.

Procurement

Set accessibility requirements and verify that the vendor's accessibility expertise and capacity and strategy can support their claims.

Reflection

I got through that relatively quickly, so let's move onto a different topic. I'm tentative about moving on to Auditory Disabilities, because I've scheduled that for tomorrow. Instead, let's take on a different one and see what comes of it.

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CPACC Study Day 29/44: Psychological Disabilities

Noted Tuesday, January 7, 2025

I'm back. I feel more organized. I've decided to rethink how I do the disability types and instead of scanning source by source, go through the full range of things organizing my notes under three headings: demographics, medical, and accomodations.

I'm deciding to step away from Visual Disabilities because it gives me a headache. And speaking of which, we're covering psychological disabilities to test how robust this system is.

I'm only going to memorize demographic figures as stated in the Body of Knowledge.

Demographics

Anxiety disorder is the most prevalent disorder: 284 million people globally experienced it in 2017. The prevalence of anxiety disorder by country varies from 2.5 to 7 percent.

Bipolar disorder was experienced by 19 million people worldwide in 2019.

Schizophrenia, a psychotic disorder, affects about 24 million people (1 in 300) worldwide.

The three facts above are testable on the CPACC exam. But another important fact is that in 2019, 1 in 8 people had a diagnosed mental disorder, and that rose post-pandemic. There are a lot of us.

Medical Details

Psychological disabilities include anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and psychotic disorders. They interfere with mental health and affect a person's thoughts and behaviour.

According to the Center for Parent Information and Resources, (source linked in the BoK) psychological disabilities are characterized by 'emotional disturbances' including behaviour such as hyperactivity, aggression or self-injury, withdrawl, immaturity, and learning difficulty.

Anxiety disorders include GAD (generalized anxiety disorder), panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and phobia disorders. While everyone experiences anxiety, not everyone has an anxiety disorder.

According to the Center for Parent Information and Resources, (source linked in the BoK) anxiety is highly treatable, but unfortunately less than 40% receive treatment.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

A person with GAD is on edge all the time for no particular logical reason. They might be easily fatigued, have sleep problems, physical ailments, and difficulty concentration.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (source linked in the BoK), symptoms can fluctuate. People with GAD often know that their anxiety is irrational and is interfering with their health, job security, and daily activities. GAD is treated with therapy and use of antidepressant and/or anti-anxiety medication. GAD is more common in women, and creeps up on you. While it can be present in childhood, for many, it starts at age 30.

Panic Disorder

A panic attack is characterized by physical symptoms like a racinng heart rate, sweating, trembling, and chest pain. These are accompanied by thoughts of impending doom and loss of control. Panic disorder is basically when you experience these frequently and unexpectedly.

According to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services and Administration (a source linked in the BoK), a person with panic disorder might only experience these attacks occasionally. It's all about the extent to which it interferes with daily life. If the person worries about having these attacks again to the point of altering their behaviour (such as avoiding a place where they had a panic attack in the past), they might still get diagnosed.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (source linked in the BoK), panic disorder occurs more frequently in woman than in men and can be treated with medication like SSRIs and beta blockers.

Social Anxiety Disorder

This is a debilitating fear of social situations. The person may feel self-conscious, embarassed or awkward in the prescence of other people. They also may carry themselves with a rigid body position, make little eye contact, or speak with a very soft voice.

According to the National Institute of mental health (source linked in the BoK), some people with Social Anxiety Disorder only experience it during public performances.

Anxiety disorders can be contrasted by mood disorders, the most prevalent of which are depression, bipolar disorder, seasonal affective disorder, and self-harm.

Bipolar Disorder

This is where a person oscillates between periods of depression and mania. Each episode may last for weeks. In a state of depression, a person may have difficulty concentrating, lack energy, and feel down. In a state of mania, a person might make risky decisions, make ambitious plans, feel light, and be easily distracted or agitated.

Both of the episodes are characterized by delusional, disturbed or illogical thinking.

According to the NHS' entry on bipolar disorder which is linked in the BoK, there are also periods where the mood is stable and symptoms are apparently in check.

Psychotic Disorders

Pyschotic symptoms, where a person might perceive or think things that are not true, are present in bipolar disorder. But the classic psychotic disorder where the primary characterization is by such hallucinations and delusions is known as schizophrenia.

Persons with schizophrenia also may have trouble making decisions and sustaining attention.

According to the National Library of Medicine (a source in the BoK), people with schizophrenia also might have depressive symptoms and feelings of paranoia. It typically develops in young adults, and symptoms in men start earlier than symptoms in women.

Accomodations

The barriers that people with psychological disabilities face are exacerbated by structural issues. Mental healthcare has limited availability and isn't generally affordable. Many providers cannot diagnose accurately, not enough support for emotional troubles is providing in the work and school setting. On top of that, the stigma against us is quite high.

In terms of assistive technologies that help alleviate some of these symptoms, memory aids, text-to-speech software and reminder devices can help cut through the cognitive fog. Voice recognition can help with task completion, and emotional regulation apps can help when emotional disturbances arise.

The Job Accomodation Network suggests a myriad of different tweaks to process and technologies that can support people with anxiety, but I think their advice applies across most mental conditions, even extending to cognitive conditions. This isn't explicitly linked to from the Body of Knowledge, but it is linked to from the University of Illinois Guide to Common Assistive Technologies for Anxiety Disorders, which is a linked resource.

The Job Accomodation Network suggests sensory management and regulation tools like white noise machines, fidget toys, noise cancelling earbuds, soundproof panelling. They also suggests simulated skylights and windows, sun boxes and lights, and sun simulating desk lamps (helpful primarily for folks with seasonal affective depression)

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CPACC Study Day 28/44: Visual Disabilities

Noted Monday, January 6, 2025

Cracking On

I'm back home. It's very cold and my motivation is low. My regular 'workspace' has been taking up by my mother, who is quarantining herself.

I started today doing the CSS Grid, or 'Magazine Project' from FreeCodeCamp's responsive design certification and just grimacing at all the accessibility failures. There were a lot of low-hanging accessibility messups,but I suppose I get some confidence from being able to identify them quickly.

Today is the first day zeroing in on actual disability types. When I was using the Deque course, this is the kind of stuff I managed to get through. But we're going to instead be looking at the Body of Knowledge and all of the linked resources to get a better picture of all of these different types.

Source: Body of Knowledge

Lots of people experience visual disabilities: at least 2.2 billion have some form, of these 2.2 billion, 1 billion have an impairment that could have been prevented, has yet to receive intervention. Most people with vision impairments are over the ave of 50.

The leading causes of vision impairment are uncorrected refractive errors and cataracts.

Visual Disabilities include various forms of loss in visual acuity, along with three distinctive profiles: Blindness, Colour vision deficiency, and Low vision.

Blindness itself is a spectrum running from some vision loss, to complete vision loss.

Low vision is typically defined functionally as being a low enough vision that it interferes with daily life. 246 million people have low vision, about 90% of which live in low-income settings. They typically rely on magnification, as they have some functional vision remaning.

Colour vision deficiency is most commonly the red-green type (affecting 1 in 12 males and 1 in 200 females), followed by the blue-yellow type (1 in 10 000) that leaves a person unable to distinguish colour.

Restructuring Process

If the eventual output for this is similar to a post, I think I need to actually restructure the way that I present this in a blog form in order to make it as helpful as possible to an outside audience. The more likely that I think someone else is to use it, the better. So with that being said, it might be more prudent to completely cleave out these into their own pages, and to focus on highlighting supplementary material. I need to do some work on the page structuring, and then we'll return tomorrow.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 27/44: Maturity Models

Noted Thursday, January 2, 2025

Source: Body of Knowledge

The recommended study task here is to "Understand the utility of accessibility maturity models." The BoK defines a accessibility maturity model as a tool organizations can use to measure their progress and improvements in integrating accessibility into policy and practice. The Body of Knowledge then goes onto caveat that while we are encouraged to take a look at the two maturity models presented within the BoK itself, many other accessibility maturity models exist and may be more appropriate to the task at hand.

Source: Business Disability Forum, Accessibility Maturity Model

The Business Disability Forum developed the Accessible Technology Charter. When an organization signs onto the charter, they make 10 commitments, each of which has been designed to lead sequentially into creating a robust culture of innovative accessibility within the organization that completes all ten. Think of it like a 10-step program, except all the steps can be completed somewhat cocurrently.

It likely isn't necessary to straigh-up memorize the ten commitments, but their structure is quite fascinating.

  1. Commitment
  2. Disability Awareness
  3. Consultation
  4. Built-in Accessibility
  5. Workplace adjustments
  6. Accessibility knowhow
  7. Benchmarking
  8. Development lifecycle
  9. Procurement and supply partners
  10. Continuous improvement

In itself, this is another theory of organizational implementation. I am fascinated by the framing of 'ten commitments.' With the WAI implementation and the Accessible Inclusive Ed Recommendations, they proposed 3-4 phases of implementation. The 10 commitments offer the flexibility of starting from anywhere and going to anywhere, though they do lead naturallly to phases like the whole 'Initiate. Plan. Implementation. Sustain,' there is more flexibility.

The Maturity Model further emphasizes the non-linearity of the model, because each time you assess across all ten of these benchmarks and are given actionable steps for each commitment that meet you where you are at.

This is a score out of 50. Each commitment or 'charter point' is assessed on a scale of 1-5.

  1. Informal (1 point) indicates no documentation or process in place
  2. Defined (2 points) indicates documented but no actioned or completed just once
  3. Repeatable (3 points) indicates a process is established and actioned consistently
  4. Managed (4 points) indicates the process is monitored and improved and engrained in the culture
  5. Best practice (5 points) shows an innovative level where constant improvement is occuring and being shared

The AMM is kinda designed to be hella hard to get 50 points on. You would have to be very very proactive to get that kind of score.

The AMM is designed to be done over and over again. You input your previous score, and then self-assess. Doing this, one can imediately identify whether progression or regression has occured. You are meant to document the justification for assigning yourself that grade (you're also encouraged to not 'play up' your score) and then set a goal for where you want to be next time. Half points are permitted in the assessment.

Source: Carnegie Mellon University

Hah! this PDF is literally 479 pages long. And it tells you that in order to understand it, you first need to read the actual maturity model itself, which is another PDF that is 82 pages long.

The Capability Maturity Model 1.1 is genuinely quite legible though, so I'll briefly summarize the first two chapters of it which cover the fundamental concepts underpinning the endeavor, and the five graduated levels that the CMM defines. The document does seem to be rather dated; it's from 1993. At the time of writing, it basically argues that no software community has yet reached the pinnacle Level 5, and very few have reached Level 4. Things have changed since then, so if you're genuinely considering different maturity models to use as a framework, it might be worth looking into more recent models. Also, this model isn't specialized for accessibility (though the BoK adapts it), it was made for a software development context.

Fundamentals

According to Carnegie Mellon, software development organizations can be categorized as 'mature' or 'immature.' Where an immature organization is driven largely by the acts of disconnected software practictioners and managed reactionarily as issus pop up, mature organization have mandated and consistent processes that allow accurate budgets and time estimates, enhanced QA and overall quality, and get more consistent and effective over time. The authors suggest that 'unfilled promises' of the software industry have lead to heaps of organizations staying immature. They question, what are the ingredients necessary for an immature organization to become mature?

The answer to this is complicated, but it comes down to taking a very long-term view to things at hand, commiting to improvement, being very deliberate with strategy, and to have enough capacity to not just be fighting fires all the time.

Three metrics will be helpful for us along this journey: "software process capability" which is Shrodinger's many anticipated potential outputs of a given software process, "software process performance" which is the actual output that ends up happening, and "software process maturity" which is the extent to which the process is defined, managed, measured, controlled, and effective.

In other words: "software process capability" is the dream, "software process performance" is the reality, and "software process maturity" is how much control you have over making the dream and reality one and the same.

The Five Levels

At the time of the writing of this document, levels four and five were practically hypothetical. The role of the maturity levels also functions slightly differently than in the ones set by the Business Disability Forum. The maturity levels are descriptive, rather than prescriptive, and they are characterized by patterns of behaviour such as 'to what extent is the process visible to management,' and 'to what extent does the project meet budget estimates' and other things of that nature.

Here are the five maturity levels:

  1. The Initial Level. Ad-hoc planning, unpredicatable. Performance depends on the capabilities of individual and really only succeed when exceptional talent is present. Unstable.
  2. The Repeatable Level. Stable. Processes are in place, estimates are realistic. Earlier successes can be repeated.
  3. The Defined Level. Processes are standardized across the organization, training is implemented. There is organizational understanding about what good processes are and how to develop them.
  4. The Managed Level. All of the above, but add more quality control and processes regarding quality control.
  5. The Optimizing Level. All of the above but add intense safeguarding against any defects in a way that spurs innovation.

Compare my description with the one the IAAP gives in its adaptation of the Capability Maturity Model.

  1. Initial. Capability is ad hoc and unpredictable. The organization typically does not provide a stable environment for developing and maintaining accessible products, service, and information.
  2. Repeatable. Policies are in place for managing projects and procedures for ICT accessibility. Processes can be characterized as:, Practiced, Documented, Enforced, Trained, Measured, Able to improve
  3. Defined. Standard processes for developing and maintaining ICT accessibility across the organization are documented, and these processes are integrated into a coherent whole. Processes are used, and changed as appropriate, to help the staff perform more effectively.
  4. Managed. The organization sets quantitative quality goals for products and processes. Processes include well-defined and consistent measurements.
  5. Optimizing. The entire organization is focused on continuous process improvement. The organization identifies weaknesses and strengthens the process proactively, with the goal of preventing the occurrence of defects. Innovations that exploit best practices are identified and transferred throughout the organization.

To be frank, the rest of this very large PDF seems highly unrelated to the scope of the exam, so I'm going to skip it and move on.

Back to Notes contents.

Goal Setting #4

Noted Thursday, January 2, 2025

I start back up on January 6 and want to start charting out the next month. I think we're going to go for planning out 18 total work days. This brings us close to the end of the month. I believe scheduling an exam for sometime in February will be most prudent.

Timeline

Monday Jan 6
Maturity Models Due
Tuesday Jan 7
Visual Disabilities Due
Thursday Jan 9
Organizational Management Due
Friday Jan 10
Auditory Disabilities Due
Saturday Jan 11
National and Provincial Instruments: Europe/Americas
Monday Jan 13
Speech/Language Disabilities Due
Tuesday Jan 14
National and Provincial Instruments: Further Reading
Wednesday Jan 15
CPACC Applications Open
Thursday Jan 16
DeafBlindness Due
Friday Jan 17
Accessibility Standards and ICT
Saturday Jan 18
Mobility Disabilities Due
Monday Jan 20
Additional Reading Catch-Up
Tuesday Jan 21
Cognitive Disabilities Due
Thursday Jan 23
Additional Reading Catch-Up
Friday Jan 24
Psychological Disabilities Due
Saturday Jan 25
Additional Reading Catch-Up
Monday Jan 27
Complex Disabilities Due
Tuesday Jan 28
Additional Reading Catch-Up
Thursday Jan 30
Additional Reading Catch-Up

Holiday Productivity

I'm writing this on the 6th of January. I managed to only do six hours and thirty-five minutes of work over the holiday. I'm impressed by my own ability to stay away from it, but that means I need to rebuild the routines that I had.

There is a chance I won't make quota if I set it at 20 hours. I will set it there anyway, and if I don't make it, I will be kind to myself!

Back to Notes contents.

Goal-Setting #3.5 + Winter Break

Noted Monday, December 23, 2024

Even more confetti! Folks, we have met yet another amazing checkpoint on the precipice of the holiday season. It's time to reflect on the progress I've made since December 7th, to celebrate my achievements, and set new goals!

I'm not at a cafe today, but I am setting off on a plane tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited. Because we're entering the holiday break, I've labelled this as Goal Setting #3.5 in recognition that the goals we set today are going to be relatively mellow. I do want to sustain some effort over my holidays, but we're not going to be as Draconian as last time. First, a reflection on our progress so far!

Dec 7- Dec 23 Accomplishments

Time Logged

This was a shorter period consisting of 12 work days and 4 rest days, for 16 days total. The total time logged was 47 hours, giving us an average of 4 hours per workday, which is an incredible accomplishment for me.

58% of the time, or 27.25 hours, was dedicated to studying for the CPACC exam. That's almost half of the total time I've spent, condensed to only these past days. This really shows that the new Goal-Setting strategy I introduced last period was exceptionally effective at generating motivation and persistence.

Wordcount and Blogging

My wordcount is also impressive. Last period (lasting 18 days), I wrote 12600 words. This period, of 16 days, I wrote some 11900 words in the Notes section of the blog, and 14700 words in total. This indicates that beyond keeping pace, I am actually slightly overtaking my output since last reporting period (even if I just record my Notes numbers). Eleven CPACC-related entries were submitted this time, as opposed to the 10 CPACC-entries from last time.

The additional wordcount comes from completing a blog post on accessibility in FreeCodeCamp's material as well as creating 26 exam-style questions in the new Multiple Choice Game that I am still refining.

I also smoothed out some more smaller details in this blog regarding dark mode and filenames.

HTML, CSS, Javascript

I spent a significant amount of time on the Multiple-Choice Game. It's written entirely in Javascript and has a bit of a hacky implementation. The scrambling process is not exactly random, and I think most people who see the code (especially seasoned JS experts) would be absolutely bewildered by some of the choices I made. But it does work. The code might be ugly, but it does work! I'm not trying to get hired as a JS engineer, so maybe that's all that matters right now. The best way to learn is by doing, and I definitely learned some things along the way, to the point where I am sure I would emerge with much cleaner code if I did attempt to redo the implementation. I am optimistic that the Multiple Choice Game will be useful for other CPACC studiers!

In terms of HTML, I learned some important things about HTML validation regarding what you can and cannot put in a button element and I need to redo some work on one of my project sites. I also learned about Emmet shortcuts in VSCode. I've been feeling more comfortable in general about writing my blog in HTML, and learning about Emmet and becoming more proficient with it is guaranteed to streamline the process even more.

I didn't do much in CSS, but I did complete FreeCodeCamp's responsive documentation project and learned a little bit more about relative and absolute positioning.

CPACC Content Covered

I pretty much completed what I said I would complete.

I felt like I was able to do deep-dives into every one of these topics. While last reporting session was characterized by memorization, this reporting session was characterized by research. Lots of history-related things and critical thinking. This kind of engagement-- engagement beyond the book, is how I absorb the material.

Dec 7- Dec 23 Areas to Improve

Time Management

My completion rate for actually hitting a minimum 3 hours a day was still just 67% for days designated as 'work days,' and rest days are still seeing action. 18% of work was completed on a day that was set aside for resting. In another words, the sabbath is definitely not being kept holy.

We can attribute this to two things. First, rest days are not honoured because I am forced to play catch-up due to low performance on week days. Secondly, I am getting so used to logging onto my computer and opening VSCode that I cannot help but work on the weekends.

At this stage, I don't think the latter poses a problem for me. Eventually I do want to have clear separation between rest day and work day because it will facilitate overall sustainability. The former issue of not meeting quota is actually an issue though, and it's not one that I'm equipped to solve given that we're entering break season. I'll revisit this in the new year.

It might be helpful to revise the quota itself to 2 hours a day spent on CPACC material. But this is a problem for future me.

Doing Just Enough

The new Goal-Setting strategy of assigning a strict timeline for CPACC module completion was highly successful in terms of boosting output. However, two problems emerged.

First, I did not actually achieve everything I set out to do. It took me two days to do Disability Etiquette instead of the one day I had allocated, and that shifted all the other resulting goals over by a day. I thought I had built enough tolerance for error that I would be able to get back on track should this happen, but it just didn't. Therefore, Business Maturity Models never actually saw the light of day.

Secondly, I set up this system with the idea that I could work ahead and beyond the scoped domain sections if I completed deadlines early. But that never happened in a meaningful way. This is especially concerning given that some days covered less material than I had initially projected. If I had been more ambitious with my goals, I probably could have completed more material!

This is quite a conundrum. The first problem demonstrates that the system has very little recovery power, so goals should not be set too high. The second problem demonstrates that if the goals are set too low, output does not reach the level that it could have been. I need to be very, very mindful with the goals I set after the break. I have to be bang-on with my time estimations.

Goal-Setting for the Holidays

I tried to imagine goals that I could set for over the holidays, and realized I couldn't. I suppose my one goal will be to meet quota. I am revising my quota.

Here are my current settings

Here are my revised settings:

I suppose we can view this as a bit of an experiment. From a highly regimented schedule to no schedule at all (+flying to what is essentially a tropical desination), how much work do I actually do?

Happy holidays, everyone.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 26/44: Usability and UX

Noted Saturday, December 21, 2024

Reflection

I am one day behind, which means I do need to complete Usability and UX as well as Maturity Models if I want to fully be up to tempo. Family is coming over today to celebrate an early holiday dinner, so my time is actually limited. It's time to crunch!

Usability and UX

Source: Body of Knowledge

The terms usability and UX (user experience) are not to be used interchangeably.

The User Experience consists of usability (how effectively the user is able to use the site) in addition to digestability of content, desirability of content, accessibility, credibility (level of trust in security and privacy).

Usability restricts its scope to three considerations:

  1. When the user is using the interface, how easy is it for them to understand on the first contact?
  2. When the user is using the interface, how easy is it to achieve their goal?
  3. When the user is using the interface, how easy is it for them to gain proficiency within subsequent visits?

In user-centered design, users are involved at every iterative stage in the design process and are heavily relied on during user testing and research.

In summary, the Body of Knowledge asks us to focus on understanding three concepts: user-centered design, usability, and user experience. Let's focus on those as we dive into our sources.

Source: SEObility Wiki, User-Centred Design

UCD (User-Centred Design)'s ultimate goal is to produce output with high usability and an optimized user experience. It seeks to meet the user where they are instead of forcing the user to adopt a set of behaviour that they wouldn't be inclined to naturally.

Benefits of UCD:

While the basis of UCD is codified in the International Standards Organization, there are different approaches to implementation.

Most approaches are iterative, in that phases of design may be revisited if the end product is not satisfactory. SEObility suggests a five-phase approach: analysis (user analysis, business requirements, defining test goals and user scenarios), conception (develop task flows, storyboards, maybe a wireframe that is tested by end-users), design (create the product, solve problems, increase desireability and meaningfulness of content), evaluation (user tests against key performance indicators, incorporate consumer reactions and feedback, test user safety) and optimization (depending on the results and feedback, jump back to different stages as needed if satisfaction and quality is not met.)

Source: Interaction Design Foundation, Usability: A part of the User Experience

The title of this article is its thesis. Usability is but a small piece of what makes up User Experience. Usability is a sub-displine of UX design. Usability is measurable and technical. UX is broader and relies more on unmeasurable things like general affect and impression.

Usability

Being on the more technical side, usability will analyze how easy it is for a person to decipher the interface on first contact, how easy it is for them to reach their objective, and how easy it is to recall the use of the interface on subsequent visits. Decipherability, achievability, and learnability. It should additionally error-free.

The assessment of all of these factors are done through empircally measuring outcomes of user testing.

The result of tests might look something like this:

User Experience

Usability forms a crucial part of User Experience, but it doesn't tell the whole story. If your design is highly usable, but it is aesthetically very ugly, your User Experience will be poor. That being said, ugliness is not an easily measurable metric.

The authors include two models on what makes up 'User Experience.'

The Role of Accessibility

Let's take a second to think about this. The last point about the different components of UX just assumes that accessibility is a separate consideration from usability.

My initial impression was that 'accessibility' forms a key part of 'usability,' which forms a key part of 'UX.'

But reading this article, it seems more like tha authors view accessibility and Disabled users as being outside of usability's scope.

This matches with what we learned in Section 2A, Accommodations vs UD and specifically when we looked at the article about the role of Accessibility within the field of Usability. When we covered that material, we saw the W3C authors suggest that the needle had shifted to the point that Accessibility was a regular consideration within Usability testing. But I don't get that impression from the Interaction Design Foundation.

I will say though, the fact that an article covering the difference between Usability and UX mentions Accessibility at all can be counted for something. Perhaps other sources will have more to contribute to this conversation.

Source: UsabilityGeek, The Difference/Relationship between Usability and UX

This article first focuses on the differences between Usability and UX. It does this by describing the goals or uses of Usability and UX in many different ways across a dozen or so bullet points. I've preserved the points that the authors makes, but I'm using a table for direct comparability of each statement.

Comparing and Contrasting Descriptions of Usability and UX
Usability UX
A key part of UX. A process of creating meaningful, relevant user experiences.
Make the website easy! Make the user happy!
Can the user accomplish the goal? Did the user have as delightful an experience as possible?
As efficient as a freeway. As pleasant as a twisting mountainside road.
A science. An art.
Giving the users what they said they want. Giving the users beyond what they said they want.
Measures effectiveness of a defined user achieving a defined goal in defined environment. All aspects of user interaction with product, service, environment, facility.
Measured ease of the user interacting. The user's impression of their own interaction with the website.
The responsibility of UI designers. The responsibility of many departments, and also UI designers.

Secondly, the author describes the relationship between Usability and UX, which is a synergetic one.

Practically, both must account for each other. UX professionals will solicit validation of their designs from Usability professionals.

The author also presents a model of the relationship that we haven't seen in other articles before. In this model, user experience depends first on the product itself being useful. Then it relies on people being able to use. Then it relies on how it looks and feels. Finally, it relies on the overall impression of the brand itself.

In other words, User Experience depends on Brand Experience, which depends on Desirability, which depends on Usability, which depends on fundamental Utility.

Source: Jisc Guides, Usability and User Experience

Link deprecated, and apparently the guide itself was deprecated in 2017. In any case, we see very similar ideas in this article alongside the others. But this article is fundamentally different because it reports on an actual usability initiative that Jisc undertook and describes their process and results.

We start with some definitions. Jisc defines User Experience as encompassing a 'more emotional dimension' that the scope of usability cannot account for. Ultimately, if the goal of usability is Ease of Use, the goal of UX is to produce Valuable services. Their model of components of usability include the following things: desire, usefulness, usability, findability, credibility, and accessibility.They make an argument that experience itself IS the product. Jisc reports that in their own case study, after applying usability techniques, Jisc-funded projects got a boost in user ratings and downloads (almost four times more in some cases).

Shifting to incorporate usability techniques is largely a bottom-up affair, but it requires buy-in from the top. A user-centered design process is iterative, flexible, and lazer-focused on the end-user.

Jisc recommends creating researching and creating user personas with a name, back-story, goals, motivators, and pain-points. Jisc did this by carrying out 20 interviews and distilling them into 5 personas. Task lists were created for each of these personas, and they were prioritized using a method they call 'MoSCoW' (Must have, Should have, Could have, Won't have).

They prototyped using sketches and digital prototyping skills, which allowed them to explore many design possibilities while keeping costs down.

They carried out user testing all the way. To measure success, Jisc suggests that the System Usability Scale (SUS) is a very powerful general-purpose metric. It's composed of 10 questions graded at 10 points each for a score out of 100. By doing the SUS iteratively after each prototyping stage, they were able to quickly track their progress and sustain momentum.

Source: Amy Smith, Usability First- Why Usability Design Matters to UI/UX Designers

Very tempted to just ignore this one because there are a lot of infographics and/or images of text in here that are marked with role=presentation and have nulled alt fields.

I suppose I could just describe the images here for convenience.

Introduction Image: Venn diagram that shows when web design, common sense, and simplicity overlap, you get usability.

Second Image: Powerpoint slide with the following text: 10 Usability Heuristics are:

Third image: Powerpoint slide with the following text: What is Usability? Usability is the extent to which the product can be used by specified user to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction in a specified context of use. Usability is defined by five quality components: lernability, efficiency, memorability, errors, and satisfaction. Usability evaluation is an assesssment of the usability of a product, item, system or interface.

Fourth image: Shows many colourful strings each labelled with a usability concept flowing in to the multicoloured banner of usability, as if to suggest that usability is composed of the following things: navigation, familiarity, consistency, error prevention, feedback, visual clarity, flexibility & efficiency.

So this is a strange article for them to include, because it does blend the line between Usability and UX where the other sources endeavor to diffrentiate the two concepts as much as possible. For example, the article suggests that products with usability must have 'unique style.' There isn't really anything else here that isn't included in the other sources.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 25/44: Disability Etiquette

Noted Friday, December 20, 2024

Source: United Spinal Association, Disability Etiquette Guide

If you're only going to read one of the sources, this is the one that I would recommend.

They introduce the identity-first/person-first language conundrum without talking down to people who use the identity-first model. Both options are introduced as 'two respectful models' that can be used interchangeably. While they reccommend the person-first language model on the basis that there 'not yet being consensus' among all disability groups that the identity-first model is acceptable, they don't preach anything, and they even use the phrase 'disabled person' within the text itself.

This is the most recently updated source, and this reflects in some of the language they employ, and the advice they give.

Accomodating Physical Disabilities

They introduce the idea of ambulatory wheelchair users. It's good to see this receiving attention recently. There are lots of wheelchair users who can walk independently but still use the wheelchair to help them walk longer distances. There might be chronic fatigue and pain things at play. There are people with my condition who are ambulatory wheelchair users for this reason.

In terms of eye-level conversations, United Spinal Association clarifies that you should achieve eye-level by either sitting in a chair, or standing at a slight distance so that a wheelchair user doesn't need to crane their neck. The implication here is that you shouldn't kneel or crouch, though the United Spinal Association doesn't say this outright.

There are numerous references to the ADA here: the United Spinal Association emphasizes that it's not just nice to ensure your environment is accessible,it's actually required in many cases. Seat-level counters, accessible routes, clear ramps, and places to sit and take a breather.

Accomodating Sensory Disabilities

The United Spinal Association defines sensory disabilities as loss of vision or loss of hearing. They don't really address the unique case of DeafBlindness, and they also direct their advice to the case of people who have near total vision loss, and near total hearing loss.

I think the advice for accomodating Deaf people could be improved if they distinguished between communicating with culturally Deaf, deaf, and Hard of Hearing people. Forcing a person with very little hearing to lip-read is really not great, considering 30% of content is really only discernable by lip-reading. But talking to someone who is HOH is generally fine. Finding out someone's personal communication preference is pretty tantamount to setting you up for success. And even though it is generally cool to talk to HOH people. don't make assumptions.

Be aware that a person's preference might be context-dependent. Maybe the first time you met them, their hearing aids weren't in, or maybe this person isn't in the mood to turn on their cochlear implant because the fatigue caused by overusing assistive hearing technology can be quite real.

Also if you are communicating vocally, don't over-enunciate. the United Spinal Association suggests that one should 'speak clearly,' but this does not mean over-enunciate. That actually makes comprehension worse.

In interacting with Blind people, the United Spinal Association suggests that you should identify yourself and the group you are with, and inform the Blind person if you are taking your leave. You can offer assistance in a variety of ways (especially in service contexts) such as offering a tour of the facility, offering to read written information, offering to describe where food is located on a plate if in a restaurant. This all applies if the person is already in contact with you. Don't just go up to Blind people randomly if they are going about their own business assuming that they need or want your help.

Accomodating Neurodiversity

The advice here is alright. Neurodivergence is incredibly broad as a category and access needs can vary wildly. In the section titled 'Be responsible,' they refer to 'mental health crisises' but don't touch on meltdowns/shutdowns, which I feel is pretty vital to know about. Similar to the section on Deaf/Hard of Hearing people, I think the scope the set is too big for them to give actually functionable advice.

Other advice that the United Spinal Association offers include to 'be respectful of their boundaries': only touch after asking for consent, be careful about playing music or using super bright lights. They suggest that you should be supportive and understanding in the event that the neurodivergent person needs to tic or stim. Also, if organizing event, consider setting outside a quiet space for those that need a break. It's more appreciated than one would expect.

Communicate clearly and check in periodically if you need to offer further clarification. If the person needs more time to process, offer them that extra time.

Accomodating Intellectual Disability

United Spinal Association gets straight to the point: don't use the r-word.

A lot of the advice for accomodating Neurodiversity also applies here. A big one here is not to automatically defer to any companion that the person might be with, and don't treat them like children.

This isn't in the booklet, but I did work for a period with an advocacy organization that helped to improve the quality of services that people with IDD access. Some people assume that folks with IDD don't have the capacity to make choices, so they make choices for them. This is a chicken and egg situation. As a result of the assumption, there are folks with IDD who are never taught to make decisions. This is a skill that everyone has to learn at some point, but folks with IDD have been historically disempowered to make choices from themselves. To bridge the gap, some folks with IDD benefit immensely from a scaffolded approach to decision making. Present options, make those options understandable, and offer the opportunity to make a choice. This is all beyond the scope of the booklet, but an important concept to know about regardless.

Accomodating Other Conditions

The United Spinal Associations also discusses scent-based disabilities. If you can, implement a fragrance-free policy.

Source: United Nations, Disability Inclusive Language Guidelines

I don't like the way that the United Nations goes about this. No doubt, there are slurs that should be eliminated from speech. But simply prescribing what language is and isn't appropriate, when the conversation is ongoing within the community, leaves a truly bad taste in my mouth.

You can read Annex I to see the kind of recommendations they make. They recommend against even saying 'people with disabilities' and opt instead for 'persons with disabilities,' which genuinely did make me gasp.

In terms of language and terminology, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities sets the standard that we must all follow.

No, UN, I completely and entirely disagree.

We can look into the page and see hints of why my position and why the UN feel so oppositely about this. For the UN, establishing "unified terminology" is a key goal. Terminology is not so much a weapon of liberation as it is an obstacle that we have to quickly make a consensus decision on and move on.

It does feel especially condescending, however. I do not feel like the UN is talking to me when I read their language guidelines. I feel like they are assuming that their reader is not Disabled.

Ableism is a misguided and biased understanding of disability that leads to the assumption that the lives of persons with disabilities are not worth living

Ableism, to the UN, is a miscommunication, and not a robust system propped up by history and policy decisions that has stewed for centuries now in the sauce of eugenics, anti-Blackness, misogyny and colonialism. Ableism is a killer. It makes sense that if ableism was just a miscommunication, then pushing for 'unified language' would be one way to solve the problem. But the problem is not language. The problem is the way that our society is structured, and language is but one tool at our disposal that we have to change the landscape of things as we know it.

Anyways, the five principles the UN suggests can be remembered with the mnemonic PUCKS

Reflection

So Disability Etiquette took two days to get through, which means I'm behind on UX and Usability. On the other hand, I've hit the 50hour mark for CPACC prep which is ten more hours than the minimum time that the IAAP suggests. I obviously don't feel ready yet. Still have a lot of material to go.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 24/44: Disability Etiquette

Noted Thursday, December 19, 2024

Today, it's the dreaded section about Disability Etiquette. Fuck. It's gonna tell me to use person-first language. And I am going to say no. I am bracing myself for this section to be quite mentally taxing. Feeling not great.

I'm going to type all my thoughts so you know where I stand before I jump into this, because I have a feeling that my position won't be reflected in the text that I'm about to read, and this makes me deeply uncomfortable.

Source: Myself

Language is an intensely political thing and it's a realm of constant and ever-evolving struggle. Knowing what language to use and what 'etiquette' standards to follow is only possible if you know the history between different schools of thought and approaches within the anti-ableism struggle. It's also specific to community. I like to refer to Disabled people with the capital D as a political in-group signifier and call to action: ultimately, all communities that form our understanding of Disability must act collectively and intersectionally to achieve liberation. Disabled people only form one aspect of what Disability Justice activists might call 'crip' culture, which also encompasses communities that have historically distanced themselves from the Disabled community: Mad culture, and Deaf culture.

But there are moments when Disabled with the capital D is clearly not the right word to reach for. Especially for folks with intellectual and developmental disabilities, who are the ones who struggled to get person-first language in the first place. They are the ones more likely to prefer person-first over identity-first language. Autism is a slightly different case, where autistic people will often go for the identity-first language of 'autistic person,' and will scoff at the use of 'person with autism.' However, some other folks with the same diagnoses will prefer the label of 'Neurodivergent' over any other.

But again, none of these experiences are monolithic. There are still people out there who received the now-deprecated Aspbergers diagnosis who will be very displeased if you refer to them as autistic or Neurodivergent people. Moreover, there are subgroups within subgroups; racialization and gender also impact how a person or group of people might want to be identified.

To complicate matters even further, there are many people who have functional limitations, or severe diseases, or various things that you personally might think of as a disability, that they simply do not perceive as such. And it's also your duty to respect that kind of preference in your language. There are full cultures in which the concept of disability doesn't exist. That might come across as a bit shocking, but consider that it didn't always exist in our culture either. Respect and appreciate the diversity.

To paraphrase, all of this is that it is extremely complicated, ever-shifting, individualized, regionalized, and context-dependent. The attempt to form static terminology guidelines is, in my view, exonerating for those who don't want to do their homework and ultimately serves to make the abled population more comfortable. It reflects an approach that is fundamentally uncurious about Disabled culture and live, as well as the ongoing struggle for rights, recognition, and ultimately, for Disabled liberation.

I would also add that it's far more important to be aware of ableist vocabulary that you might use, because that is so much more likely to be the source of harm when you are interacting face-to-face with Disabled people. There are a lot of words that are ableist in origin. Get acquainted with it.

Source: Body of Knowledge

The IAAP recommendeds person-first language as the standard address that accessibility professionals should roll with. Here are their words, quoted directly.

It is generally more accepted to use the phrase “a person with a disability”, instead of “a disabled person”. People first language is the form used in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The emphasis is on the person, not the disability, to avoid labelling and stigmatization.

Generally more accepted, eh? Generally more accepted by who? It's a socially acceptable term in the corporate world and the disability support world, but is it accepted by Disabled people themselves?

See, I can understand falling in line with the CRPD. But hear me out here: the CRPD is almost 20 years old and things have changed since then. There are lots of things that we accepted in 2006 that we do not accept today, and the CRPD is not wholly immune from these concerns.

Also, a note on the idea of 'avoiding stigmatization.' Many feel that person-first actually increases stigmatization around disability. I wouldn't say I'm a 'person with Chinese ancestry.' I'm Chinese. Neither would I say, 'I'm a person with a nonbinary gender.' I'm nonbinary. This argument was first made by Lydia X.Z. Brown and many others have since gone on to elaborate. Lydia X.Z. Brown and countless others certainly doesn't accept the phrase 'a person with a disability.' But I guess the IAAP wasn't referring to them as part of their "general" sample population.

The Body of Knowledge goes on to explain the identity-first approach but they don't really get into the rationale. Their explanation only really accurately describes the community of folks with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and I wouldn't be surprised if the source they took from was of an agency or think tank that largely does advocacy on behalf of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

In another section, the IAAP goes over some things that you should do in one-on-one interaction with Disabled people. Don't make assumptions about our capacity, respect our bodily autonomy, speak to the us directly, don't barge in and start helping us without us asking. But let's look at some of the sources that the IAAP links for more of a deep dive.

Source: United Cerebral Palsy

The link they provide is broken, but I searched on Wayback and it seems that as of 2017, the page basically hosted a version of Ten Commandments of Etiquette for Communicating with People with Disabilities (PDF) which is hosted on many other sources, and was at one time recommended by the US Department of Labour.

It is a dated resource, but here's some points I thought are worth preserving:

Source: University of Cambridge

So, the page redirects. You have to use WayBack machine to view the actual article.

The page it redirects to is actually quite great! They talk about how they move to identity-first language to refer to 'Disabled students' as a collective, and then use person-first to describe specific types of disability. For example, students with learning disabilities.

Let's look at the original article the IAAP meant to link to.

We see familiar suggestions. This article was clearly based off of the 10 Commandments. One good suggestion that this article has is to ask how a Deaf or HoH person prefers to communicate. You can do this by typing out 'how would you want to communicate' on a message app on your phone, or by writing it out on some paper.

One bad suggestion this article has is to put yourself at eye level with wheelchair users. This is not ubiquitously accepted as good advice. In fact, there are many that think you should explicitly not try to crouch or kneel, because that's something you do when you talk to children, not adults.

Some good advice for organizing events: Include accessibility info when advertising your event. Is the venue accessible? Try to make the venue accessible. Do you need to hire an interpreter, or live captioner?

The article also provides some ideas for language use. Don't say "The Disabled." Say "Disabled people." Don't use ableist slurs. Don't describe us as 'Brave' or 'Inspiring.' Don't refer to non-disabled people as 'normal.'

Source: Independence Australia, Disability Etiquette A-Z

Our third broken link of the day, but I did find it on WayBack.I like the way this one is constructed. The alphabet thing really appeals to me!

The only two nodes that I had issues with was "X- See a person's X factor and not their limitations" and "E - Communicate at eye level." You should see a person's X factor and their limitations. Sure, don't hyperfixate on it, but don't ellide it from your perception. When you're talking to people, perceive the whole them and don't try to ignore the parts of them just to make yourself feel more comfortable. And I've already discussed why the eye-level communication thing is debatable.

Other than that, here's a slightly rephrased version of the A-Z (that incorporates some of my editorializin). My version is entirely alphabetical (and with E and X missing), because their original version doesn't always keep faithful to the alphabetical format.

Reflection

This is getting really freaking exhausting. I'm going to take a break and write more test questions.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 23/44: Procurement Laws

Noted Tuesday, December 17, 2024

Reflection

I was slightly ahead of schedule so I spent yesterday writing an article for my blog.

Let's talk about last week for a second. I didn't meet my weekly 20 hour quota because I didn't have enough goals to do. I got what I charted out for myself done quicker than was expected. So I'm not going to beat myself up about not getting a round 20 hours. I am going to encourage myself to set more ambitious goals next time. And I need to branch out to do more things than just CPACC prep.

Speaking of which, time to cover procurement laws today.

Procurement Laws

We're going to be looking at accessibility-related procurement laws in the EU and the US today. Procurement law basically defines that services procured/purchased/contracted must meet certain requirements. Our focus is on accessibility-related requirements, but they don't have to be. In fact, both the EU Procurement Directive and the US Federal Acquisition Regulation are general procurement laws that encompass a variety of requirements of which accessibility is just a small part.

EU Procurement Directive

First of all, this is a directive. This means that each of the Member States implement the EU procurement directive into national legislation in their own way. It's not really procurement law in and of itself. Hence, reading the actual text of the document, the wording sometimes is a bit wishy-washy. It's leaving some room to interpretation for the member states to incorporate these into ways that are synchronous with their own legal systems.

But with that background aside, the Body of Knowledge draws our attention to three main points:

Service Requirements ('Technical Specifications')
In order to be considered as a candidate for procurement, the service must meet requirements outlined in 'technical specifications.' These 'technical specifications' must outline mandatory accessibility criteria. The mandatory accessibilty criteria is defined elsewhere is EU law.
Accessible Communications
Procurement documentation and communication in electronic forms must be accessible.
Contract Evaluation
Quality of accessibility may be used a strong consideration when comparing services who are competing for the same contract. In fact, if a service provider has a history of violating social obligations, it may be possible to exclude their proposal on that basis.

There are domain-specific procurement directives also implemented in the EU that mirror this structure. Domains include utilities, transportation, concessions.

US Federal Acquisition Regulation

In this absolute monster of a document, we find the relevant section tucked into a subpart of Part 39: Acquisition of Information Technology. This is the subpart that implements Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (1973).

The biggest thing here is in accquiring ICT, federal agencies basically agree that federal employees and members of the public seeking information from a federal agency will have comparable access and use to the information regardless of disability status.

If it turns out that access is NOT comparable, then there is penalties for the agency. Hence, agencies are incentivized to only acquire accessible products.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 22/44: Domain-Specific Laws

Noted Sunday, December 15, 2024

Reflection

Today I'm in another restaurant. I'm not normally in restaurants on Sundays, and I don't normally even do any study things on Sundays. But I met with a friend and now I feel like I can stay here for a couple of hours and maybe get some quality work done. I have three hours left on my quota, and I'm feeling a bit calmer today. I am cold. But calmer.

Domain-Specific Laws

There's six of them, three are American and three are of the EU.

21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA)

Regulatory body: US Federal Communications Commission

Year: 2010

This applies to communications technology and broadcasting. Various accessibility legislations have been in place for these domains, but the laws were designed with older technology in mind. The 21st Century CVAA takes a lot of those early accessibility things and brings them in line to modern technology.

Air Carrier Access Act

Regulatory body: US Department of Transporation

Year: 1986

Applying to flights of US airlines and flights to and from the US by foreign airlines. It's an anti-discriminatory measure defining rights of Disabled passengers and obligations of airlines.

It's heartbreaking to read this just because of how horrible shit is right now for wheelchair users. Airlines break wheelchairs all the time and those things are so costly. It's like breaking people's legs. It's unacceptable, and there should be steep penalties, but those don't exist. Even with all these provisions, it's anedquate. It no wonder that there have been multiple moves to try to ammend this act. Such as the proposed ammendment below:

Air Carrier Access Amendments Act (Proposed)

Proposing body: US Congress

Year: Introduced 2017, never passed

The Body of Knowledge fucks up by never specifying that this act was never passed. It's misleading. The main thing for the Amendments act proposed was the introduction was to clarify several obligations and provide remedies that Disabled passenger could use to actually get some enforcement out of the act.

Let us now turn to the EU.

Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD)

Regulatory body: European Union

Year: 2010

Applies to traditional TV broadcasts,as well as on-demand services. This is not just an accessibility law, it also governs promotion of European works, hate speech and protection of minors. On the accessibility side, the AVMSD requires that these services are made progressively more accessible through proportionate measures.

European Electronics Communications Code

Regulatory body: European Union

Year: 2018

As the AVMSD wasn't a specifically accessibility-focused document, neither is the EECC. It applies to communication through traditional (calls, SMS), and web-based services. Relevant to our study is requires that services information are provided in accessible formats, and that emergency services, hotlines, missing children helplines, are all equally accessible to persons with disabilities.

Regulation on electronic identification and trust services (eIDAS)

Regulatory body: European Union

Year: 2014

This governs digital transctions that require electronic signatures. As with the other documents, this is a general regulation and not accessibility-specific, but it does have accessibility baked into it. These services are required to be accessible to people with disabilities.

Small Break

That covers domain-specific stuff. Want to start moving more things into the CPACC section.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 21/44: Regional Standards

Noted Saturday, December 14, 2024

Planning

According to my goals for this session, I only had the Inter-American Convention due. I finished that yesterday, but I figured I'd be done the regional standards and there's still all of Asia to go technically... So I believe we're tackling the three Asian regional standards; 2 of them in effect, one of them only proposed. All of them are listed in the BoK however, so we have no choice really, if we want to actually conclusively finish this section.

I also want to get a bit of a head start on Domain-Specific and Procurement Laws, though I am unsure about how far I get. I've chosen an unideal location to do my Saturday cram session so we shall see how far I actually get.

Regional Treaties in Asia

Source: League of Arab States, Arab Charter on Human Rights

I'm quite unsure what they want us to get from this, because they've just linked the text of the Arab Charter and provided zero context. I do feel like I'm swimming in deep water here.

Article 3 and Article 40 are the relevant ones here.

Article 3 is the general anti-discimination clause that names a bunch of characterstics that cannot serve as the basis for discimination, of which physical and mental disability are explicitly named.

Article 40 is concerned with the rights of Disabled people. Accessibility to public and private spaces is part of this, as is education and health services, social services to Disabled people and people who support them, and the promise to 'do whatever is needed to avoid placing those persons in institutions.'

The domain of information and communications isnt' really mentioned in Article 40, and the obligation is purely levied on the state.

Source: ASEAN Human Rights Declaration

Signed in 2012 by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. ASEAN comprises of the following: Brunei, Combodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.

In terms of anti-discimination provisions, Article 2 is what we normally see. Disability is one of the categories that is explicitly named.

ASEAN then doubles down and in Article 4, reaffirms that the rights of Disabled people, as well as women, children, elderly, migrant workers, and other vulnerable groups, and inalienable and indivisable from human rights.

Unlike the Arab Charter, Disabled people don't get their own article.

Source: ESCAP, Incheon strategy

ESCAP stands for 'Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific' and god this PDF is massive.

The Incheon strategy is heavily tied to the CRPD. They are based on the same principles. The Strategy has 10 goals, and the one concerned with accessibility is Goal 3. It covers physical spaces, assitive tech and accessibility of ICT. Accessibility of websites is a metric they will measure when taking into account the effectiveness of the Incheon strategy.

Again, they just lead us directly to the full text of the declaration and present it with no context. It is my understanding that at this point, the Incheon strategy was subsumed by the Jakarta Declaration in 2023, rendering the whole point moot?

IAAP, I'm confused.

Pause

Genuinely, how much have I actually learned in the past couple of days? I severly need to make flashcards regarding some of these standards, maybe compile them into a chart to do a bit of compare/contrast?

Timeline: Regional and International Instruments

1948
Universal Declaration of Human Rights passed.
1950
European Convention on Human Rights passed.
1961
European Social Charter passed.
1975
Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons passed.
1981
African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights adopted.
1988
European Social Charter Additional Protocol passed.
1996
Revised Charter (European Social Charter) passed.
1999
Inter-American Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities.
2000
EU Charter of Fundamental Rights passed.
2004
Arab Charter on Human Rights
2006
Charter of Rights of Persons with Disabilities adopted
2008
Charter of Rights of Persons with Disabilities in force.
2009
Treaty of Lisbon: EU Charter of Fundamental Rights adopted.
2012
ASEAN Human Rights Declaration.
2012
ESCAP adopts Incheon Strategy.
2013
Treaty of Marrakesh passed.
2016
Treaty of Marrakesh in force.
2018
African Disability Rights Protocol adopted (not ratified).

More Spiralling Later

Damn. I'm really, really unmotivated. It's the restaurant that I'm in. It's really really interfering with my ability to be productive. Some restaurants will let you loiter and its totally fine. I don't feel fine in this one. Not going to be coming back. I need to be kinder again on myself.

This is literally the world's most stressful restaurant. FUCK IT time to distract myself with some DOMAIN SPECIFIC law and PROCUREMENT LAWS.

Okay I tried to jump into it but I just couldn't. The architecture here is just so hostile. I can't. I want to leave so bad.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 20/44: Regional Standards

Noted Friday, December 13, 2024

I've covered all of the articles in the main body regarding European standards, but not the ones deemed as 'further reading' as some of the reading there actually applies more to national standards and ICT applications than to 3b.1 specifically.

Today we are going to cover Africa, which has far less linked material so we might also get into the Inter-American convention and the Arab convention.

African Charter on Human and People's Rights

Source: Body of Knowledge

The African Charter on Human and People's Rights was adopted in 1981. It does not explicitly name disability status as a category that can't be disciminate, but as is the pattern that we've seen with these other documents, this document has indeed been wielded to serve that purpose.

The African Disability Rights Protocol, adopted as an extension to the charter in 2018, is not yet come into force. It requires 15 ratifications. The ADRP takes from the CRPD and adapts it to its regional context.

For example, Article 11 of the ADRP starts off the same as Article 8 of the CRPD when it describes prevention of harmful practices. The ADRP goes on to name 'witchcraft, abandonment, concealmnent, ritual killings, or the association of disability with omens' as specific harmful practices that should be prevented.

Source: Organization of African Unity, African Charter of Human and Peoples' Rights

This is an excellent source but it's not accessible. It's a scanned PDF.

I did some digging and HTML version of the African Charter of Human and People's Rights

One damning observation, right from the start is that the IAAP gets the name wrong. It's not People's rights. It's Peoples' rights, as in the rights of many different sovereign 'peoples,' nations in other words.

I'd also like to quote a section of the preamble here:

Conscious of their duty to achieve the total liberation of Africa, the peoples of which are still struggling for their dignity and genuine independence, and undertaking to eliminate colonialism, neo-colonialism, apartheid, zionism and to dismantle agressive foreign military bases and all forms of discrimination, particularly those based on race, ethnic group, colour, sex, language, religion, or political opinions.

What a resonating paragraph, and when I think of Congo, Sudan, and Palestine in 2024, it almost brings me to tears.

Article 2 names a bunch of different characteristics that can't be used as basis for discimination. Disability isn't one of the things names, but is qualified through "other statuses" which is named at the very end.

Article 9 discusses the right of every individual to receive information. I assume that this could be used as support for accessible information and communication.

Source: University of Pretoria, #RatifyADRP: Call on African leaders to ratify the African Disability Rights Protocol

This is a video that basically has a bunch of people from diverse African nations speaking in their languages and calling on their leaders to ratify the disability rights protocol. We also learn that at the time of the video's production (2021), no state had ratified it, though 12 states has signed it.

It's a powerful video but there's no transcript provided, meaning it's not accessible according to WCAG 2.2. Especially due to the various languages being spoken, it isn't accessible. Maybe... fix that?

Inter-American Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Persons with Disablities

Source: Body of Knowledge

The Inter-American Convention, adopted 1999, precedes the CRPD. It was signed in Guatamala and is the first regional treaty adressing the rights of Disabled people specifically. Article III of the Convention adresses architectural, transporation, and communication obstacles across a range of domains spanning the full breadth of human life be eliminated 'to the extent possible.' Again, even before the CRPD came into force, legislators were talking about caveating accommodation with 'reasonable'-ness.

Source: Full Text of Inter-American Convention

It's much shorter than the CRPD.

Article I defines disability through a medical-functional lens with a small nod to the social model.

Article II is a general statement of objective: the elimination of all forms of discrimanation against persons with disabilities and promotion of their full integration into society.

There are two parts to Article III. The first part is as the Body of Knowledge describes: a call for environmental accessibility. The second part is a major call to prevent disabilities as much as possible, and provide early detection and treatment at a young age. It also asks for stigma-reducing education campaigns to be aimed at the public.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 19/44: Regional Standards

Noted Thursday, December 12, 2024

I started working on this section yesterday, so I might get slightly farther than I have charted out. First, the charter!

EU Charter of Fundamental Rights

Source: Body of Knowledge

Before discussion of the charter itself, there is a short review of what preceeded its adoption in 2000. Fifty years earlier, the European Convention on Human Rights (the ECHR) formed the European Court of Human Rights as a protection mechanism that any European could use if they felt their civil and political rights were being violated. In 1961, the European Social charter extended these to fundamental social and economic rights; it also names ability status specifically as a point which could not be discriminated against.

In light of these two predecessors, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2000) set to collate and provide consistency to all EU member states. It is based on its two predecessors, alongside rights within specific constitutional traditions of some EU member states, the Community Charter of Fundamental Social Rights of Workers, and other international conventions that the EU or member states were accountable to. The Treaty of Lisbon made the charter legally binding in 2009.

Article 26 recognizes the right to community living for people with disabilities. Article 21 prohibits discrimination on various things, including 'genetic features,' 'disability,' and 'age.'

Source: EU Charter of Fundamental Rights

Reading the full text of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, here are other articles that I view as being relevant to the lives of Disabled people:

Source: Equality and Human Rights Commission, What is the Charter?

I actually had to go hunting for this link, and when I finally found it the top of the page gives a warning reading 'This Charter no longer applies to the UK.'

Material here is very similar to that found in the Body of Knowledge. We also get some more clarification on the difference between the Convention and the Charter.

[Comparison between European Human Rights Convention and Charter]
Document Drafting Body Interpreted By
Convention Council of Europe (Strasbourg) European Court of Human Rights
Charter The European Union Court of Justice of the EU

The authors also suggest that the Charter could be viewed as a larger framework of which the Convention forms only a part. Indeed, they operate within two different apparatuses-- after the UK withdrew from the EU, the Convention remained relevant while the Charter no longer was applicable.

Additionally, an advisory body called the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, or the FRA, provides advice regarding the charter to EU Member States and institutions.

Source: Council of Europe, The European Social Charter

Note that this section is entirely regarding the European Social Charter, not to be mistaken with the European Union Charter of Fundamental Human Rights.

At the section titled 'The Charter at a Glance,' we are introduced to the Social charter as the counterpart of the European convention. Protecting social and eceonomic rights, the Charter places special attention on those it calls 'vulnerable persons:' old adults, children, Disabled people, and migrants. It also calls itself the Social Constitution of Europe.

Sidenote: Interesting to contrast this attitude towards the attitude presented in the Body of Knowledge, which is very much pro-EU Charter and writes off the Social Charter as being of an older era.

In the section, European Social Charter and European Convention on Human Rights, we get an absolutely granular discussion of how the Charter and Convention work together. Where there is overlap, the Charter tends to be more specific. To give a very banal example, the Convention grants the right to marry and then the Charter will ensure equality between spouses. Freedom of assembly and association is covered under the Convention, while the Charter identifies specific obligations and rights specific to trade unions.

Also note that while the Charter was taken up in 1961, an Additional Protocol was released in 1988, and the Revised Charter was adopted in 1996. It seems that all three of these things kinda comprise the 'Social Charter,' when that term is employed generically.

In the section, European Social Charter and EU Law, we learn that there is no uniformity amongst EU members when it comes to whether they have signed onto the Social Charter and its iterations of 1961, 1988, and 1996. All EU members are of course, signatories to things like the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and the laws of EU itself has basically covered all of what the Social Charter did, "albeit with some differences of both form and substance." The section seems to conclude saying that it would be nice if there was more uniformity, almost mourning the fact that the EU laws have superceded it on many fronts.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 18/44: Organizational Management

Noted Tuesday, December 10, 2024

Accessible Information Guidelines: European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education

The Body of Knowledge shows that we should not be so concerned with the guidelines themselves, than with the recommendations that the agency suggests for the implementation of these guidelines.

Memorizing

There are seven core recommendations for implementation, and I've drawn a small representation of the seven of them below.

Diagram showing seven phases in implementation arranged in a clockwise circle with arrows pointing to each subsequent phase. Small doodles accompany each phase's name, all is elaborated below.

My memorization strategy is to associate the information with the small doodles that I've drawn here. The first stage, Statement, is associated with a silhouetted figure speaking. Strategy is associated with a document and a light bulb to signify a guiding light. Responsibility is associated with a silhouette with a crown ordering four small silhouettes to take off into four different directions. Incremental implementation has two doodles: first the toirtoise symbolizing the parable of the tortoise and the hare, second is a cardiogram that shows consistant heart beats. Production process is associated with two silhouetted figures at either end of a long table, hunched their laptops with steam rising from their heads. Training is associated with a silhouette lifting a massive weight above their head. Finally, Outsourcing sees a dark silhouetted figure hand over a bag of cash to a light silhouetted figure.

Seven Recommendations

  1. Statement. "Include an accessibility statement in the organisation's long term strategy". For the authors of the implementation handbook, a public-facing accessibility statement will serve interally to drive and empower actors to get this work done. They acknowledge that the task of accessibility is one that is very easy to ignore and to write-off. Making a public statement a positive impression on clients, but it also creates client expectations for you to now follow through with.
  2. Strategy. "Develop a strategy or plan for implementing accessible information." In order for a plan to even have a chance of working, it must meet the following criteria: It has buy-in the top, someone responsible of carrying it out, and enough people and other resources for them to do so. The plan should be contextualized within a grander long-term vision and should be developed with consultation from stakeholders. In drafting this strategy, citing the UCRPD's article 9 alongside other standards (regional and international), building in quality assurance measures, and being very explicit about what training is required will all help to create a more robust plan. Consider implementing a pilot program; the agency has seen the effectiveness of pilot programs demonstrated repeatedly.
  3. Responsibility. "Make someone responsible for implementing the information accessibility plan and provide them with the required resources." This person or team must be empowered formally and equipped with the resources to accomplish the goal. They need not be in a leadership position, but their authority on the matter of accessibility ought to be established as they will serve as the focal point for the whole endeavor.
  4. Implement Incrementally. "Plan an incremental implementation – be ambitious and modest at the same time." Have an ambitious long term vision, but don't jump into the deep end right away. Starting with simple tasks such as text, images, and audio are a way to build momentum. Identify the difficulty of various accessibility tasks and always start with the easy ones. This stage can also be accomplished through a pilot project. Note that some tasks might be too complex for existing staff to complete, and you may have to seek professional help. Ensure regular reviews on progress are completed and small wins serve to move the project forward.
  5. Production Process. "Embed accessibility into your information production and dissemination processes." Make accessibility guidelines present at the point of production. Analyzing the workflow, identify where electronic templates and guidelines can be incorporated. This might not be the first thing you do (keep in mind incremental change), and it might start with a small group of stakeholders in a working group. Additionally, incorporate a mechanism that can provide a 'final accessibility check' prior to production. With all the training and prompting in the world, there will be times where it slips through the cracks.
  6. Training. "Provide information, education and training on accessibility for all staff." This is a daunting task. Consider segmenting the training; alongside basic training that everyone receives, other roles get targetted training based on accessibility-relevant responsibilities. All staff, new and old, need to stay-up-to-date. Another consideration is to ensure third party workers are also equipped with accessibility competencies.
  7. Outsourcing. "When outsourcing information production, make sure accessibility requirements are addressed and undergo a quality check." Develop a procurement policy that prioritizes accessibility, and a way to verify that accessible projects are actually delivered.

Organizational Implementation

The seven recommendations are slightly asynchronous and cannot be neatly organized in a timeline. In which case, the Agency suggests a three-phase model: Policy, Plan, Practice. This model might be especially pratical to organizations who want a tiered timeline.

I'm going to break the category 'Practice' into two; one for training, and the other for production process. This is not how it is represented in the Body of Knowledge, but that's how it's reflected in the original source material. We're gonna go with more acronyms.

Policy

LPP: Long-term, Public statement, Procurement

Like the Liberian People's Party!

Plan

DARPAR: Detailed, Ambitious, Realistic, and Person with Authority and Resources

A funny sitcom catch-phrase.

Practice(1)

PGSM: Pilot, General training, Specialized training, Materials

Like BDSM, but with a different plosive.

Practice(2)

UUTT: Update, Use the material, Third-party compliance, Test before release.

Maybe a sound made when your toe is stubbed?

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 17/44: Organizational Management

Noted Monday, December 9, 2024

So far, I am vibing with the new goal-setting method. I am slightly worried that its inflexibility will lead me to fall out of love with it, but we shall see!

Web Accessibility Initiative Reccomendations

Memorizing

I am going to simply memorize all of the key parts here and develop mnemonics to do so. Notes on the actual content to follow after the memorizing stage.

Phase 1: Initiate

Mnemonic: SOLACE BC. Imagine many people fleeing the prairies and taking solace in Vancouver, BC. That requires some initiation!

Phase 2: Planning

Mnemonic: SPAM BREW. Imagine some witch planning to make her brew out of spam, and then deciding it's maybe not a good idea.

Phase 3: Implement

SIPPED

Phase 4: Sustain

Mnemonic: SMUTS

WAI Recommendations Mnemonic Deck on Quizlet

I've got to the point where I can cough it up pretty reliably. Let's move onto the actual content!

The Initiation Phase

The WAI separates the planning phase from the initiation phase, recognizing the awareness and broader buy-in/support is the number 1 reason for accessibility efforts to fail. Broadly, you should be generating two things in your initiating phase: Hype and Basic Education. If you're an organization newly pursuing an accessibility stage, this means a lot of outreach.

Within the basic education portion of the initiation phase, come to have at least a basic idea of what accessibility entails and what your objective might be. Ideally, it should be a SMART objective with a clear timeline. At this stage, use your preliminary learning efforts to develop a business case tailoured to the scope of your work. If you are an individual, find your own motivation and 'case for accessibility' that can help sustain focus throughout the next three stages.

Now, to generate hype. Invite everyone to learn the basics and to feel connected to the business case. Across your organization, tailour the argument to what workers themselves can get from the endeavor (new skills, etc), and create opportunities to share knowledge and generate excitement. Some of these will be formal, but informal chats will be helpful too. Literally everyone at some level has some opportunity to contribute to accessibility, but some people will have a harder time seeing this.

With your motivation established, the ball is rolling. It's time to start actually planning an implementation.

The Planning Phase

The planning phase centers around establishing the who, the what, the why, and the how.

What exactly are the activities the project pursues? Review the current state of the websites the project is concerned with, and craft an accessibility policy was a defined scope and timeframe, and accounting for contingencies.

How will you execute this project? Determine the budget and the resources you are able to dedicate to this endeavor, considering also what kind of evaluations, training and tools may have to be secured. Decide on what sort of monitoring framework you will use to track progress once the implementation stage is formally underway; ensure some kind of standard reporting structure can regularly assess where progress is being made. Additionally, take a bird's eye few of this new policy within the greater context of your organization. What activities and norms will re-enforce the project? Where might there be some conflict? How much training will you and your staff need?

This takes us to the 'who' of it all. Who is doing what? Identify the accessibility responsibilities of each role within the organization and assign responsibilities as needed. Identify those key actors that will require additional training.

In ensuring these logistical aspects are worked out, don't lose sight of building your momentum. Engage your stakeholders and continue the hype train, bring them on board if you haven't done so already. This includes internal and external stakeholders: supplies, advocates, the broader public. Engaging the public now can increase internal morale and sense of responsibility. Ensure there are clear lines of communication to management, and ensure they too have bought in.

The Implementation Phase

Finally, we can concentrate all of our engineered hype and prep into action. Start by building capacity through training targeted at different roles. Maintan momentum by directing energy towards low-hanging fruit at first before tackling increasingly difficult issues. Start evaluating your approach early on, and use those evaluation to revisit your accessibility policy to ensure that your objectives are still properly reflected in your plan.

Ensure everyone knows what they are expected to do and are equipped for success.

Include testing with Disabled users if feasible. Record progress and share early wins. Ensure the knowledge gained in training embeds itself into the fabric of the organization by facilitating regular knowledge sharing and progress reports. Accessibility is an everyone project, so making progress visible is very important.

When the bulk of the main project is complete, you can transition into the final phase.

The Sustain Phase

Continue to monitor the situation to ensure new habits stick. Engage stakeholders and solicit user feedback: do people internally and externally still feel on board? Do internal stakeholders feel any impact from the accessibility endeavor leaking into other aspects of daily activities?

Additionally, you will need to adapt to new changes in technology and regulations to ensure your efforts don't stagnate in a frequently changing world. It is best to anticipate this and have a process already in place for what to do when changes occur, and when new user feedback is received.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Day 16/44: International Standards

Noted Saturday, December 7, 2024

Source: Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Most of the information here is buried further into the website, so let's review a couple of pages individually.

1. CRPD Frequently Asked Questions

Do Disabled people have special human rights?
Every human has the same human rights. The CRPD endeavors to ensure Disabled people actually get the same rights as everyone else.
What is the Optional Protocol?
Allows individuals who feel a breach of their rights has happened a mechanism to petition. Also, gives the Committee authority to do inquiries for large systemic violations.
What other international standards are there?
The Declaration, of course. But there's also the World Programme of Action Concerning Disabled Persons, the Principles for the Protection of Persons with Mental Illness and the Improvement of Health Care, and Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities. All of these are older and none are legally binding. Also the one about mental health has some Problematic Elements.
Okay but what about international standards that are actually legally binding?
There are a bunch of conventions, but many don't name disability status explicitly. Uniquely, the Convention on the Rights of the Child does name it. Regardless, these other conventions apply to all humans, and if you are operating under the assumption that Disabled people are human, well they're entitled to all the rights and protections of those conventions too.
What sets apart the CRPD from these other conventions?
It goes way more into depth and the specifics than previous conventions have gone into. It's the first convention adopted after 2000, and it integrates a social development perspective, recognizing the importance of international cooperation in supporting national implementation efforts.
What are the principles of the convention?
Mnemonic: DACAGON. Diversity, Accessibility, Children's rights, Autonomy, Gender equality, Opportunity equality, Non-discrimination
How does the CRPD define disability and qualify Disabled people?
The CRPD breaks slightly from the definition we saw in the DRPD, as it takes primarily from the biopsychosocial model of disability. Disability, in the view of the CRPD, results from the interaction between impairements and barriers. Article 1 suggests these impairments are 'long-term,' but they've pulled some legal wording wizardry to ensure that isn't some kind of qualifier.

2. The Convention in Brief

Here it summarizes all relevant parts of the convention. Here's some things that stick out to me as pertaining to accessibility, inclusion, and to disability culture in general.

3. 10th Anniversary of the Convention

There's less here than I anticipated. They report 'remarkable progress' in the ten years since the implementation of the Convention, note that the UNCRPD has been the convention with the fastest rate of adoption, and that numerous sustainable development frameworks have used the CRPD and within their methods and guiding values.

These frameworks include the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the World Humanitarian Summit and the New Urban Agenda.

Source: The World Blind Union, The Treaty of Marrakesh Explained

The body of knowledge, in leaving many of these terms undefined, leaves the reader to just imagine what is allowed and disallowed in the treaty. This treaty provides a legal exception to copyright lawand allows for the creation, import and export of accessible transcriptions.

I just used the word 'transcription' there, because it is more precise than the word 'edition.' With an accessible edition, I imagine plain language formats alongside ASL translations, alongside other things. But that isn't what this covers.

Currently only some 1-7per cent of the world’s published books ever make it into accessible formats.

The treaty actually prohibits any transformation of the content of the work. Merely switch around the format; Braille, electronic, audio and large print.

Also, not everyone can get their hands on these accessible formats. Only Beneficiaries, defined as anyone who has trouble with regular printed formats, should receive these editions. The beneficiary population is mostly blind and low-vision folks, but the folks at the World Blind Union also mention dyslexia as a potential qualifying circumstance. According to them, people who physically can't turn normal pages for whatever reason also may qualify.

Source: WIPO, Summary of the Marrakesh Treaty

WIPO offers a legality-centered summary of the Marrakesh treaty. The treaty's full name is "Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (MVT) (2013)." Here are tidbits from this document that helped clarify my understanding of this matter:

First of all, the treaty refers to the beneficiary persons as VIPs. This is why we saw this wording within the Body of Knowledge summary. WIPO's summary does not mention dyselxia as a potential condition that might be cause for print disability, but the wording is ambiguous enough here that dyslexia may still have a chance of qualifying. (Cross referencing this Librarian's guide to the Marrakesh treaty, developmental and learning abilities like dyslexia and autism, can in fact count as 'print disabilities.'

Secondly, authorized entites have various obligations to establish and follow practices for ensuring the system doesn't get mis-used. These are up to individual authorized entities, not up to states.

Thirdly, VIPS can make duplicates of accessible formats that were produces lawfully under the treaty. These are personal use copies, and they aren't allowed to redistribute them.

Fourth, the 'commercial exception' that the World Blind Union touches on is further expounded. The Marrakesh treaty allows signatories, within their implementation, to basically say, 'If an accessible format is available comercially, don't freaking do it, the copyright doesn't apply.' I'm sure this kind of case applies very much to the ePub format, which is increasing in popularity. BUT, if signatories add this clause in the policy, they have to basically contact the WIPO Director General, and then WIPO can get all up in that signatory nation's businesss.

Fifth, there is a constraint on exports-- you can only export an accessible copy made under the terms of the Marrakesh treaty to people within a country who has also signed the Treaty. This makes a good deal of logical sense. If country A has signed the treaty, and person A sneaks a copy to person B of country B, who has not signed the treaty, it would violate the laws and sovereignty of country B to declare that the Treaty of Marrakesh allowed you to do this. Similarly, if person B made their own accessible copy illegally and sent it to person A, that copy is still piracy.

Sixthly, members of WIPO or the European union are allowed to join the Marrakesh Treaty. You do NOt need to be a member of the United Nations, or any other international body besides the WIPO, to then join.

Finally, the Treaty needed 20 ratifying or accending members before it entered in the force. So despite being adopted in 2013, it has only actually been in force since 2016.

Back to Notes contents.

Goal Setting #3

Noted Friday, December 6, 2024

Confetti! It's another eighteen days and I still haven't given up! Once again, I was not very close to meeting my targets for this term, but I did get a LOT done, I met some important parameters, and have some valuable knowledge I can use to set new goals.

Nov 18 - Dec 6 Accomplishments

Time logged

November remains the highest amount of logged activity for me (over 80 hours) and the natural quota of 3 hours a day, 20+ hours a week, emerged as goal posts that I now strive to meet. I don't make 3 hours a day every day, but I do make it some days, and it feels good. I have developed a habit of making Saturdays be my most productive day. I go out and occupy some poor cafe or restaurant's table and crank out a 6 hour work session.

A full-time job in Canada is 40 hours of week, 8 hours a day. My day job takes up 10 hours a week/2 hours per weekday, and if I add in the 20 hours that I spend on accessibility, this works out to about 30 hours a week. And doing that does feel like an accomplishment. It's only 3/4 of full-time work, but maybe that's my neurodivergent sweet spot, and perhaps there are ways I can further tweak and ammend my strategy to get better results.

Wordcount and Blogging

Between Goal-Setting Sessions 1 and 2, I wrote about 7200 words on my learning blog. In this last period, I wrote 12 600, which is quite some growth! I also completed 10 CPACC study sessions/entries along with two sessions with WAS-oriented Deque material.

I also put a bunch of CPACC notes into the new CPACC section of the blog. Looking back on all these entries really makes me feel motivated to clean up the grammar and spellcheck, but that can come slightly later as I'm doing a second sweep of the material.

Finally, I bought a proper domain name using Porkbun and connected it to my Github page. I really like chasiubao so this seems appropriate.

HTML and CSS

My main HTML/CSS project is coming along and it looks spiffy and cool! I am happy that I am getting more comfortable with CSS. It provides me a good outlet to blow off steam in and I find it relaxing. It helps me not lose my mind with all the CPACC prep. Two pages are complete and fully responsive, though I've yet to present it to the client for feedback.

Also, I think I finally may have got this blogging site to be okay on mobile? It took a fair amount of trial and error.

CPACC content covered

I set some ambitious goals for myself, and didn't quite meet them. However, I did cover the following material:

And I made decent headway into 3A. International Level Standards.

In other words, I did almost all of Domain 2, I still have Usability to cover, but we're very, very close!

In terms of what the CPACC questions consist of, that's about 40% covered. But is it 40% of the material? Hell Naw.

Nov 18 - Dec 6 Areas to Improve

Exhaustion

A lot of the CPACC material is exhausting because it perpetuates a portrait of disability that removes systemic inequality from the picture and evangelizes a world where if you just make the environment, accessible, you've achieved accessibility. This is simply untrue.

So my progress on the material has actually been at a turtle's pace, but I keep beating myself up about it. I need to acknowledge that the material is itself hard to engage with, plan my study sessions more deliberately, and find coping strategies.

My audit project has similarly suffered from an ADHD case of "shove it in a box and don't touch it, if they move, they can't see you." I need to reopen it and reapproach it and still be kind to myself.

Part of my exhaustion might derive from feeling like I can't really rest and that I should always be working.

Anxiety

I'm getting more and more anxious irrationally that this is all for nothing and that the time I'm investing now will never pay off and this industry isn't for me. None of this anxiety really has any super factual basis. The EAA will soon come into full force. More people will need to be hired. This knowledge is in demand.

I suppose it's just another symptom of being inable to account for time, another sympom of being nearsighted in terms of planning for the future and always living in the present.

I think scheduling out a more comprehensive plan and timeline for preparing for the CPACC will help alleviate some of this stress, as it gives me some foresight into what the immediate future will hold.

Goal-Setting

Ammendments on Process

In the future I'm going to take weekends into account this time in my goal-setting. We'll aim for the goal deadline to be in 18 work days, not counting week-ends (which are Wednesdays and Saturdays).

However, I am planning on taking a vacation from December 24 to January 5. If I set my next checkpoint day on the 23rd, we end up with 12 work days, or 16 days in total.

I'm also going to break down Domain 3 into smaller parts than just A, B, C, etc, and I'm going to assign a timeline to each.

Saturday Dec 7
International Standards (3A) Due
Monday Dec 9
WAI Accessibility Initiative Recommendations (3F.2) Due
Tuesday Dec 10
European Inclusive Education Guidelines (3F.3) Due
Thursday Dec 12
EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (3B.1) Due
Friday Dec 13
African Charter on Human and People's Rights (3B.2) Due
Saturday Dec 14
Inter-American Convention (3B.3) Due
Monday Dec 16
Domain-Specific Laws (3D.1) Due
Tuesday Dec 17
Procurement Laws (3D.2) Due
Thursday Dec 19
Disability Etiquette (1D) Due
Friday Dec 20
Usability and UX (2G) Due
Saturday Dec 21
Maturity Models (3F.4) Due
Monday Dec 23
Checkpoint Day + Goal Reflection

This seems spread out enough to where I can actively try to work ahead of the due dates. If I don't make the due dates, there's no shame. I need to understand that shame is not a productive emotion here. When this is over, it basically just leaves 1D, 3C, and 3E incomplete, as well as leaving 1B, 1C, and 3F partially complete.

From here, I'm left with about one month until D-day, but I can also study through my holiday if I ever get the itch to do so.

In an ideal world, I will be able to cover everything in my timeline and then some, but it is only 12 days. And I am just one small-framed Disabled nonbinary person.

I will be kind to myself.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 15/44: International Standards

Noted Thursday, December 5, 2024

More Reflection

I think I have to remember that I've only been studying for this thing for slightly over two weeks, and that of course this process is going to be long and exhausting and discouraging. I cannot believe that there have been people that dedicate less to two weeks to study for this. But also, I might just be over-preparing on certain sections and not managing my time correctly.

International Standards have been particularly exhausting because I have no idea what I need to memorize. They link to the website of the UNCRPD. Am I supposed to memorize... all the material on this website? That seems like a Bit Much. I started last entry by saying that this is likely the easiest section within Domain 3 and I kinda played it off. But no, there is substantial content here.

I suppose in the end complaining about it won't do anything. We can lean on the recommended study tasks:

Name the most prominent international declarations and conventions that protect human rights and the rights of people with disabilities.

and

Explain the main purpose and protections of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Better overprepared than underprepared. Freaking suck it up buttercup.

Source: Body of Knowledge (continued)

The Marrakesh Treaty

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) administeries a body of international copyright treaties. For a long time, copyright limitations have prevented accessible formats of texts from being produced easily. The Marrakesh Treaty, adopted on June 27, 2013, provides a copyright exception in service of making the creation of such accessible formats more easy.

Source: Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Document

More tiny little details about the document itself:

Now it does feel silly to memorize all 30 points of this article. So I'm going to narrow it down to just the super relevant things.

UDHR Articles 1-2

I present an abbreviated form of these articles here:

Article 2 explicitly lists a whole bunch of categories that cam't be used as basis for discimination. Disability status is not listed as part of these, though it is implied that the UDHR is not restricted to the categories that it does name.

The first two articles are the basis for which all the other articles follow; the assertion of inalienable human rights as a new rule of law in the natural order is nothing to scoff at.

UDHR Articles 3-30

Simultaneously, we should look to see what kind of themes and priorities are reflected across the other 27 articles.

One prevalent theme is 'everybody has the right to not get mistreated' worded in many different ways: freedom from torture, get a fair trial, be able to get out of bad situations.

Another theme evolves around 'basic everyday needs and activity' which include living conditions, work, rest, education, social living, family, and free expression.

Another theme concerns the governance of the nation and international order. On the national level, this addresses things like peaceful assembly, labour unions, participating in government, equal laws. On the global level, it calls for international collaboration to ensure everyone gets accesses to these rights.

Source: Human Rights of People with Disabilities

This webpage is attributed to the Office of the High Commissioner and describes what work the UN has done and continues to do to address the human rights of Disabled people.

Overview

The Office facilitates engagement with this issue at the intergovernmental level and also recruits dialoguing partners from representative organisations of Disabled people.

The Office promotes awareness, and also ensures Disabled people are seen and considered in greater projects across the whole United Nations apparatus, including with the Sustainable Development Goals. They name the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy as a particular example of this.

About the Human Rights of Disabled People

In this section, we see main points from the Body of Knowledge reflected back at us. The CRPD, 2006 for adoption, 2008 when it came into force, took up the social model and took to articulate the UDHR promise in explicit and pragmatic terms within the disability context.

But we also see some new and exciting points. The Office acknowledges that disability status interacts with other facets of identity and cirumstances in further disabling ways, especially in developing countries. In addition to this, they describe the CRPD as being more capable of dealing with these more complex cases of discrimination; Disabled women and children are explicitly addressed within the wording of the CRPD. We end with this very poignant quote,

[R]eaching the furthest behind first is the key to leaving no one behind.

This is a very common sentiment within the larger conversation of Disability Studies, especially Disability Justice activism led by queer and trans Disabled BIPOC.

This small article also might be the first time that we see some material realities of Disabled people acknowledged. Disabled people commonly are confined to institutions, are barred from voting, are unable to have their own property, are forcefully segregated from the mainstream at various levels of society (including within the justice system, don't get me started!) among other things.

I feel like the whole curriculum would have been better if we started the talk about disability with this, with the history. Not to paint a deficit ideology portrait of disability in general, but true accessibility will never be met as long as basic needs are not met and material conditions don't change. As Certified Accessibility Professionals, shouldn't this be something that we should know?

Source: Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons

This is the full text of the Declaration. It's shorter than I had anticipated, and way more interesting than I had anticipated. Here are points I note in reading it.

They cite a bunch of predecessing declarations, including the Declaration on the Rights of Mentally R******d Persons which feels like it comes out of nowhere. What IS that? Passed in 1971, it echoes a lot of the attitudes towards people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and the type of care that should be organized for them up to nearly the present day. It falls to the wayside, just as the DRDP falls to the wayside, because the CRPD is just so much stronger as an instrument of policy making.

Moving on, we see the little exception that developing countries "can devote only limited efforts" and can therefore be excused from a lot of these things.

With the caveats and background done, we jump into the declaration itself, which starts off with a fascinating definition of disability. I am drawn to this one. It's a function-based definition where the bar to clear is 'ensuring for oneself the necessities of a normal individual (or social) life' but it's supported by some classic medical-model based, 'as a result of dificiency in physical or mental capabilities.'

The document doesn't contain the word 'accessibility.' It's slightly present within the phrase 'measures designed to enable them to become as self-reliant as possible,' but it never really addresses the idea of inaccessibility, or the environment being the problem somehow. Instead, assitive technology and interventions on the individual or 'treatment' is the thing that is promised to all Disabled people, which is slightly insidious. It's all under the guise that the rehabilitation is always the right move and the right goal. This simply does not give autonomy to the Disabled person, and it leaves the Disabled people who never get better, either because they can't get better or don't want to get better, out in the dust.

I think in reading this, it really drives home the fact that there has been significant progress in society's attitude. It's still bad, but it used to be much, much worse. And many people who were raised in eras where the social model was not at all present might still continue to have really outdated beliefs.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 14/44: International Standards

Noted Tuesday, December 3, 2024

Alas, we've arrived into Domain 3 territory. I am a bit nervous, not going to lie. There is a lot of memorization involved in these sections. But today I'm going to do probably the easiest section within Domain 3. An amuze-bouche, I suppose that's what this is. No use procrastinating getting started on it. There's so much here. *screaming*

Source: Body of Knowledge

Introduction to International Standards

First, we learn about three approaches to addressing the rights of Disabled people through legislation.

We take a walk through history, through three documents that mirror these three approaches.

It's 1948 and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is passed. Disabled people are not one of the groups protected in this document.

The UDHR proclaims civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights to be for all peoples and provides the basis for other international standards, notably the 2006 Convention.

It's 1975 and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons is passed. As a declaration (as opposed to a Convention), it can only provide recommendations.

While the Declaration asserts the need for Disabled people to be protected against discriminatory treatment and promotes their integration into all facets of society, it accepts that not all countries can presently afford to devote resources beyond 'limited efforts' to achieve this vision.

It's 2006 and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities finally provides a legally beinding convention.

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD)

This is the most important document to know about, because in signing onto the CRPD, states parties must actually implement it.

The language is a bit dense here, so I'll paraphrase from the Body of Knowledge in the style of question-and-answer.

Through what model does the UNCRPD approach people with disabilities?
The UNCRPD follows the movement to shift towards the social model of disability and away from the medical and charity models of disability, as has historically been the case in policy-making.
Broadly speaking, what does the UNCRPD do?
Reaffirming that Disabled people are a category of people with protected rights and freedoms, it makes explicit that extra steps need to be taken in order for Disabled people to enjoy these rights and freedoms. In discussing these extra steps, the UNCRPD talks about how Disabled people need accommodations and how Disabled people may have their rights violated. Fundamentally, the UNCRPD is focused on implementation.
What support does the UNCRPD have?
The UNCRP has very broad support. Over 180 countries/regional unions have ratified it, meaning they have committed to implementing internal policies to achieve the UNCRP's mandate. The UNCRP has been signed by over 160 countries/regional unions (there is overlap between these two groups). The EU is very supportive of the UNCRPD; it signed and ratified as itself, and then all EU member states ratified it individually.
What are ratified states obligated to do?
They are obligated to establish a framework to Promote, Protect, and Monitor the implementation of the CRPD.
What monitors the ratified states parties?
The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities conducts regular reviews. Non-government bodies can submit to compilation called a 'List of Issues.' When state parties report back, they have to respond to the List of Issues. (The BoK is kind vague about the process here, and I'm having trouble finding resources concerning this).
What does the UNCRPD say about accessibility?
A lot. Accessibility the fifth principle listed in Article 3: General Principles, and the entirety of Article 9 is dedicated to hashing out the nitty-gritty.

The authors of the BoK then proceed to lay out the full text Article 9. The spirit of Article 9 basically is as follows: State parties should endeavor to so that all environments that are accessible to the public, whether they are publically or privately funded, whether they are urban or rural, whether they are physical or digital, are also accessible to people with disabilities. They should provide minimum standards and training to get to this point. Additionally, Disabled people should have access to assistive technology and live support (guides, interpreters) that can facilitate access to information, including digital information. Also, in the physical world, Braille signage and plain language signage should be available always.

Reflection

This stuff sucks.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 13/44: UD for Built Environments

Noted Monday, December 2, 2024

I'm coming up on my December 6 deadline and I still have 3.5 units to go: 2D Built Environment, 2G Usability, 3A International, and 3F Organizational. To meet my goal, I pretty much have to be progressing at a rate of one topic per day... I don't think I'm going to make it. I am not going to be able to meet the deadlines for my website building and informal audit, but I am not too perturbed. This information gives me an idea of what I can accomplish in about 18 days.

I'm still going to celebrate another 18 days of perserverence.

Yesterday, I went ahead and created the entire new 'CPACC' section of my website, where I extract information from this area of the website, and make the content more legible. I also purchased a domain name and deployed it.

As always, a quick warmup before we drive into the actual content.

HTMLHell Advent Calendar

Rian Rietveld on Home/Logo alt text

I don't like this article? I disagree that it should be labelled as anything other than 'Leidschendam-Voorburg home' because the image here is functional and we want to be as conservative as possible when it comes to frequently used functional images.

I disagree that the word 'logo' gives any more information than is already there on the page. It is a common idiom to link to a logo. You wouldn't link to just an image of text; that's not conformant to WCAG.

Simultaneously, the discussion about verbosity (to be or not to be verbose) is mostly stylistic here. So while I disagree with the practice suggested here, I can't really say that my approach would be emperically better. Because screenreader users also have differing preferences.

There was also a missed opportunity here to say why you shouldn't use aria-label besides just the First Rule: which is the fact that aria-label doesn't translate.

Killian Valhof on Autofocus

This feels sound. My one nitpick is that Valhof uses 'assistive technology' as a synonym for 'screenreader.'

They argue that while you generally shouldn't use tabindex and autofocus, the one usecase for autofocus would be "on single-purpose pages containing forms."

Adrian Roselli at A11y Camp

Been waiting for this one for a while! Saw the slides for this and was so dang curious about them. It's about the career lifecycle of accessibility professionals and the inevitability of burnout.

I feel really called out by 'under-utilized English degree.'

Accessibility and the Built Environment

Source: Council of Europe, Accessibility: Principles and Guidelines (PDF)

This a pretty dense document from 2004 that sounds like it was translated, likely from the French. The source establishes that with a raising population of Disabled people, it is for the better of society that accessibility not hinder Disabled people from enjoying their human rights. Six focus areas are named as composing a larger accessibility plan for Europe:

1. Integrated Solutions
This is an argument for a universalizing approach, as opposed to an accommodations approach. We might even want to incoporate this into our standards.
2. Building for Everyone
This argues that everyone, not just Disabled users, benefit from universally designed spaces. Age, familiy situation, and occupation are named as three factors that might otherwise 'handicap' a non-Disabled person.
3. Accessibility Chart
An 'accessibility chart' would be a full inventory kept by urban planners of all public buildings as well as their accessibility classifications. This information should be made available to the public and provides a transparent assessment of the status of accessibility on the municiple level.
4. Monitoring
This argues that broad surveys on the effectiveness of accessibility planning be established and conducted regularly.
5. Architectual education
Develop curriculum for 'integrated solutions' alongside people with disabilities and propogate it at the undergraduate level, as well as offering more opportunties for continued education around these topics.
6. International cooperation
All member states should participate in exchanging information, practices and findings as we embark on this journey together.

The second section of walks you through various architectural considerations on a 'imaginary journey.' It pelts you with considerations that must be made for various aspects of architectural design. At nearly every turn, we can make parallels towards the 7 Universal Design Principles, so I'm going to attempt to list out the considerations that they ask us to make with respect to these principles.

Principle #7: Size and Space
Principle #4: Perceptible Information and Principle #3 Simple and Intuitive
Principle #6: Low Physical Effort
Principle #5: Tolerance for Error
Principle #2 Flexibility in Use
Principle #1 Equity of Use

In the third and final section of this document, the authors lays out why integrated approaches (their way to refer to UD) are superior to accomodation-based approaches.

We don't see much here that the other articles on Universal Design haven't already touched on. The one difference here is that these are policy people trying to argue for the implementation of 'integrated approaches' within standards across Europe. They are really adament that truly everyone benefits from integrated approaches, and that we must move on from making Disabled people 'exceptions to the rule.'

In order to create an accessible environment, it is necessary to approach standard-setting by taking into account limits of uncertainty rather than the ‘standard average’. We need to address the relationship between the individual and his environment in broader terms. This means that the range of ‘normality’ must be extended: in terms of anthropometry, physical capabilities and psychological characteristics. Now, an integrated approach can be seen aimed at the anonymous user and allowing differences between individuals to be easily accommodated.

They also stress two more principles that must be followed in order for integrated solutions to be enjoyed equally by all: adaptability and interactivity. This reflects the principle of 'flexibility in use.' Adaptability reflects the ability for people of various disabilities to adapt to the space. Interactivity reflects the ability of Disabled people to go further and customize the space to their liking.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 12/44: UDL Guidelines and UD for Built Environments

Noted Saturday, November 30, 2024

Universal Design for Learning

I received confirmation that the 2.2 version, not the 3.0 version, is the one that the exam was written up about. I'm going to quickly memorize all of them today. I'm going to over-memorize the points. The BoK lists nine data points; three going to each of the three overall principles: multiple means of representation, multiple means of action and expression, and multiple means of engagement. But each of these nine points actually have something like three to four criteria under them. Thirty-one, to be exact. Thirty one + nine + three is 43 data points, which is almost as big as WCAG Level AA.

I'm endeavoring to commit all of these to memory not because of the CPACC, but because I am (in my third job) a teacher, and my day job is in education support. So this is important to me. Let's get started.

Memorization Process and Mnemonics

Quizlet: The Universal Design for Learning Guidelines 2.2 Numberings. Unsure about the accessibility of quizlet, but it is what works for me. I learn better with numbers, its just a more abstract way to mind map.

All of the immediate subnodes are worded with 'provide options for.'

Graphic Organizer for UDLF 2.2.

After three hours of studying with by mapping, using the graphic organizer and drudging through flashcards, I've gotten most of it done. I'm going to preemptively try to cough it up and see what I fail on.

43 Data Points From Memory

  1. Multiple means of representation (Guideline 1)
  2. Provide options for Perception (1)
  3. Offer the ability to change the presentation of text (1.1)
  4. Offer alternatives for audio content (1.2)
  5. Offer alternatives for visual content (1.3)
  6. Provide options for Language and Symbols (2)
  7. Clarify vocabulary and symbols (2.1)
  8. Clarify syntax and structure (2.2)
  9. Clarify numerical and textual symbols and notation (2.3)
  10. Promote understanding across languages (2.4)
  11. Illustrate using images (2.5)
  12. Provide options in Comprehension (3)
  13. Activate or supply background knowledge (3.1)
  14. Highlight patterns and critical information, relationships (3.2)
  15. Guide visualization of information (3.3)
  16. (3.4)
  17. Multiple means of action and expression (Guideline 2)
  18. Provide options for Physical Action (4)
  19. Offer options in response and navigation (4.1)
  20. Ensure compatibility of assitive technology in the environment (4.2)
  21. Provide options for Communication and Expression (5)
  22. Use different media to aid in communication (5.1)
  23. Use tools to aid communication (5.2)
  24. Provide a graduated system of support and resources on the road to fluency (5.3)
  25. Provide options for Executive Function (6)
  26. Direct appropriate goal-setting (6.1)
  27. Facilitate planning and strategy-making (6.2)
  28. Facilitate management of information and resources (6.3)
  29. Enhance capability for monitoring progress (6.4)
  30. Multiple means of Engagement (Guideline 3)
  31. Provide options for Recruiting Interest (7)
  32. Optimize individual autonomy and choice (7.1)
  33. Optimize relevancy, authenticity and value of the material (7.2)
  34. Minimize threats and distractions
  35. Provide options for Sustaining Effort and Persistence (8)
  36. Highlight salience of goals and progress (8.1)
  37. (8.2)
  38. Foster collaboration and community (8.3)
  39. (8.4)
  40. Provide options for Self Regulation (9)
  41. Promote beliefs and expectations in motivations for learning (9.1)
  42. Cultivate coping skills (9.2)
  43. Develop reflection and self-assessment(9.3)

Let's check my answers!

The exacting wording is often variable, but most capture the spirit of the original UDLG. Data point 2.5 was written as 'Illustrate using images,' when it should have been 'Illustrate using media.'

3.4 (Maximize transfer and generalization), 8.2 (Vary resources and demands to optimize challenges), and 8.4 (Provide feedback for mastery) were the only three that were outright missed.

Built Environment and Accessibility

Source: The Body of Knowledge

This section emphasizes that the Universal Design principles were designed for the built environment before they were applied to digital environmennts. In built environments, the planning, designing, construction and maintenance are different phases where inclusive principles may be implemented. When we speak of the 'built environments,' we are largely referring to buildings, public spaces, and transportation systems.

Just as 'shifting left' to incoporate UD in design is less expensive than remediating digital products, the same applies to built environments where retrofitting inaccessible designs is ultimately more expensive than if these prinicples were incoporated in design phase.

It is common for the 'minimum standards' of national regulations to reflect an 'accomodations' approach over an UD approach. UD is recommended by many countries as a best practice, though it is not a requirement for compliance.

Some questions that accessibility for the built environment considers might include:

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CPACC Study Day 11/44: Universal Design for Learning

Noted Thursday, November 29, 2024

I typically like to start the day with a warm up, so let's go with something very difficult and try to make a theme switcher.

Theme Switcher

1. Fossheim's Accessible Theme Switcher

The most confusing part of this tutorial to me is Fossheim's use of localStorage, which I have never heard of.

The pattern itself uses buttons. These buttons do not seem to be grouped controls. There's no use of a fieldset or of role="group" here, and the instruction 'pick a theme' is not actually programmatically associated with the buttons other than they are all located under a heading (which I suppose does programmatically associate a relationship).

Fossheim uses vanilla JS to fetch a custom data attribute, 'data-theme' from each of these buttons, and sets CSS selectors to look for those custom data attributes and reset custom colour properties based on which is present.

They've made a very simple and beautiful thing here. I don't understand all the minute details, but I want to check a few more approaches before I start developing my own.

2. 2. Darin's Progressively-enhanced Dark Mode

Darin's works with and without JS by using a form submit wrapped into a noscript tag. The JS version uses an accessible modal dialogue. The non JS version uses PHP that goes slightly over my head.

3. Does details/summary with has() work as a bootstrap toggle?

It's a hypothetical that I don't have the requisite experience to deal with. Reading through O'Hara's details and summary elements, again blog is enough to tell me that unlike most native HTML elements that have pretty robust support across AT, details/summary is finnicky with lots of niche behaviour. This post is from 2022, but it's still probably very relevant. Very important to know that when summary is exposed as a 'button' as semantics of the 'details' element are scrubbed.

Lo and behold, someone has already done it. Mori.pages.dev has even used it for this exact case: a theme switcher. Mori hasn't put any effort into making the toggle accessible, but I'm curious how Orca reads it. The accessibility tree exposes it with the role of 'summary.'

Orca/Firefox ESR reads it with 'Theme collapsed button.' Fascinating!

A quick search of 'details/summary hack' also shows experiments by Steve Faulkner on GIF pausing via details/summary. There's also an obligatory warning from Adrian Roselli on 'Details/Summary are Not [insert control here]. Though I am curious at the current state of exposure of details/summary, the only way to actually figure this out is manually testing across a bunch of screenreader browser pairings. Might be a worthy project someday, but not today because I need to get into CPACC prep.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

We were exposed to UDL on Day 10 when we saw an instructor from the University of Washington opine about how UDL, UD and WCAG are often not considered in tandem. Let's try to understand what makes UDL antagonistic to UD and WCAG, and whether this is actually the case.

Source: Body of Knowledge

There are three principles to the UDL. They come from the field of cognitive science and are centered on the 'why', the 'what' and the 'how' of learning.

Why Learn?

Multiple means of engagement addresses diversity in learner motivation, sustained engagement, and coping skills. Provide options in all three areas.

For example, provide options along the spectrums of spontaneity to routine, groupwork to solowork.

Learn What?

Multiple means of representation adresses diversity in preferred learning modality: consider visual, textual, tactile, auditory modes, consider language/symbol use, consider information hierarchy.

For example, EAL learners or Disabled learners might be restricted in what modes are effective.

Learn How?

Multiple means of action and expression adresses diversity in the kinds of assignments and tasks that diverse people will prefer. This principle also encompasses the accessibility of the learning environment.

For example, people might prefer written assignments, other people might prefer presentations.

Source: CAST, UDL Guidelines

The UDL Guidelines are structures like the WCAG. There are various 'considerations' (their version of success criteria) under nine guidelines.

However, I actually can't tackle this nine guidelines today, because I don't know which version the exam is going to test on. They recently updated to version 3.0 of the UDLG, but the Body of Knowledge bases itself on the 2.2. I'm going to pause and wait to see what the A11Y slack says before proceeding.

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 15/15

Noted Wednesday, November 27, 2024

I'm doing this starting at 23h so it feels like I won't get far. But let's see.

Form Labels, Instructions, and Validation

Labels

Every form field must have an accessible name, and the semantic HTML label element is the best way to achieve this. The semantic label can be overriden with aria-labelledby and aria-label. According to Deque, placeholders are 'technicaly allowed as a way to provide an accessible name' but I saw a discussion in the A11y slack today where both Eric Eggert and Adrian Roselli noted that they fail instances of a non-persistant visual label. Roselli also linked to this Github issue clarification for 3.2.2 that applies in this case.

In other words, placeholder text can work as an accessible name, satifying 2.5.3. But it fails a different success criteria, 3.2.2, if workarounds aren't provided to ensure that a label is visible at all times. Deque actually corrects itself about placeholders later in the lesson.

Deque notes that JAWS and VoiceOver will guess at labels if one can't be programmatically determined.

Deque then goes on to discuss 3.2.2 briefly (it doesn't name SC ever though, which is frustrating as a learner) and it recommends implicit labels as a sufficient technique. But it doesn't warn against the Dragon Naturally Speaking bug, which seems a bit off-brand, since Deque typically recommends solutions to VoiceOver-specific bugs.

Of course, any programmatically associated labels have to be non-generic and non-reliant on sensory characteristics.

Icons used as labels with no visual text is fine if it is such a widely-recognized symbols like the search icon. Just alt it.

In most other cases, a visual textual label is required, and the accessible name and visual label must match. It is best practice to ensure the label and input are visually proximal and adjacent within the DOM.

Deque then discusses a case where form labels and inputs are integrated into a layout table. This is a case were you could associate nonsemantic labels to input fields via aria-labelledby (which can take two ids, by the way). If you do this, associate the nonsemantic labels by putting it into a span. Don't directly assign the id of table headers, apparently, because that gives weird SR behaviour.

They then present another case where one label is applied to multiple fields, like phone number input that breaks it into 3 smaller fields. Reading this section and their proposed solutions makes me think that it is impossible to do 2.5.3 justice and it's better to just combine it into one form field.

Group Labels

Use fieldset to group labels. Support for the aria 'group' role is shaky, so do fieldset if you can. You can nest fieldset so there shouldn't be a problem. And by using fieldset, it must have an accessible name, so you also must use legend. As always, labels must be non-generic and non-reliant on sensory characteristics. Everything we've learned up to this point so far applies for group labels.

Instructions and Helpful Info

To add instructions to a grouped section is tricky, since aria-describedby doesn't work with fieldsets or legends (why?) so we either have the option of appending very brief instructions directly onto the legend itself, or we can associate the instructions to the first field via aria-describedby. All of this is to circumvent the common pattern of just slapping instructions in the middle of the fieldset, as apparently this SR users are very unlikely to perceive the instructions when they are tabbing through fields in Form mode.

For individual inputs, aria-describedby will suffice. Follow all other presentation directions when it comes to accessible descriptions. Visible, meaningful, non-reliant on sensory characteristics, distinguishable, proximal, programmatically adjacent.

For required fields in particular, using aria-required="true" provides a failsafe for HTML5's required attribute, whose behaviour is browser-dependent. Providing a visual indicator for required fields is best practice, not conformant. Error messages should also be programmatically assigned via aria-describedby and can be further indicated with aria-invalid="true".

HTML5.2 has 53 input purposes for UI components. You need to use them on input fields to satisfy 1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose. This is to support autofill functionality. Also the HTML5 autocomplete attribute is helpful.

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CPACC Study Day 10/44: Universal Design Principles (+WCAG)

Noted Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Universal Design Principles

Now that I've memorized the principles, time to tackle the other part of Domain Two 3: Describe the goals and benefits of universal design.

Source: The Body of Knowledge

The UDP date back to 1997 and were created by a multidisciplinary team at North Carolina State University. Universal design is good design, by which everyone benefits when everyone is considered in the design process.

[Universal design] is a fundamental condition of good design, [not a special requirement.]

Source: Centre for Excellence in Universal Design

The link given in the BoK is broken, so I'm just gonna look at a few pages on this website to get an idea.

Definition and Overview

Irish law (The Centre for excellence is located in Ireland) has a codified formal definition of universal design, which is the definition that we see everywhere based on the definition section for article two of the UNCRPD. The Centre also mentions Article 4 of the UNCRPD which mandates states to promote research and development of UD products and environments. Also fascinatinly, they provide another synonym for UD/inclusive design/design for all that I haven't seen before: transgenerational design.

The Centre targets different interventional tactics at the macro, meso and micro levels in an attempt to align with UN Sustainable Development Goals. This model recognizes that the bottom line implements. In other words, individuals are the ones that actual do the work of UD. The macro and meso levels are in service of this individual action through governance and policy making.

History of Universal Design

As a field, UD is an amalgamation of concepts from the following fields: participatory design, human-centered design, asistive technology, and disability-specific design. The Centre calls out 'assistive technology' as its own field. This feels like a call towards the 'functional solutions' model of disability.

In terms of names, dates, and places, the Centre attributes a large part of focus that was newly given to the needs of Disabled people as being a post-WWII veteran issue. I personally am interested in seeing a bottom-up history of accessibility, I should seek that out. I don't think the IAAP will give it to me.

Benefits and Drivers

In this section, we see all the familiar talking points. The Centre identifies that everyone across a continuum of ability can benefit from increased usability. They also identify that the population is getting older, and people with disabilities are themselves living longer.

Independent living is identified as a key priority that enables greater participation in society. The W3C, in their communications, often relay that technology is ultimately an enabler that helps people achieve things that would literally not have been possible otherwise. But the Centre takes a slightly different approach. Society at large is relying increasingly on technology; in places that did not require technology before, technology has become the new norm. In this way, some activities can actually become less accessible due to the introduction of technology. Anecdotally, we can see this very commonly in the elderly populations that struggle with adapting to new tech.

Market Crossover Success puts a name on phenomonen that we have seen mentioned briefly in other materials. It's where technology initially designed as assistive technology goes mainstream.

The Centre also names Increased Consumer Expectations and Acceptance at First Use as additional benefits. Especially on the internet, people nowadays take very little time to form a judgement on whether they like a product (less than 50 milliseconds in some cases), and in today's climate, they are more likely to voice their opinions. It's a fraught situation for product makers, the the increase in usability the UD approaches offer can be a North Star in navigating through shifting expectations and norms.

Source: University of Washington, UD Processes Principles and Applications

I like everything about this piece except for the introduction, but I understand why it's been written this way, considering the audience is mostly non-specific professionals who are interested in the principles behind UD and may not be familiar with disability culture. It also rattles off 'barrier-free design,' and 'inclusive design' as not being synonymous with universal design. And I don't think that's necessarily accurate. Many definitions of inclusive design are nearly legally synonymous with the ones for UD, so this introduction just seems like it names the other synonyms merely to dunk on them.

It gives the typical UNCRPD definition, but then gives a more descriptive, simplified, and retroactive definition: that which is accessible, usable and inclusive is considered to meet universal design.

In addition to naming the seven principles of UD, it also gives the principles of Universal Design for Learning, or UDL. We will cover this in depth later, but suffice for now that there are three principles: multiple means of engagemment, multiple means of representation, and multiple means of action/expression. They also give the four guiding principles of WCAG.

7 UD principles + 3 UDL principles + 4 WCAG principles gives us 14. With that background established the author finally gets to their argument: these three focuses are not often considered alongside one another. The author presents another schema that their team has developed: Univeral Design in Instruction, that they belive takes into account all 14 principles and synthesizes it into the medium of instruction and pedagogy. It is based on domains: it describes how physical access, delivery methods, information resources, interaction, feedback, assessment, and accommodation should be made to meet universal design principles. By directing the 14 principles at specific practice areas, it makes for easier implementation. The authors also show a small sample workflow for how to apply UD into other domains

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

I skipped over this section (Domain Two C) because I've done so much stuff with WCAG already. I guess it doesn't hurt.

Source: Body of Knowldge

Web accessiblity is directed at websites, tools and technologies and while it is aimed at Disabled people, non-Disabled people also happen to benefit.

WCAG 2.2 has 13 main guidelines. I haven't actually memorized them ever, but they seem memorizeable. I should memorize them.

The thirteen guidelines are

  1. Text alternatives (1.1)
  2. Time-based media (1.2)
  3. Adaptable (1.3)
  4. Distinguishable (1.4)
  5. Keyboard accessible (2.1)
  6. Enough Time (2.2)
  7. Seizures and Physical Reactions (2.3)
  8. Navigable (2.4)
  9. Input Modalities (2.5)
  10. Readable (3.1)
  11. Predictable (3.2)
  12. Input Assistance (3.3)
  13. Compatible (4.1)

Back to Notes contents.

Weekend Things: Deque University 14/15

Noted Sunday, November 24, 2024

It's a weekend. I'm not going to look at the BoK today. Gonna dip again into the other Deque offerings.

Deque: Images, SVG and Canvas

Canvas and Icons

Deque doesn't take a position on whether you should or should not use icon-only fonts, or SVG for icons.

Icons and Canvas elements have to have the role of img. Avoid canvas if you can; SVGs are better. I'm uncomfy with the degree to which Deque upholds aria-label when aria-labelledby is much safer and translates better. All canvas images should have a background fill if changing the background color will obscure text (and changing the background color is WHCM's default behaviour).

To make Canvas elements keyboard accessible, it is not enough to simply add tab-index="0" to things. You need to satisfy 2.5.3 and ensure keydown events happen. Again, you're making a fake button, so all the considerations for that apply here.

Multimedia

WebVTT is a cpation format with the most customization features.

Deque just goes through the WCAG requirements. They emphasize the point that the sole solution for DeafBlind users is a text transcript; NOT captions.

If you use the object element, it needs an accessible name via aria-labelledby

PDF files need to be tagged and accessible, as do EPUBS.

In terms of basic EPUB accessibility tips, ensure you're working in EPUB 3 and reference EPUB 3 Accessibility guidelines

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CPACC Study Day 9/44: Universal Design Principles

Noted Saturday, November 23, 2024

Universal Design Principles

Today, I'm going to spend some time memorizing them and documenting my memorization strategy.

My Mind Map

I've made this ugly mind map. Going to spend some time memorizing it top to bottom. I want to memorize each guideline, roughly in order. There are some places where the literal map differs of the actual guidelines.

Seven mind maps of different colours winding between each other with a few funny drawings.

Map Transcription

This description covers the map by going down the entire left side of the document, scooping the bottom, and coming back up. I describe a lot on the actual visual details because they support my memory. I 'walk' this mindmap by basically describing everything that I describe here to myself just before I'm about to go to sleep.

In bold blue, the title 'Universal Design Principals'

!Mnemonic! LEFT SIPS

Low Physical Effort (in green)

Three nodes go from top right and move counterclockwise. The first node is accompanied by doodle of a person with block shoulders and reads 'neutral. The second node reads 'force: reasonable'. The third node is 'minimize' and has two subnodes: repetitive action, and sustained effort.

Flexibility (in brown)

This map is slightly stylized. Flexibility is written in cursive. At the top, we see 'Choice'! with a drawing of the ASL sign for 'choice' drawn from the first person view. On either side of 'Flexibility' are arrows pointing left and right, labelled 'LH' and 'RH' respectively. Two more nodes outstretch like legs: adapt to pace, and facilitate accuracy. The total effect is for the map to ressemble a person with very long eyelashes.

Tolerance for error (blue)

The title of the map features bold, 3D block lettering. Nodes start from the bottom right, and go up in an arc. First, the logograph for the toki pona word meaning 'to get rid of' points to some text saying 'hazardous elemens' Secondly, the logograph for the toki pona word meaning 'to add' points to some more text: Warnings, failsafes, most used elements. On the opposite side, some eyes peer above text saying 'discourage unconscious action if you need vigilance!'

Simple and intuitive (in citrus)

The title of this map is contained in a doodle of a grinning mouth with two dots for eyes. Nodes start at the bottom left and sweep right, as if the mouth is spitting out each one. The first node is 'Complexity < Consistancy,' the second is 'Accomodate low literacy!' and the third is 'Effective prompting and feedback.' An additional subnode, 'Information hierarchy' points at the word 'Consistancy.'

Equitable use (in purple)

There are three primary nodes on this arranged in a pyramid shape. The bottom left node are the words 'Same,' 'Segregate' and 'Stigma' the letter 'S' underlined on each. 'Same' has two additional subnodes forming a pyramid of their own, 'Identical' and 'Equivelant.' The top left node of this map is 'privacy, security, safety. The bottom right node is 'And, appealing!' with a large heart doodle.

Perceptible information (in pink!)

This mindmap has four nodes arranged in a half circle around the title, that is up against the border of the page. From top to bottom, the first node states 'legible.' The second node is 'different modes for redundant info' with the toki pona symbols for image, word, and tactile. The third node is 'make giving directions easy,' and the fourth is 'compatible with AT' (assistive technology).

Size and Space (in red)

Size is written in massize capitalized letters and and takes up a full 10th of the page. 'Space' is in tiny lettering underneath. Nodes start bottom left and go all around counter-clockwise. The first node reads 'seated or standing,' and it has two subnodes. The first a long line that zooms past the other maps and settles itself in a corner. It reads,' clear line of sight.' The second child of 'seated or standing' reads 'all components, reachable. The second node is stylized as a hand reaching out from 'SIZE' to give a little wave. It reads 'variation in grip size.' The final node says 'adequate space for AT/ personal assist' and is next to a big empty space that has a dashed border around it, as if it space designated for assistive technology and support.

View an in-depth transcription of the entire map

Universal Design Principles and Guidelines as described from memory

Okay I think I'm ready. This is a lot to go through, so we're going to go and describe each of the nodes on these mind maps one by one. From memory.

But first, the mnemonic.

LEFT SIPS. Low physical effort, Equitable use, Flexibility in use, Tolerance for error, Simple and Intuitive design, Perceptible information, Size and shape.

Low Physical Effort

Principle Guidelines:

This principle seeks to minimize fatigue experienced upon using the product.

Equitable Use

Principle Guidelines:

This principle aims to provide a product that people of diverse abilities can use.

Flexibility in Use

Principle Guidelines:

This principle aims to accomodate a/10: /10: /10: /10: /10: /10: /10: /10: variety of user preferences for usage..

Tolerance for Error

Principle Guidelines:

This principle that can adapt to failure, and reduces the chances of that happening.

Simple and Intuitive

Principle Guidelines:

This principle ensures that people of various language and literacy abilities, as well as cognitive difficulties, can use the product.

Perceptible Information

Principle Guidelines:

This principle ensures that people of various sensory disabilites can still access the information.

Size and Shape

Principle Guidelines:

This principle aims to people regardless of their size, mobility, and hand shape.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 8/44: Benefits of Accessibility

Noted Friday, November 22, 2024

Going through and reworking all of the focus and hover styles for the blog before I go ahead and jump into material for today. I'm experimenting with slightly changing the font weight on hover. It's visually quite interesting to me. Might change it back, need to see how this feels. Might be too distracting/too much movement for my own personal taste.

Benefits of Accessibility

Source: The Body of Knowledge

Two short paragraphs describe a bunch of benefits in a highly condensed form. I'm going to draw it out so I can visualize the whole scope better.

Benefits for the Individual with the Access Need
Benefits for Individual's Family
Benefits for Community
Benefits for Nation

Source: Council of Canadians with Disabilities

I'm very glad that the BoK curators included this as a part of the reading, but I also feel like this launches into a bunch of political dimensions of Disability and edges into the territory of the Disability Rights movement without providing adequate context.

We'll read this article with the lense of focusing on the 'benefits of accessibility,' but it's important to note that this article is as much about the need to institute robust welfare projects to support Disabled people to live independent lives, as it is about changing the way we structure our physical and digital environments.

When the authors from CCD talk about 'accessibility,' they are talking about only 'accessible design,' but 'accessibility' full stop. Accessibility happens when the needs of Disabled people are met.

Statistics form the backbone of their argument. We learn that people with disabilities face high rates across a variety of metrics: employment, education, poverty and abuse. A large portion of this population require day-to-day support from family members. The current statistics are 'unacceptable in a country as prosperous as canada', the authors argue. Only when Disabled people have the income, assistive technology, support and accommodations that they need, can Disabled people benefit from the nation itself in ways equal with other canadians.

The argument for accessibile design is pretty simple: it is one building block necessary to create a national culture where Disabled people live equal lives.

The CDCC has their gaze ardently fixed on the plight of Disabled people in canada, though they also bring up the issue of their caretakers and families. It is only in the last paragraph that they make a more universalized argument.

Committing to a long-term disability strategy is a commitment to building a better Canada for all.

The rhetorical strategies of the authors very closely follow the Human Rights model of Disability. Contrast their communications with most arguments for accessibility that are found within the digital accessibility profession.

Source: W3C, 'Important for Individuals, Businesses, Society'

This source is brief and is aimed to convince a general audience. It names access to the digital environment as a 'basic human right' in the UNCRPD, states that accessibility improves the lives of people with disabilites as well as older people, people in rural areas and developing countries. It also mentions the business case, as well as the legal requirement. There's more elaboration on the business section than any other section, but we'll see this fleshed out in even more detail in our next source.

Source: W3C, 'The Business Case for Digital Accessibility

I think that on a moral level, and for the sake of progress, we shouldn't have to ever make the case for digital accessibility beyond the human rights-based case. But due to the face that We Live In A Society, this article regretfully exists and may prove to be extremely helpful. Here's their thesis statement:

Businesses that integrate accessibility are more likely to be innovative, inclusive enterprises that reach more people with positive brand messaging that meets emerging global legal requirements.
Innovate

Example: Apple got ahead of the curve on issues of accessibility and now Makes A Lot of Money.

Example: Google's AI advances got a headstart from their visual context engines initally designed for Blind clients. Auto-complete and voice control also were initially designed for Disabled users.

Reach More People

Example: NPR instituted transcripts for all material. Search traffic and unique visitors up 4%-6%.

Postive Brand

Example: Barclays implemented a very robust company wide policy, gained a very good reputation as a result.

Example: Microsoft took made changes after criticism from the Disabled community, now its efforts are praised.

Legal Requirements

Example: ADA lawsuit with Winn-Dixie lost their case, establishing precedent that Title III of the ADA is relevant in digital environments/websites and e-commerce.

Source: Section 508, Benefits of Accessible Design

This source is similarly concerned with making pragmatic arguments that will appeal to business leaders. Very similar to 'The Business Case for Digital Accessibility,' but the rhetorical strategy is gives sligthly more agency to Disabled people themselves. As a result, it's a better-formed article.

The argument is broken into three sections.

1. More Customers
2. Cost Savings
3. Innovation

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 7/44: Universal Design

Noted Thursday, November 21, 2024

As normal, we'll start iwth a bit of a warmup before jumping into CPACC prep. I'm now almost totally turned off by the Deque course. I'll actually just be reviewing directly from the BoK from now on, with the intention to focus on the goal areas that I identified in Goal-Setting #2.

Nat Tarnoff on Captions, WCAG SC 1.2.2

Tarnoff makes the argument here that captions are accessible to DeafBlind people. Everything that I've read here suggests that this is not the case, but I think Tarnoff may be conflating transcripts and captions? There are separate WCAG requirements for providing transcripts for precisely this reason: SC 1.2.3 Audio Description or Media Alternative (Prerecorded) which is a Level A criterion, and SC 1.2.8 Media Alternative (Prerecorded), which is a Level AAA criterion.

Tarnoff isn't wrong that captions are real text. But they are typically not in a format that is super friendly to access directly as such: they have a bunch of timestamp notations and metadata that is important for the computer to know, but distracting for the user.

The other reason it is important to distinguish between captions and transcripts is because transcripts (at least, descriptive captions) also contain visual information, while captions do not. Caption authors regularly assume that the person using them has access to visual information. For example, if the person who is speaking is visible on screen, the captioner will typically give a blank attribution to that speaker (won't designate who the speaker is) while transcribers must always notate who is talking when.

So when Tarnoff gives the false impression that captions provide access to DeafBlind people, that's a potentially harmful idea that gives captions more credit for what they are worth, and nearly excuses people from putting the extra mile in to include accessible, descriptive transcripts.

Also skeptical of this article because Tarnoff tags the post with the words 'hearing impaired.' In most contexts, one should almost never say these two words together. This is at the request of the Deaf community, though there are many people with auditory disabilities that don't fit neatly there and might expressly prefer the term.

Individual Accommodations vs Universal Design

Source: The Body of Knowledge

The text of the BoK offers us surprisingly little. They link together the concept of Universal Design along with several of extentions to the initial idea: Inclusive design, Design for all, Human-centered design, and Life-span design. The BoK points out that this framework is popular in Europe, pointing to the EN 17161:2016 Design for All standard.

Accessibility is positioned as being closely related to universal design. Where Accessibility is primarily focused on Disabled people, Universal design doesn't have as specific as a scope (perhaps internationaliztion could also fit under this framework). Usability is also adjacent to these two ideas with emphasis on 'ease of use' though it does not consider accessibility barriers as part of this equation by default.

Accessibility may need a bit more than universal design in order to be achieved. Certain specific accommodations may be needed at times-- these are known as individualized accommmodations. The Body of Knowledge argues that universal design can reduce the ammount of individualized accommodations that need to be implemented.

Now, let's look at the linked resources.

Source: University of Cambridge, What is Inclusive Design?

Relevant to our studies is the subheading 'Comparison with 'Universal Design'' that makes the claim that within the context of web design, inclusive design and universal design as well as 'design for all' are essentially synonyms.

The distinction lays in that inclusive design always first identifies a target population into account and designs with them in mind. Universal design' never considers a target population other than the general population

This source argues that the inclusive design philosophy is more pragmatic, and perhaps more honest. It recognizes that there are times where it is more appropriate to target a more specialized population within the development of a product, because financial constraints limit how truly 'universalizing' experiences can be.

Inclusive design does not suggest that it is always possible (or appropriate) to design one product to address the needs of the entire population

Inclusive design partially demands that specialized products and design are produced and incorporated into the inital product development cycle, producing an inclusive product family that includes specialized versions.

We can think of this kind of approach as being less remedial in nature, and more following the 'provide comparable experience' axiom within the seven Inclusive Design Principles.

Source: Accommodations under the ADA

From the US Department of Labour, we are introduced to the idea of 'accomodation.' By nature, accommodations are modification appended to the original design of the workflow or environment. Hence they are not within the same frame as 'Universal Design.' The Department of Labour does touch on the fact that all employees, and not just the employee that the modification is instituted for, can benefit from the accommodation.

This doesn't really require employers to take the initiative to anticipate potential barriers that might arise, and the entire onus to initiate the accommodation falls onto the Disabled employee or job applicant. Sometimes this approach is most appropriate. Think about it; it would be weird to provide live ASL interpretation for every single interview if neither the interviewer or interviewee knew ASL.

Source: University of Washington, Universal Design vs Accomodation

Fascinating. This source defines Universal Design with the exact same wording that the British Standards Institute uses to define Inclusive Design. Just goes to show how inseparable these two ideas are, and how little space they've had to grow into separate concepts on a macro-level.

The University of Washington is specifically concerned with the domain of education and seemingly also specifically includes EAL speakers as a beneficiary of Universal Design.

For example, designing web resources in accessible formats as they are developed means that no re-development is necessary if a blind student enrolls in the class. Planning ahead can be less time-consuming in the long run.

As the other sources corroborate, Universal Design is a planning technique, not a remedial technique.

Source: University of Washington: Accessible, Usable and Universal Design

This article compares accessible design, usable design, and universal design as 'similar though distinct concepts.'

Universal design is defined just as it is defined in the UW's other article on the subject.

Accessible design is presented as design focused on the needs of Disabled people. The source puts extra emphasis on the 'compliance' framework of accessibility as introduced by things like the ADA and Section 508.

Meanwhile, Usable design focuses on effectiveness, efficiency, consistancy, and satisfaction with which user flows can be seen out. There is no primary focus on accessibility. In fact, Disabled users are often left out and not a consideration. The UW acknowledges that within the Usability sphere, this is slowly changing. More and more usability advocates are waking up to the need to consider accessibility as well, and to include Disabled users in their usability tests.

Source: UNCRPD Article 2 Definitions

Again, we see the same definition of Universal Design (Britain uses the same definition to define Inclusive Design). I'll present it here in full. It comes up often enough to be worth commiting fully to memory

the design of products, environments, programmes and services to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design

It also defines 'reasonable accomodation' as modification when needed in particular cases, with the 'reasonable' caveat referring to the fact that the modification should 'not impose disproportionate or undue burden.'

Source: W3C Accessibility Fundamentals: Accessibility, Usability, Inclusion

In 'Distinctions and Overlaps,' W3C describes explicitly defines 'Inclusion' to go beyond just accessibility. It includes quality of technology, digital skills, classs and socioeconomic barriers, geographical, demographic and language barriers. 'Accesibility' describes only one kind of barrier in this grand kaleidescope of potential perception issues: those barriers that are encountered because a person is Disabled.

Usability is all about user experience design and is a field that largely excludes the unique experiences of Disabled people. But 'Usability's tenants of ensuring product design is effective, efficient and satisfying, are important ideas to port over into the realm of accessibility. Accessibility typically has the effect of improving usability for everyone, so the fields are theoretically very complementary. In practice, Usability as a field and culture has not gotten to a point where it sees Accessibility as a part of its purvue.

The article suggests also that some accessibility efforts are too focused in the technical aspects, and that 'human interaction aspect[s are] often lost.' The authors suggest 'Usable Accessibility' as a paradigm where usability and accessibility are harmonious concepts integrated at product conception, not just left to the technical remedialists after the product has already gone live.

Source: CENCENELEC: Design for All

This page has little to offer except to present 'Design for All' as a synonym for 'Universal Design.' The page offers no distinction between these two concepts and doesn't really add anything that we haven't covered up to this point.

Interlude

Utterly heartbroken that Sins Invalid's website is inaccessible and uses an Overlay. I'm so heartbroken.

I also watched Molly describe a whole bunch of cool things about Braille and Blind education! Molly Burke's Introduction to Braille Quite a revealing video. I learned a lot. It cheers me up, I guess!

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 6/44: Types of Disabilities

Noted Tuesday, November 19, 2024

Rainy day today. Standing outside in the wet for a while made me lose quite a few spoons. But the show continues!

Devon Persing on 'Compliance' and Alternatives

Recently, I've been starting out with palate cleansers like this. Reading through this transcript (hell yeah for transcripts!), it was comforting to see a person coming from a non-tech background talk about their experience. I want to read Devon's book (maybe when I actually see a cent or two come from this endeavor!). I keep seeing Adrian Roselli posting about reading it on his Kobo, accompanied by artisan coffee. It's so freaking tempting.

In terms of actual takeaways from this, it's true that compliance is a poor model to rely on when we're talking about scaling up solutions. Compliance is something that you designate to a 'compliance team.' It's not culture, and it's not a mindset shift.

Personally I don't think the WCAG is necessarily at odds with the whole culture thing. Devon talks about the WCAG as stale. I, personally, find it to be a very intruiging document and not stale at all. Things like Andrew Hick's Train Station WCAG map prove to me that we can make the WCAG engaging to a popular audience. But Devon's right that the driving force behind implementing accessibility policies has to be routed in frameworks of inclusion and usability, not over legal liability concerns. Rooted not in fear, but curiosity and love for our relatives and future selves.

Hard to do in a corporate setting. Major props to Devon for all the valuable work she does.

Deque CPACC Prep Course

Colour Blindness

Forms of colour blindness include:

Barriers in the ICT Domain include

General Barriers include

DeafBlindness

General barriers include

Barriers in the ICT Domain include

Auditory

'Auditory' as in referring to Deafness, HOH and central Auditory Processing Disorder.

Barriers in the ICT domain

Momentary Interlude

I'm noticing that the Deque course actually offers less content, and sometimes inaccurate content, as opposed to the BoK. I think I'll pause taking notes from the Deque course on these domains, and move to just consuming it passively.

Scanning through. They present mobility disabilities as like.. look at these people! They look like they're stupid and they're not! Just horrific. Also not a fan of the presentation of cognitive abilities. I feel like it would be easy to just hire someone to do a once-over of this.

NOOOO not the dyslexia simulation!!

Uses outdated language for nonspeaking people. Resource on 'Nonspeaking' vs 'nonverbal'. 'Mute' is actually considered pretty offensive, 'mutism' is quite clinical and isn't often how people describe their own experiences. This Reddit thread on 'mute' provides a range of perspectives.

I feel like a person certified as an 'accessibility professional' should at least be counted on to get the language right?

Uh, I think people would object to sign language being categorized as AAC. PDF on the difference between AAC and ASL. It is likely not accessible so I'll summarize briefly here:

Sign languages are languages. They are full ass languages. AAC refers to non-language communication. It's like referring to reading via Braille or audiobook as 'not being reading' because the medium is different. It's a very ableist assertion.

Signs used outside of the context of a language system *might* be considered AAC, especially if the signs are completely made up and not from a pre-existing sign language. But the line is so thin that I would advocate not lumping sign under AAC altogether. Consider, would you say that 'speaking' is a form of AAC if a child only knew how to vocalize 'help' and 'milk'? Likely not!

Be vigilant against ableism, people!

Deque, why is your content borderline ableist?

It is so mentally exhausting to chug through this, I swear to God.

(This is purely Deque riffing, btw. The IAAP does not share Deque's very ableist definition of AAC).

Interlude

I took the 'Fast Track for Web Accessibility: Developers' Exam out of curiosity. I finished it in 11 minutes and got 100%.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 5/44: Types of Disabilities

Noted Monday, November 18, 2024

Going in with Deque again today. Before jumping into CPACC prep, I want to finish off the outstanding module that I have 11% left on.

Designing an Accessible User Experience

(Not CPACC things)

The ATAG 2.0 is divided into two sections: make the authoring tool accessible, and support the production of accessible content.

Whenever there is a fully automatic process, ensure it produces accessbile cotent. Pre-made templates should be accessible. Don't have your content filters erase accessible features. Ensure that accessible content production is possible, either by making all widgets accessible, or giving user full control over the HTML. Support, assist, and guide authors in authoring content with accessible non-text alternatives, and help them repair accessibility problems that do arise.Make accessibility the default, and built into the natural flow of the authoring process. Ensure that help features can instruct people on how to implement good accessible content.

Automated solutions, according to Deque, have potential. They are leaps and bounds above where they initally were, but they still cannot be relied on completely. Human-authored transcripts, captions, alt text and audio descriptions are still the gold standard. Deque is optimistic that the general trend of 'improvement' for these features will hold steady.

Interlude: Fast Track to Accessibility for Designers

I saw that I have taken most modules related to the 'Designers' program, so I curiously took the Fast Track to Accessibility for Designers exam. I got 96% and it took me 25 minutes of the 120 minutes allotted.

That felt slightly vindicating. At least I can objectively say that I have learned something in these past months. Imposter syndrome is super real and difficult to navigate.

For example, my brain is currently yelling at me saying that I should have been able to finish it in 10 minutes and that I'm stupid for taking a whole 25 minutes. My brain can be scary sometimes.

Types of Disabilities

I covered a good portion of Disability types on Days 1 and 2, so I'm mostly going to focus on new information that I feel I haven't been exposed to before.

Vision: Blindness

Deque goes a head and names some specific causes of Blindness including diabetes, macular degeneration, glaucoma, accidents/injuries, strokes, and retinitis pigmentosa. They also describe the legal definition of blindness in the US which has to deal with

visual acuity of 20/200 with corrective lenses or who has a field of vision (what can be seen in front of the person) that is 20 degrees in the eye that has the best vision

Fascinating, so there's actually two kinds of blindness here. One of which has a tiny field of vision (kind of like that guy, Paul, on TikTok that keeps on getting pranked by his husband) and the complete loss of visual acuity kind (kinda like Christine Ha from Masterchef).

Deque then talks about the Challenges and Solutions that Blind people encounter across a range of domains.

In the ICT domain

In the Built Environment/Architecture domain

Consumer & Industrial Products

Vision: Low Vision

Some conditions are named here as well including cataracts, disabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, hemianopia, macular degeneration, and retinal detachment. It actually specifics names how these conditions manifest.

Some low vision types include

Domain: General

Domain: ICT

Back to Notes contents.

Goal Setting #2

Noted Monday, November 18, 2024

Confetti! Today's the benchmark that I set for my first goal-setting session, where I decided on a bunch of things I wanted to accomplish. So I'm sat at a cafe with a five-dollar latte ready to reflect, celebrate, and plan for the next one!

Reflections

I only ended up completing one and a half Dquecourses out of the five I wanted to complete, but I don't feel so bad about that. The month of November has been the most productive month by far: I spent 24 hours working in the first week, and 20 hours in the second week.

The majority of this time was spent either doing case studies, or learning CSS. This is the kind of stuff that doesn't end up on my blog. But I also spent a lot of time blogging: We're now at 50 notes, and 30k words!

Throughout this time, I've gotten some solid fundamentals in flexbox. I also had an important trajectory switch: preparing for CPACC!

Back to those four courses that I didn't manage to complete: the trajectory switch had a lot to do with this. These courses are not relevant to the CPACC, they're actually preparatory materials for the WAS. There were moments where I was overwhelmed with the technical knowledge that they suddenly sprang on me, but I do want to keep this up somewhat and not abandon them entirely.

It's shaping up to be that I am concentrating on three things: auditing skills, CSS/HTML skills, and WCAG/IAAP skills. From this point of view, it makes sense to me to formulate my new goals as such:

New Goals due December 6:

Auditing Skills

Completely finish auditing report and remediation work with [redacted].

Find a new project.

CSS/HTML Skills

Completely remake [redacted]'s website, ensure it is fully functional.

CPACC Prep

Take notes on the entirety of Deque's preparatory course.

Completely memorize material for the following units:

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 4/44: Deque CPACC Course

Noted Saturday, November 16, 2024

Print Styles for this Blog

I'm trying to get my header/nav to display none and it's not working? May have been a one-off. Found how to toggle on 'print syle' emulation in the Firefox Inspector, so this should make it easier.

Roselli's blog is a really good resource for this stuff. I'm starting off with Roselli's 2013 presentation on print styles at WordCamp Buffalo. I've got the default style to be okay. Still need to find a mechanism to print links, but I can do that later.

The Deque CPACC Prep Course

I started this a little while ago, but I'm revisiting everything. I *could* go around critiquing every little part of this for not being in line with how Disability Justice advocates navigate their lives. But on this first pass, it makes more sense to me to just blindly eat the content, and save my thoughts for later. For example, right off the bat, the course assumes that the person taking it is sighted.

What if I handed you a blank newspaper? Would you be able to read it? Giving a blind person a newspaper is just as useless as giving a sighted person a blank newspaper.

But I'm not going to comment on why this approach is faulty. Let's just get on with it.

Background

Assistive Technology

Like a wheelchair, hearing aid, cane, corrective lenses. For the web, these encompass screen readers, refreshable braille devices, screen enlargers, color enhancement overlays, captions, transcripts, head wand, mouth stick, alternative keyboards, eye gaze tracking, voice activation, AAC devices. But work best in environments that are designed for them.

The Solution

The web has enormous capacity to support the independence of Disabled people. Disabled people may rely more on the web than on other formats (some disabilities functionaly limit someone so that certain activites are accomplishable only through the web), so it is absolutely crucial that accessibility is incoporated into the web.

Theoretical Models of Disability

Medical Model

External links are provided for further study, I'm putting them aside for now.

Social Model
Biopsychosocial Model
Economic Model
Functional Solutions Model
Social Identity or Cultural Affiliation Model

I have so much I want to add here because this seems like such an inaccurate way to present this but I will fucking bite my tongue.

Charity/Tragedy Model

I also think that in leaving out economic and historical context, Deque fundamentally miscommunicates this but whatever.

Other Models

Interlude: Deque's 'Designing an Accessible User Experience' Course

This course is actually surprisingly good. It talks about non-technical aspects of accessibility work, mostly through the lense of inclusive design. I wish that all the courses that dealth with non-technical aspects were similar to this one. This was clearly designed by a UX accessibility specialist (they even refer to themselves in the first person a few times). I wish that the sections on things like Disability studies were written from people in the field.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 3/44: Models of Disability

Noted Friday, November 15, 2024

I started coverng this in my Anki Deck yesterday and was immediately intruiged as to what supplemental resources they want us to rely on, so I'll be reformulating my thoughts on everything here.

In Brief

There are seven models: medical, social, biopsychosocial, social identity, functional, charity, and economic.

In the most brief terms, the seven models each answer the question, what are disabled people? These are my personal definitions before engaging with the supplemental sources referenced in the Body of Knowledge

Medical model
Disabled people are biologically disadvantaged.
Social model
Disabled people are would not be disadvantaged if society had the means to properly accomodate them.
Biopsychosocial
Disabled people suffer doubly from their biological reality and by society's construction.
Social Identity
Disabled people are a group that share a common past of resilience in the face of ableist eugenics and a common future creating a shared world where we can flourish within our medical realities.
Functional Solutions
Disabled people are clients that will buy devices that relieve symptoms and alleviate barriers.
Charity model
Disabled people are unfortunate dependents on the benevolence of holy non-disabled actors.
Economic model
Disabled people are unproductive leeches and an economic drain on the nation.

I am of the belief that the social identity model has the capacity to absorb other aspects of different models into it, and should be the starting point for any operation that seeks to influence our lives, including accessibility. It's the only definition that isn't ahistorical and centers self-determination.

Supplemental: Disabled World Website

This has much more models than the seven we're supposed to memorize, but broadly, they can be presented as subtypes.

Into the medical model, we can add the 'Biomedical' model, which has more of a focus on the actual biology than the capacity of modern medicine to be the arbiter of disability itself. To the functional solutions model, we can add the 'Market Model' which views Disabled people with slightly more agency, as empowered consumers with a hand in shaping company and also national policy. The 'Empowering model' operates in this consumerist paradigm, but the focus is more on the actual benefit that this brings to the individual's life and the capacity they have to decide on the unique treatment plan that they will benefit best from. The 'Expert/Professional Model' straddles in between the medical and functional consumer models, and tasks experts with the work of 'solving' disability through treatment and research; the Disabled people themselves are passive in this paradigm.

The social identity model is manifested under a couple of subtypes with different concentrations: the 'Minority model' is much closer to my personal definition of the social identity model where the group consistutes a separate social category like any other forms of minoritization (gender, race, orientation). The 'Affirmation model's intervention is to view the Disabled identity as an overall positive one.

Four of the models are strategies to improve the lives of Disabled people through systems change. The "Relational model" emerged in the context of institutionalization and emphasizes integrated communites and social inclusion. The "Diversity model" speaks to idea that niche solutions are required and universal design is not sufficient or flexibile enough to achieve good outcomes for the entire Disabled population. The "Human Rights model" seeks to enshrine the equal participation of Disabled people into law, and using law as the basis of changing the system instead of targetting deficiency-based societal mindsets first. The 'Social Adapted model' puts the entire onus of 'negative' Disabled experiences onto society's failure to adapt and accomodate.

Three more subtypes either support or enhance the charity model. The 'Religious model' views the imposition of disability on an individual as an act of punishment by God that can be potentially alleviated through prayer. The 'Moral model' is a variation of this that believes that the Disabled person is to blame for their own disability. The reasons for this can be religious or spiritual like in the 'Religious' model, or through things like poor lifestyle choices. Whatever the cause, they are viewed as moral failings for which the Disabled person justly received the 'punishment.' The 'Sick Role model' prescribes that a Disabled person take on the social role of the 'sick individual' and perform behaviours in line with that role to access care. This compliments the charity model nicely, which assumes that all Disabled people are in desperate need of help and direction from people with priviledge.

Supplemental: Ombudsman Introduction

In describing the social model, the Ombudsman distinguishes between 'impairement' which may have a basis in biological reality, and 'disability' which is viewed entirely within the Social Adapted model as due to lack of accommodation and non-inclusive societal structures. This feels a bit outdated for what my understanding of what the social model is now, but Ombudsman themselves is quick to offer that in practice, the medical and social model is more of a spectrum in its application.

One point that Ombudsman clarifies, is that the medical model is useful in setting criterion that must be met in order for a person to be protected under legislation.

It then provides a table of the two models in action. The 'social model' and 'medical model' provides solutions to various domains in life where Disabled people may experience barriers: solutions provided within the 'social model' are about integration of the Disabled people into mainstream settings as opposed to segregation, and creating accessible solutions for people and equivelant experiences. The medical model provides solutions that are segregated and highly specialized, and assume that the larger mainstream setting would not be appropriate.

Supplemental: Four models of disability by YDAS

The most accessible of the sources. This source contextualizes the shift from the medical model to the social model within deinstitutionalization. This is a good addition, but it gives the false impression that deinstitutionalization is a one-and-done issue. The institutions continue. Even hear about group homes?

Another good addition that this source makes is saying that the charity model is derived from the fact that literal charities were once the only organizations capable of providing support, and that this system of organization "create[s] attitudinal barriers." It's a bit of a chicken and egg situation. Did the charity model emerge because of ableism, or did the charity model give birth to ableism?

YDAS's presentation of the human rights model contrasts frome Ombudsman's presentation. Instead of focusing on development of quality of life through litigation, YDAS presents the human rights model similarly to how other sources talk about the biopsychosocial model and also integrates aspects of the minority/affirmation/identity model.

Supplemental: Disability in Public Health, Compare and Contrast Models

So this website's main menu is an h3 made clickable with Javascript but with no tabindex, so I can't actually tab to it. Fun. The main content that we're supposed to access is accessible, but the decorative image of text doesn't have alt text set to null so it can be ambiguous whether a person is missing out on information or not.

The most interesting tidbit this source offers is in contrasting a 'functional model' and 'medical model' where I think many sources would merge the 'functional model' as presented here into the 'medical model' itself.

The key distinction here is that the medical model focuses on biology and diagnosis, where the functional model is focused on symptoms and limits on functional activities. Another is distinction is made where (supposedly) the medical model sees Disability as a 'disruption' where the functional model sees it as a 'limitation.' I view this as a minimal semantic difference, but I suppose the authors are trying to emphasize that the functional model offers more room for a person to grow, where the medical model sees disability as a life sentence.

Supplemental: Disability Australia Hub

Short and sweet resource, points out that the medical model of disability is highly specified to the individual. If someone's Disabled, that is a 'problem' only for them. Disability isn't viewed as a shaping force that needs to be reckoned with and accounted for in the way we structure our communities and relationships. It's just a problem.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 2/44: Disability Types

Noted Thursday, November 14, 2024

Starting off today by giving my website's CSS a facelift. Oof. The redesign's colours do NOT look good, but at least the dark mode is way more respectable than before. I've used a bunch of 'variables' to manage colour, and organized the actual layout of the CSS document better. I still need to rework the reflow, but it's a good start.

Now that I've wasted an hour and fifteen minutes on that, time to get into Anki memorization.

Anki Deck: Categories of Disabilities

Six types of cognitive disabilites: intellectual, reading, math, attention deficit hyperactivity, autism, non-verbal learning. Mnemonic: MARINA: math, ADHD, reading, intellectual, non-verbal learning, autism.

Intellectual disabilies defined by IQ score (lower than 70-75), before the age of 18 + limitations, 1-3% of population, delayed development and slower cognitive function.

Reading/dyslexia: reading ability low despite having normal intelligence; additionall difficulty with phonological processing, spelling, rapid visual-verbal responding. Causes vary wildly from the neurologic to the physical to injury. 'Dyslexia' diagnosis not applicable in all cases.

Interlude: More Blog Maintenance

I couldn't just leave the reflow bad and the colours ugly. I've fixed both, fixed the colour contrast. I just need to tackle hover and focus styles again, rework the 'Bookmarks' page, and then I'll be pretty satisfied.

Slight Change of Pace

I'm going to just read the entire Body of Knowledge today front to back to get a bird's-eye view of the situation here. This will also make the Anki deck studying more logical.

Okay, I just finished up. That's a lot of content. I am 100% going to struggle the most with Domain 3. That's a lot of memorization and specific details to remember. I am newly worried about the extent to which additional reading will play a part in this. I am a bit upset that this document is only available as a PDF.

In terms of a plan, it makes sense to me that I just need to set nose to grindstone. I'm going to take a small peak at Amy's work just to see the amount of time she dedicated to each section. The Body of Knowledge claims that Domain 3 consists of 20% of the exam. That's wild. It really does feel like it holds the most factual tidbits one has to memorize. Amy spent 2-3 hours a day over 45 days. If I do this for longer than that, I should be okay.

Anki Deck (continued)

Computation/Math disabilities include dyscalculia (inability to understand arithmetic or grasp the scope of numbers and logic) which 3-6% of people have and is has no set cause; it can be due to congenital, injury, aging, disease.

ADHD's key symptoms are inattention, distractibility, impulsivity, and hyperactivity, affecting 11% of the population.

ASD spectrum characterized by impaired social behaviour, communication, language. This definition wants us to focus on special interests, sensory issues, and echolalia alongside stunted development in early years, co-existing conditions, intellectual functioning is variable.

Non-verbal learning disability is not in the DSM but is described as a condition similar to autism level one, with learning disability stemming from visuo-spatial processing limitations. My commentary: It doesn't have consistent diagnostic criteria even in 2024, so I find it slightly suspect that IAAP puts it here.

Back to Notes contents.

CPACC Study Day 1/44: Disability Types

Noted Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Anki Deck: Categories of Disabilities

For types of disability, I've developed a mnemonic that goes with the song 'Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.' It goes, "Psychological, Compound, Mobility, Seizure, Mobility, Seizure, Mobility, Seizure. Cognitive, Compound, Mobility, Seizure; Visual, Auditory, Speech, Deaf-Blind." I do the actions as I say this.

Side Note: People in my region sing "Head and Shoulders" to the tune of "London Bridge." In my opinion, this is the only way it should be done.

Vision

Blindness can refer to: partial blindness, low vision (can perceive light and dark and general shapes of large objects).

Colour-blindness especially applies to colours that are of equal luminosity.

Low-vision is a spectrum that is typically defined functionally.

Visual disabilities comprise of the three above.

Auditory

Auditory disabilities are caused by genetics, prematurity, infections, ear trauma, exposure to loud noises, aging: auditory processing disorder, deafness, HOH.

Deafness: 'total or near-total loss of hearing.' Some sign, some do not.

HOH: 6.1% of population/466 million people, mild to severe hearing loss. Adequate assistance may be provided by AT.

Central APD: 5% of global population, confused with other disorders, no hearing loss exists but difficulty understanding speech. Source of sound, distinguishing words, learning instruments, paying attention, learning new languages, responding in a timely way.

Deafblindness: Prescence of deafness and blindness, leaving touch as the primary communication medium. 0.2-2% of people are DeafBlind. My commentary: there are a lot of peope who identify as DeafBlind who don't meet these descriptions. Blindness and Deafness have spectrums from Blind to low vision, Deaf to HoH. DeafBlind people can sit anywhere along those two axioms, and with that definition, I assume the prevalence listed would be higher.

Speech Disabilities

There are eight types: stuttering, cluttering, apraxia, dysarthia, speech sound disorders, articulation, aphasia, and muteness (no speech). Our mnemonic will be 'Amass A CDs': aphasia, muteness, articulation, speech-sound, cluttering, apraxia, dysarthia, stuttering. Picture someone collecting a bunch of CDs only from artists whose names start with the letter A.

Articulation can be broken into three categories: speech sound, phonological process, and motor speech disorders. Characterized by adding/leaving off sounds, distorting or swapping sounds.

Aphasia can affect comprehension of speech and reading/writing ability in addition to just produced speech. It results from brain injury (often a stroke), there are at least 2 million people in the US with it, and at least 250 thousand in Great Britain with it.

Muteness is either neurogenic (aphasia, apraxia, disarthia) or psychogenic. Psychogenic mutism has three types: selective elective, selective non-elective, and total. 0.47-0.76 of the population has selective mutism.

Mobility, Flexibility, Body Structure

People with upper/lowe limb loss/disability, manual dexterity, difficulty cooordinating different organs of the body, and broken skeletal structure.

Four subareas are manual dexterity, ambulation, muscle fatigue and body size/shape.

Manual dexterity/fine motor control, requires coordination between the brain and muscles. Disability in this area can lead to handwriting issues and inability to dress independently. Can be hard to manipulate objects/use both hands at the same time. Children with ADHD have issues with this.

Ambulation is the ability toe walk with or without an assistive device. Ambulation disabilities can be disease based or injury based: think cerebral palsy and back injuries. 3.5% of adults in the US have ambulatory disabilities.

Muscle fatigue is associated with a bunch of causes and conditions and it's when basic tasks become very difficult. It can be in a specific part of the body and can present as soreness, twitching, trembling, cramping, and is associated with general weakness.

Body size or shape disabilities affect stature, proportions or shape. Dwarfism, acromegaly, rheumatoid arthritis are some examples. This is characterized by the prescence of other co-occuring conditions. My comment: not surprising that it falls into line in presenting 'obesity' itself as a disease. As scholars of fat studies note, this is an argument with no evidence, and the prevelance of it leads to lesser health outcomes for obese patients due to misdiagnosis and mistreatment in medical settings. So I'm not surprised to see this here, and I'm not happy about it.

Palette Cleanser: Adrian Roselli on Tables

Roselli spoke about HTML tables at WebAIM, watch along with me at Talkin' Tables

He clarifies that a caption is not a WCAG requirement, which is something I also came across recently. Scope isn't needed for simple tables (though I've come across the situation where you should add it if it is ambiguous what data is applicable to each header.) Also, your table headers must be in the first column in the DOM regardless of CSS presentation. Don't be putting them at the bottom of the table, or switching to new headers mid-table. Scope is not as important (the browser is good at figuring that out) as colspan and rowspan, theoretically. In practice, support for colgroup and rowgroup is low and incredibly variable across screen reader/browser combinations. Avoid spanning. Cell count can be affected by this, and inconsistant cell count can break navigation. Test, test, test!

He talks about an over-enginnered and under-engineered pattern for making good table reflow. He says that he still 'feels bad' for relying on CSS-gennerated content. This is the pattern that Deque suggests so.. I'm curious as what Roselli thinks about that pattern now.

I prefer the signing style of the second interpreter to the first one.

Next we have fixed headers, both row and column. I have a hard time understanding him because I don't know what Z indexes are.

Scroll snapping, Roselli rejects, citing usability concerns.

Back to Notes contents.

A New Direction

Noted Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Starting my morning off with Manuel Matuzović's talk, Lost in Translation.

Biting the Bullet

I've had a bit of hesitency around trying to get the CPACC certification. IAAP, the organization that backs this certification, maintains relationships with overlay shillers. The actual body of knowledge is far removed from conversations around disability justice. I don't get the impression that the IAAP truly operates under the axiom of 'nothing about us without us.' But with all that said, it's time to bite the bullet.

I feel like I will gain no traction if I do not get this now.

I am fortunate that I have the financial resources to pay the exorbitant exam fee.

Those Who've Tread Before

1. Josefine Schfr: Studying for CPACC | Becoming a Certified Accessibility Professional

What resonates for me here is that Schfr really didn't have a strong impression of how they did when they left the exam center, and it took six weeks for the results to arrive.

Schfr links a few resources: the linked video by Derek Mei is what I'll be looking at next.

2. Reddit Threads

May 2024, u/Krysulia posted this congregation thread of people anxiously waiting for the six-month period to let up.

Passed the CPACC with 752, u/TellAdministrative95. This thread suggests working through all the material, then registering, and working through all the material again. This person preferred the Princeton course over Deque, but noted that some aspects were only covered in the Deque University course.

CPACC: Level of Study Required? by u/ivytranfcd. They provided some updates. They say the Deque course offered 'peace of mind' but didn't actually add much more material. One comment on this thread suggested using the Body of Knowledge and diving into 'further reading' as much as possible.

IAAP CPACC exam- just finished, by u/Necessary_Marzipan99. This person was uh WILD and literally had TWO WEEKs to prepare. They say to focus on learning disabilities that start with d, universal design principles 2.0, and Japanese law. They were absolutely floored by the wait time for the results. Another commentor chimed in that they really felt that given that the IAAP doesn't actually assess whether a person can be a good accessibility practitioner, the fact that it is so unfriendly to neurodivergent folks is quite insidious.

3. Full CPACC Study Guide by Derek Mai

Mai affirms that the IAAP's suggestion of 8 weeks of studying for the exam, with 5-10 hours per week was accurate.

My Strategy

When

I have a choice to make. I can either do an exam sometime between November 13 (tomorrow!) to December 4, or I need to wait until January 22 to February 19.

Now. I am very good at cramming. But December 4 is a bit much. February 19 is a bit mucher. It might be worth to just go for December 4, and then take again on February if I don't pass the first round. But simulatenously, I would rather be more confident than less confident. I can still do work in between studying for the exam, and I can still make my way through the Deque WAS courses, as I've been doing. There's no need to freak out. February will be here before I know it, and I'll have the results on April 2, 2025.

That is a bit far off, however. Potentially I can also register for the Web Accessibility auditing credential at the Chang School at TMU when the next section opens up.

It appears that I've made the decision to take this on at the most inopportune time, in terms of timeline.

How

I have time so I guess we're just gonna memorize anything and everything.

Also, I'm neurodivergent and my learning style trends towards the non-linear.

Back to Notes contents.

Web Almanac on Accessibility 2024

Noted Monday, November 11, 2024

Opened Slack this morning to see that the 2024 edition of the Web Almanac's entry on accessibility is live! Read it at Accessibility, Web Almanac 2024.

They link to Microsoft Inclusive Design Principles. The title makes it seem like a knock-off version of the seven Inclusive Design Principles, but I suppose I'll take a small detour to read it on its own merits.

Microsoft Inclusive Design Principles

There are three principles: 'Recognize exclusion,' 'Learn from diversity,' and 'Solve for one, Extend to many.' Immediatly, I compare these to the original Inclusive Design Principles which include autonomy-centered principles like 'Give control' and 'Offer choice.' Microsoft's principles seemes like an issue-centered approach: identify the barriers and tackle them. The original principles are most focused on creating an experience that never leads to barriers in the first place. In this sense, the original principles seem more like design principles, where the Microsoft principles are more like remediation principles.

Let's take a slightly deeper look. They elaborate the principles in a PDF. Interesting.

Microsoft Inclusive Design Principles 101 defines disability as exclusion "includ[ing] situational impairements, activity limiations, and restrictions on participation," and presents this definition as a decision agreed-upon by everyone. This is not the case, even CPACC people will tell you that there are multiple models of disability that are important in different situations. Well then, is this definition an appropriate definition for discussing accessibility in a web design context? I don't believe so. This sets us up for conversations where a temporarily abled Accesibility Practitioner tells a Disabled user experience consultant, 'You know, if our app stops loading correctly, it means that everyone's Disabled.' In treating the word 'Disabled' this way, as a synonym for 'Excluded' (why not just say that?), you're dismissing some very real economic realities and histories of eugenics, intersectionality and resistance that have, over generations, formed Disabled identities. You aren't acknowledging the role of Access Trauma.

For example, there's a website with bad contrast. We have two individuals.

One of them is out on a beach on a sunny day enjoying the tenth day of their 14-day all-exclusive couple's resort experience. And she can't see the text on the website. She claps twice and summons an attendant. "Yes, Miss?" She asks for a parasol. She is able to access the content.

The second individual has low vision and is routinely locked out of spaces due to bad contrast issues. Seeing that he cannot see the content on this website (it's the eleventh website in the past three days), he simply move on. He's exhausted. It's not worth the effort.

These experiences are not equivelant. And if you intend to seek out new perspectives and interact with Disabled people, you should know this and how to respect that Disabled person's boundaries, hesitencies and safety.

I'm not impressed. I think I'm going to head back to the Almanac now.

Almanac Intro

We start with an update on national regulations coming into effect across the globe, and new data showing that automated accessibility testing results have improved. This continues the trends that we've been seeing year over year.

Aspects of Accessibility, Measured

Plain language
The almanac basically says that while readibility and understability is crucial, there is no way to measure this.
Color contrast
There's been some improvement, but not alot. The Almanac notes that light, dark and high-contrast support improving over browsers has complicated the situation.
Zooming and Scaling
Sites that disable scaling or have a max scale of one have decreased by less than five percent over the past two years. Use of relative units for fonts is still not super prevalent.
Language identification
There's been improvement in this area, but I'm unsure how good axe is at actually ensuring the language given matches the actual language on the page. A side note: I recently came across a false positive with axe-core, labelling 'tok' a non-valid language attribute.
User preferences
prefers-reduced-motion is the most popular of the five queries they measured. We have ms high contrast mode, forced color, prefers-color-cheme-dark, and prefers-contrast.
Navigation
Focus styles, proper use of 'tabindex,' landmarks, heading hierarchy (which has actually gotten worse!), skip links, and tables are all covered under this heading.

I think I'll skip over the rest of this section for now, since it's quite extensive.

Back to Notes contents.

Tiny Case Study Update

Noted Saturday, November 9, 2024

Learned today that my Bakery project will probably not actually have an opportunity to be released, but I'm not exactly sad about that. It still loooks amazing and I can add it to my portfolio.

Today we're returning to the auditing project I have. Mostly working through it with a spreadsheet.

Back to Notes contents.

Case Studies & Deque University 13/15

Noted Thursday, November 7, 2024

The Bakery Project Continues

Yesterday on Weekend Wednesday, I spent a lot of time working on the HTML/CSS Flexbox-focused project and I finally got it to look pretty. I grabbed a set of really pretty fonts, and threw together a colour palette. I can confidently say that it looks pretty good right now, though the padding isn't consistant. I want to just quickly fix the padding and throw together the bare structure of a nav. I won't take more than an hour on this. I do have other higher priority things to work on, mostly my auditing case study and getting through Deque University courses.

Ended up using a full hour, but I am getting more and more used to nested flexbox shenanigans. I also learned how to make a circle: fix a width and height into a square, and set border radius to 50%. It isn't responsive yet, and I'd like to do a couple more things to pretty the thing up. But it's a solid start.

Tomorrow I want to design a nice background image to compliment the colour scheme to put in the nav. But that's for tomorrow. Now it's time for some coursework.

Images, SVG and Canvas

HTML map element

I last ran away from this because I saw the map element and I got scared. But the principals with this foreign element follow the rest of the direction for alt text. Make sure everything has concise and meaningful alt text where appropriate. If the area elements of the maps, name according to link conventions. Don't use the alt text as a place to describe things. An accessible description or caption might be a better place for that.

Deque also specifies that server-side maps should not be used if client-side maps are an option. It provides no rationale for this, and I'm not familiar with what a server-side map is, so this is kinda useless information.

longdesc is deprecated!

Back to Notes contents.

Case Study Day!

Noted Tuesday, November 5, 2024

I've all of a sudden fell into two projects. I'm auditing a site for my friend just to build my portfolio, and I'm also working on another website so that I can hone my skills with Flexbox before I get started on grid.

HTML/CSS Project Observations

I really don't know how to make things beautiful! I also need to keep better track on all the containers that set different widths. Flexbox makes responsive design pretty easy to manage, but this website has so many components and it's hard to update everything.

I think installing a nice font is the first step to make it not look so bad. I've also been undecided on what overall vibe I want it to be.

Was having trouble initially trying to overlay some text on a gallery of images, but I managed to figure it out by nesting the text in a div with absolute positioning.

Finding a good text size is also hard.

I've accidentally built this so that if I zoom in, it still looks about the same, but it looks broken when I zoom out. Hmmmmm.

Ack it looks so ugly, it's a bit unmotivating to work on.

Auditing Observations

I just need to get a good workflow.

It's now almost nine in the evening and I feel a little sleepy, but I think I'm going to push forward

Back to Notes contents.

Button and Deque University 12/15

Noted Monday, November 4, 2024

I had a indulgently restful Sunday. It was so lazy that I'm not even sure if it was energizing.

But what's a more energizing start to the day than another HTML element explainer by Heydon Pickering?

The button element, by Heydon

We start off with a history lesson. Progressive enhancement was the norm back in the days when JS was unreliable. Heydon uses the example of an image gallery where smaller thumbnail images led to full-size images. This could be accomplished either natively, or progressively degraded via Javascript.

Nowadays, Heydon argues that the state of JS reliance is even worse. Anchor elements as buttons are more common than semantic buttons themselves.

To finish, Heydon discusses four points to anyone who wants to make faux buttons:

  1. Use aria roles and states
  2. Emulate all other button behaviours (like Space key activation)
  3. Provide feedback by changing aria states upon activation
  4. Consider why you're doing this in the first place

Heydon actually ends up giving not a lot of information about the button element, but about people looking to emulate button behaviour with anchor classes (or god forbid, divs!) underappreciate how much amazingness is baked into the button already.

Images, SVG and Canvas

I have my Deque window resized and zoomed, and I'm noticing that their video player has a fixed width and isn't reflowing properly. Interesting.

Alt text

Just like most other elements, the hierarchy for accessible names goes aria-labelledby, aria-label, and then alt. title can also provide an accessible name, but behaviour varies wildly. I am reminded of Sara Soueidan's advice that title is only good for providing an accessible name to an iframe.

We start off reviewing the basics. All images have an alt attribute, don't be too long, don't say 'image of' or 'picture of,' set the alt attribute to null if the image is decorative or the text is duplicative.

Next, actionable images. As normal, provide control information on these. Deque brings up the unique case of a QR code. Though not programmatically actionable, one can physically activate it using a camera and pointing to it. So Deque suggests alt text that describes how to interact with it.

For the form input type="image" you can use the alt attribute. I didn't even know about this.

As for moving content, we have the five-second threshold for visual moving content, as well as 3 flashes for second for animated images, along with a link to the PEAT checker tool for epilepsy.

Interesting note for long descriptions for complex images: the accessible description should also be visible to sighted users, because everyone can benefit. This is a best practice.

This is also important because according to Adrian's post on accessible description exposure, the support for consistant accessible description is not there. Especially don't use it for dynamic descriptions. In this case with complex images, it benefits everyone if the description and image is located close to each other in the DOM structure. So even if the explicit programmatic association isn't made, at least it can be found intuitively.

There are two ways to give alt text to a CSS background image: aria-label (not great because it doesn't translate) and the visually hidden clip method. Ideally though, avoid doing this.

Images of Text

No Images of Text! I have just today run into an artist's website. They have used images of their own handwriting in their entire nav, and I'm wondering if CSS text styling could possibly approximate that effect. I wonder if a custom font pack could be made and downloaded and used on the site. iFontMaker might be able to do it. That does seem like quite a bit of effort, but it might be an interesting endeavor?

Image Maps

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Maybe it's Not the Weekend: Deque University 11/15

Noted Saturday, November 2, 2024

I tend to be most productive when I'm at a fast food establishment at some time with my charger plugged in. Today I have a couple goals. I want to do Deque stuff, and then I want to maybe look at some old websites of mine and start revamping them for accessibility. That way, I can add them to a 'portfolio' of sorts.

Responsive Design

Background

I see what Deque is trying to get at with the sentence, 'you could kind of say that everyone has low vision, when it comes to mobiles devices' but that kinda trivializes the experience of having low vision. I would phrase it as 'when it comes to mobile, everyone needs the assistive technology known as Zoom,' or something along those lines.

Three kinds of Screen Magnification: zoom provided by the browser, zoom provided by the OS, and third-party zooming.

Breakpoints and Media Queries

Media queries in CSS is something I tried to do a couple days ago and it didn't go over very well. Right now, my site has a very simple, mobile-friendly layout. But I do want to test out new layouts with flexbox and grid soon, so these are useful techniques to learn.

Deque elaborates that the breakpoints they give won't work for every situation. But it gives a handy table that adds watches as a value: max-value 320px. They encourage you to use viewport emulators to check for reflow and zooming, but say that you shouldn't test basically anything else with this. I do sometimes find it is easier to find the bugs behind things if we test keyboard-style navigation while in an small device emulator.

Images and Objects Reflow

Vector images will magnify without using quality. Using them, over rasting types, is ideal.

Use max-width: 100% on images to prevent horizontal scrolling on mobile. Another image hack is literally providing different versions of the picture for differently sized devices using 'srcset.'

For objects and plugins, prevent horizontal overflow by setting it's container to max-width: 100%.

Responsive Tables

So it talks about how for complex tables, you actually need to translate the layout to a single-column table thing for proper reflow to take place. And it gives and example. Looking at the code, it does use the 'content' property. As expected of a content property, I cannot highlight some of the text with my mouse. But Orca reads it! What?!.

I've asked the slack. I have no idea what is going on and it makes me feel very small.

Text Reflow

Okay. So my website is fine in terms of the breakpoints specified by Reflow. But it does break when I set it to watch dimensions. Right now, the max-width is set to a fixed value in the unit, 'ch.' I still want to keep that, but I want to try setting the main body to have a max-width of 100%. This seems to kinda repair it, but I do need to design a stylesheet that specifically gets rid of some of this padding in the case of a very, very small viewport.

Deque also has some tips for linear text reflow: let the main content fill the width of the viewport, eliminate multiple columns, eliminate floating objects, eliminate panning, and eliminate minimum and fixed widths.

Simplification

In order to fit all UI components that need to be there, Deque suggests that content can be simplified and reduced. If it is nonessential content, it can even be eliminated upon reflow.

Zoom Text

I have come across this idea of text-only zoom before, but it's been a little while. Ashlee M Boyer's Resize Text bookmarklet might come in handy here, so I'm linking to it.

Winding Down

And that is a wrap on that module! Huzzah! I'm browsing a little bit for fun.

Accessibility roles demographics by Devon Persing surveys accessibility professionals and asks basic questions about who they are and how they feel about their work.

ACR, VPAT, audit by Amy Carney disentangels a question I was too distracted to research until now. Good to see that Amy is still thinking about a11y. She's the one that pilotted 100 days of A11y, the site that partially inspired this learning journal.

Back to Notes contents.

What Do I Want To Learn?

Noted Friday, November 1, 2024

We're a month and a half into this journey. I've learned a lot more HTML and CSS than I initially planned on learning, but I still feel like I know very, very little. I do think I need to re-evaluate and set some learning priorities for the next couple weeks. Set some goals.

By November 18th, here's the Deque Univeristy modules I want to have had completed. By completed, I mean that I've reviewed the content and have written notes on them.

I also want to learn flex and grid, and to finish my shitty eraser component.

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 10/15

Noted Thursday, October 31, 2024

Starting a new module: Device-Independent Input Methods. Gonna make it a light goal to get through the entirety of this today.

The Mouse

Discusses that target size should not be tiny. Doesn't describe what tiny is.

Discusses that on custom components, cursor behaviour should mimic behaviour on equivelant semantic elements. Not WCAG.

Execute code when the person releases the pointer on the element, not when they press down on the element.

The Keyboard

Deque shows a custom span 'link' with tabindex set to zero and calls it a 'Good Example.' I mean, I wouldn't call that 'good'...

Have a good focus order.

Don't use positive tabindex values.

It is mandatory that focus indicators are there. It is best practice to provide an enhanced focus style.

It is best that focus indicators have some kind of outline, because background colour get smushed in WHCM.

Deque shows you a pattern for a custom link with JS and ARIA and is like, 'don't get too excited about this!'

Functionality must be available to keyboard-only users. No inaccessible tooltips, please.

Don't keyboard trap please.

Useful tip here. Deque says "For content added to the screen in reaction to a user-fired event, focus should be shifted to the new content." This would be applicable to my weird eraser widget. I didn't know you can use JS to set focus, but this could be another solution to my problem. It's not great though, because when I'm a keyboard-only user, I want to be able to just expand the menu and LOOK at it. Not necessarily to navigate all the way up there.

Another nugget: When moving or setting focus, the destination element MUST contain programmatically determinable text. I didn't know this. Currently, my skip link for my table of contents goes to something that is like this. So maybe I need to change this. I can't change it to skip to the first note without using Javascript. I might be able to set it to visually hidden text. But that isn't a great solution.

Am not super hyped as to how much Deque hypes up the ARIA APG.

Genuinely kinda confused how people make instructions appear only when keyboard focus is received. I know you can put it to show up with the CSS :focus, but :focus will flash whenever a component is clicked on. At least, in Firefox.

Touch Input

Tapping is equivelant to clicking, so don't make something keyboard-only. Don't rely on drag and drop, and don't rely on gestures. Not all mobile devices support them, and not all users can perform them.

A minimum width of 44px is good to ensure a minimum target size across web apps. On native apps, devices with 2x the pixel density need double the width. I wonder how one can query for this.

They also show an instance of 'visual padding that is not part of the touch target.' They accomplish this by applying padding to an li, and not to the a that is the actual target. This makes it look like the touch target is quite big, but is only actually confined to the text.

Deque identifies a couple of techniques that can mess with focus order for screen-reader users on mobile: .visually-hidden classes, aria-hidden="true", and onblur and onfocus. I am curious as to whether my aria-hidden hr separators fuck up TalkBack, so I'm going to test that now.

It seems that my skip navigation link doesn't work on Talkback+Firefox, but it does work on Talkback+Chrome. In terms of aria-hidden, it seems to be ignoring that fine. I need to test with the iPad when I get back home.

Voice Control

Can someone use a screen-reader using Dragon Naturally Speaking? Nuance provides Tips for vision-impaired users claiming it is compatible with most popular screen readers, like JAWS. But it gives a bunch of extra tips just in case peopple have problems operating it. I've never thought about this combo before, but it makes sense that it exists. There are Blind people out there who have restricted mobility, or RSI. The Vista Center for the Blind on YouTube offers a video titled 'Dragon Naturally Speaking as a JAWS user. I will need to watch this when I get home.

Interesting that Dragon actually does has some (limited) support for ARIA. I had read that there was zero ARIA support, so this is good to see. If this is the case, how in the world can a screenreader and Dragon work together? I have a hard time picturing how it all fits together.

Motion, Disappearing Content, and Transitions

Nice reminder about motion actuation and what that word means. It refers to motion that isn't a pointer gesture (like swiping) or just touching the screen. Rather, this is like shaking your phone to undo, or waving at the camera to get it it to click.

Don't make interactive content move or disapear.

For transitions, keep them to a minimum and make sure they aren't too slow. It can be quite bad for people with coMaybe You Don’t Need a Date Picker (added 8 February 2024 because APG added a date picker some time ago and I missed it)gnitive disabilities.

Deque says to reduce the use of parallax effects and to avoid them if you can, citing vestibular issues. What is a parallax effect?

From 'Parallax Scrolling' from W3Schools, it looks like it refers to an animation effect triggered by scrolling that makes the page look like it has depth. I think this is a situation of 'you'll know it when you see it.'

Module complete!

Interlude: A JS word counter

Okay I did not do a good job but it did give me what I wanted, roughly. This page now has about 20 thousand words worth of notes on it. Wow. That is not very much. Or maybe it is. I used to be a humanities major, my judgement is totally skewed.

Adrian Roselli Articles

I have some extra time as I sit around waiting for children to come trick-or-treating to my door.

1. Be Wary of Nesting Roles

The title kinda says it all. I didn't know that the interactive elements specifically couldn't be nested inside each other. I kinda figured people didn't do it, but I didn't know it was actually a rule.

This really makes me reconsider all the times I've seen people say that they just put tabindex=0 on random things to make keyboard navigation easier. And that is not good! Because by using tabindex=0, you've made something into a interactive component! And now you have poor nesting!

Additionally, ARIA roles like button and checkbox, etc, also make these things interactive. So you can definitely create some very nesty situations if you're not careful.

2. Uncanny A11y

This article describes a set of accessibility interventions that actually end up making the product less accessible than it was initially. The best part of this article is Adrian telling stories about seeing these in the wild. Some of these stories are incredible.

tabindex=0 on everything is our first culprit. Adrian has seen devs use it to 'provide keyboard navigation' on native tables. He also describes seeing some people intentionally use positive tabindex values to make the visual layout out of sync with the page order. Bone-chilling, psychopathic!

Our second culprit is some class ARIAbuse, in the form of providing hints by aria-label. Adrian gives one incredible example of an accessibility overlay widget that overrides every single link on the page to give 'accesibility help instructions' via an arialabel.

Weird alt text patterns is our third culprit. These are the classic offenders: overdescription, redundant 'image of' or 'picture of' or 'logo,' as well as AI-generated alt text. He also points weird punctuation things when images are used inline as a potential offender.

Pronounciation overrides are our forth. Just go look at the examples he gives, pure comedic gold!

Alack, aria-roledescription, I knew you would show up! Our fifth offender! Using aria-roledescription to provide hints is against the whole use of that spec in the first place.

Our fifth is siblings with our sixth offender: Providing unneccesary control instructions. This time, not just restricted to aria-roledescription. Using aria-label will violate 2.5.3. Even if you use a visually hidden class, you cannot write control instructions if you do not know the device. And you do not know your user, or what device (or combination of devices) they are using.

The ARIA APG is our sixth offender. Adrian says that he finds himself 'standing in front of rooms of 30 developers at a time on a twice-monthly basis having these conversations' about how the APG are not a standard, and aren't robust, and do not guarantee accessibility.

Back to Notes contents.

Today Might Be a Weekend

Noted Wednesday, October 30, 2024

Some Reflections

Today I'm thinking a lot about productivity and how to keep this whole endeavor sustainable, especially in these beginning months where my earnings are going to be slim to nil. In Weekend Wednesday (Youtube), CGP Grey makes the argument that taking a small break in the middle of the week, and then working through Saturday, is a way energy and persistance can be life-hacked to last longer. Today I might have done just that.

I watched a bunch of talks from CSS Day in Amsterdam that I understood only portions of. I napped. I did some bed-rotting. I did some free code camp stuff. It did feel very relaxed and nice.

I am slightly worried that every day is starting to feel like this. I need to rethink my timeline and strategy.

I just spent a few minutes giving my notes post-it colours and complimentary hover/focus styles. It is a weekend indeed!

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 9/15

Noted October 29, 2024

Typography

These are all based on Level AAA, so they won't be super applicable for auditing. Deque suggests a line height of at least 1.5 for paragraphs. So I changed it in my blog. I do think it improved readability somewhat.

CSS-Generated Content

Deque does address the CSS content thing, and says to use it sparingly. They recommend to set it to aria-hidden: true if it's decorative. I don't know how to do this on my hr so that it preserves the separator, but gets rid of saying all the pencils outloud.

Distraction: Videos

Accessibility and CSS by Sara Soueidan (YouTube) is very refreshing to watch. She brings up really good points about the content attribute, and also about interactive elements styled to be visually hidden. Also criticizes 'hacks' that lead to Label in Name violations. Soueidan states that aria-label will often not get translated while aria-labelledby will get translated. I thought I had read somewhere that support for aria-label was actually getting there. Also a REALLY great tip about the use of list-style none that I hadn't seen before. Lots of gems in this video.

Accessibility and CSS by Manuel Matuzovic (YouTube) is an older video with a similar scope. Has a lot to say about CSS grids which seem to have been a recent release 6 years ago. Brings up a really fascinating keyboard focus behaviour when grids contain things of varying heights. Slightly more beginner friendly, which meant a lot of content here wasn't new to me.

Hidden Content

Couple nuggets here that befit typing down here for memorization purposes.

When content is activated on hover, there must be a way to dis miss the content without moving the pointer away.

Double check that all hidden components

I'm a bit baffled by the next one. I'll post it in full for commentary purposes:

Visually hidden and inactive content MUST be hidden from screen reader users until that content is made visible and active for sighted users.

This is under "Visual Design and Colors (with WCAG 2.2 updates)" by Deque University. Uh. Doesn't the wording of this completely make supplying any content directed at screen-reader users completely illegal? What are they saying here?

Deque's use of the word 'must' indicates that this is required to be compliant with WCAG 2.2 Level AA. This just feels wrong. It would be so nice if Deque cited what SC were at play as they walked through the course.

Maybe I'm just misunderstanding English. This is my interpretation of that statement. If content is hidden visually, it must also be hidden from the screen reader user. Therefore, content cannot be hidden to sighted users and exposed to screen reader users. The .visually-hidden class is engineered to hide content from sighted users and expose it to screen reader users. Therefore visually-hidden breaks WCAG.

There is a third posibility, which is that this restricts .visually-hidden to only replicate content that would otherwise be available to a sighted user. However, we get into a ship of Theseus situation. It is duplicate content, but it is not the same content.

I can't find anything about this in the WCAG. I might be looking wrong. It feels shitty. I might have to go ask the slack.

Okay, I made a post in the slack. Let's soldier on in the meantime, and revisit later.

Interlude: FreeCodeCamp

FreeCodeCamp doesn't teach accessibility correctly. Here's an excerpt from their module on 'accessibility.'

To increase the page accessibility, the role attribute can be used to indicate the purpose behind an element on the page to assistive technologies. The role attribute is a part of the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), and accepts preset values. Give each of the section elements the region role.

You don't need these landmarks. Also, it's totally redundant. Section already has a built in region role.

It proceeds to tell you that sans serif is more accessible. That isn't WCAG. Yes, it's easier to read. But it's still not WCAG. It's also more important that the font size is larger. Grr.

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 8/15

Noted October 28, 2024

I can definitely design my eraser button to be better. Also it doesn't make sense that the eraser button does the opposite of erase content. It adds content. So maybe I should rethink the functionality of it entirely. I think I actually need it to be a toggle with aria pressed. But today we're doing more Deque.

Colour Contrast

For mobile applications, Deque suggests a contrast of 7 to 1. This reminds me that I neeed to fix how my site displays on mobile. Graphics needed to understand content need a contrast of 3 to 1.

The contrast of all visual focus indicators against the background must be at least 3 to 1. I actually don't know if my blog has this sufficiently. The default focus style is probably fine, but I've customized the focus style on some components and it might not be enough. My website's dark mode is atrocious.

Okay, I didn't know about the size requirement for the WCAG 2.2 focus indicators. My eraser button one hundred percent fails. It also does not have good contrast ratio between the same pixels in the focused and unfocused states. I need to restyle that. I actually need to re-do pretty much every aspect of that whole button.

Another component that fails this focus indicator is the focus indicator for page=current. I am actually going to try to fix that now.

I already use the outline attribute by default, so I simply made the outline bigger on hover alongside the red underscore. I think this counts as visible because the background contrast between the outline and the background colour of the document is greater than 3 to 1.

Reading about the minimum contrast on UI components made me hunker down and change my eraser's styling. I still can't seem to get rid of a faint blue outline that comes in. I think I need to manually remove the user agent default in order for that to happen.

Okay interesting. The size rule is actually a Level AAA criterion, not Level AA. Hence why this seemed totally whiplashy. Good to know.

I wonder if there is an equivelant to WHCM for Linux? Google doesn't give me the answer, but I stumbled into this talk by Eric Bailey on WHCM.

Interlude: Mobile

Set my viewport to accomodate mobile.

Back to Notes contents.

CSS Tricks 1/1

Noted October 27, 2024

It's a Sunday and I feel like learning some even more CSS, so I'm pulling up CSS Tricks and seeing if there's anything easy here that I can just look at.

Scroll Animation

This trick starts with Javascript. First, we get a percentage of how much the user has scrolled down. We get this by grabbing the integer for how much the user has scrolled (window.pageYOffset) and then dividing that by the height of the document minus the height of the window. We then assign this value to a CSS variable --scroll, and we get this function to run everytime the user scrolls by simply adding an event listener 'scroll' to the document and nesting this whole thingy as an arrow function within that event listener call.

That was a lot to start off with! Here's what I learned from dissecting that:

Let us move on to using this to value to do something. First, the author describes a simple animation that makes something spin infinitely in a 360deg rotation. I have never seen CSS animations before, let's look at CSS animation in W3C schools.

We use @keyframes as a way to create code for an animation and we can control this by settting states of the animation at different percents of animation completion, or by the key words 'to' and 'from.' We name the animation and assign it to an element via animation-name, where we can also set the animation-duration, and animation-delay, iteration count, direction, and fill mode, amongst other things.

Back to our scrolling animation. CSS tricks uses the animation shorthand property to make the keyframes animation called 'rotate' (which transforms to 360deg rotation upon completion of the animation) last one second, have linear timing function, and persist infinitely. This is the default state of the animation.

We incorporate the scrolling by pausing the animation using animation-play-state, and dynamically calculating the animation delay by grabbing the percent we had before and setting it into calc(), and fill-mode is set to both.

To make the animation robust, iteration-count is set to 1.

Let's pause here and reflect. What did we learn?

Interlude: Notes Structure

On this blog, Notes holds by far the bulk of the content. Right now, it's all hosted on one singular page. I like this for my own usability. I can very easily Ctrl+F search to find resources that I might have consulted in the past. But the page is starting to get a bit bloated, and I might want to offer alternative ways to interact with this page. Soon, my table of contents will be so big that it can't fit into the normal viewport. Javascript might be a solution to this. Maybe I could have it so that all entries are visible by default, but if Javascript is enabled, it will only display the first ten entries or so. Maybe twenty. And then it will load a button that will basically be like, show full table of contents, and then you can expand it that way. Maybe I'll work on that now.

So at the first pass, I've accomplished what I wanted to do. Now, to make it accessible. Interaction with aria-expanded is kinda weird. I also want to make it accessible to how I use the site, when I'm only using the keyboard. I think

So, the current result is definitely a work in progress. I got the thing to look a little bit like an eraser. But currently, the whole script depends on the new button and link being children to a ul element, which is not great semantically. So I will need to rewrite this by appending this all in the right places. But not now. Right now I want to get back to CSS tricks.

Back to Notes contents.

I want Pencils on My Blog

Noted October 26, 2024

Weird Pencil Craving

Here's my vision: a bunch of pencils on my website. Every place where there currently is an 'hr' tag. Which means I need to probably mess with the CSS of my hr tag. But I don't think this can be done with only that. This might require some additional work.

I have no idea if I did it right. I just injected pencils emojis into my hr tag via css 'content' and I feel like that should be illegal. But I like it, and I'm the primary audience of this blog, so they're here for now.

Back to Notes contents.

Random CSS Moment

Noted October 25, 2024

I've randomly styled my table of contents to look like a sheet of looseleaf. It isn't pretty or anything. I need a solution that uses more divs and flex whatever, but what I've come up with is pretty funny. And it looks kind of cute.

I learned about :before and :after for when you want to insert content. I also learned that :visited is pretty restricted. It's a shame. I wanted to insert little checkmarks after the visited links but I suppose it wasn't meant to be. I could do Javascript. Meh.

I think it would be cute if this blog had a scholastic theme. With little pencils and stuff. That would be mega cute.

Back to Notes contents.

Learning Speedrun at a Fast Food Chain

Noted October 25, 2024

I have an hour. Let's get this show on the road.

Articles from Jan Maarten

1. Socks, lies, and accessibility

Maarten demonstrates that accessiWasp shilling was occuring on multiple sock puppet accounts, posing to be legitimate businesses while actually being "referral sites." That is, not real. They had accounts on a bunch of platforms and even had phone numbers listed. Registered phone numbers. It's totally conspiracy-level material that Jan Maarten has found here.

These accounts all promoted the same boilerplate template in the name of Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2023.

2. Fixing keyboard focus on Ghost bookmark cards

Maarten describes that instead of Medium or Wordpress, they currently use Ghost to post content. Now, I don't really know how most people make websites. I have always just done everything in HTML from the bottom up and used external hosting. But here, Maarten provides a Javascript workaround for weird hyperlink placement within the hosting tool that Maarten uses.

It is kinda a relief sometimes to look at a piece of code and understand what it is it is doing. Maarten comments that the solution might not be valid on paginated blogs.

3. Moving Beyond the Bare Minimum

In light of being recently certified as a CPACC, Maarten mourns that these basic skills are not more pervasive amongst the Designing and Developer population.

I read Maarten's comments. I've touched on the CPACC a couple times in this blog, but my thoughts on it are quite complex. What does it mean to isolate accessibility expertise and to funnel it into people like me, who don't know crap about design and development? It is like making a leg operate separate of its body, is it not?

Here's a question I should pose myself: If there was a button that would make all Design and Dev people instantly WCAG-proficient throughout the entire world, how sad would I be when I pushed it?

This prospect of being an accessibility professional has brought such direction to my life. But it's been a rather self-serving endeavor. It has to be. That's what it means to embark on something as a career. Scary thoughts.

Various Posts from Steven Woodson

1. Practical Developer Tips for Digital Accessibility Advocacy

The article opens with four beautiful quotes from people I respect.

Be the squeaky wheel, is the first advice offered. I read this as 'Take up space.' I'm not good at that. I need to get better at that.

Celebrate attempts, as well as wins, is the second piece of advice. This makes sense. People love positive reinforcement. I would assume this is hard advice to give to people who experience ongoing access trauma.

Steven concludes saying 'when all else fails, do it anyway.' I read from this, 'learn to do it yourself.' Right not, I don't often do it myself because I simply don't know how. I need to learn all of the things!

I also appreciate Woodson's honestly about imposter syndrome in this article.

2. Various Posts on Becoming a Freelancer

Reading these make me actually want to cave in on myself. Because look at this guy! He's so professional, productive. He's talking to so many people! And he has such marketable skills. I feel like I have none of this. I actually don't think I have any of this!

3. IAAP CPACC Exam Reflection

He shares his flash deck and experiences. Very helpful resource to go back to if I ever decide to take this one on.

I am good at studying for exams. But I kinda would like to earn some money now.

Back to Notes contents.

Reflections on My First Meeting Ever

Noted October 24, 2024

I learned a couple things.

Competition

First, I learned that there may be more competition in this field than I anticipated. It's hard to believe. I can't find anything about people doing this kind of work on LinkedIn, so maybe the people I'm talking to are talking to people from Ontario or something. The most impactful moment in the meeting was when I said that I was able to deliver a product that a competitor might charge double or triple the amount of money for. I wasn't sure if that was the right thing to say, but it got their attention. In truth, I don't know what other people charge. They might be out here charging $100/hour. They might be charging $20/hour. It's hard to make statements about being cheaper than competitors if I literally have no basis from which to judge that metric.

Disposition

Secondly, I need to work on my professional persona. I come across as naive, young, and inexperienced. I need to come across like I know my stuff, and I didn't do that as much. I can maybe still preserve a slight dash of youthful innocence, but I need to sound more like I can get the job done. The odds are already stacked against me in terms of my positionality. God, sometimes I really do wish that I was just a straight white man with facial hair and a big ego.

Orientation

I needed this meeting to be a pitch meeting. But I didn't know that until I was midway through the meeting. I needed a pitch, and I didn't have one fully formed. I will be better prepared next time. It sucks, but I do need to take on the attitude of a salesman. I thought that talking about DEI and strategy would be enough. That was a naive assumption.

A Coincidence

The first job interview I ever did in my entire life, I was interviewed by my childhood bully who used to beat me up in first grade. The position was for a day camp counsellor.

Yesterday, I learned that the people responsible for this potential client's website are the same people that were in charge of the other website I audited one year ago, the first website I ever audited, and the thing that lead me into the field in the first place.

Somehow, these two coincidences feel very similar.

Self-Esteem

My self-esteem was absolutely crushed after this meeting. It was bad. I need to be able to bounce back faster from failures. Failure is a win condition. I need to be able to tolerate failure!

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 7/15

Noted October 22, 2024

So What Exactly is Button?

Buttons should be distinguishable from text, Deque says. But the example they give is four icons that have text to them. Two of these icons are a gear icon with the text 'Settings' and a envelope with the text 'Contact Us.' These look like links to me. But maybe some links are buttons. I am rather confused.

I would have thought that a button uses the button html element. Or a div or link using aria roles. But crucially, it activates a change of state on the page, right? Let's research.

A11Y-101's article 'Button vs Link' is basically what I described and conforms to my expectations. They elaborate that some CSS frameworks can steer developers into conflating the two of them and make the argument that buttons and links should be visually distinct.

Eric Eggert's article on Buttons vs Links has the headline: No, they are not the same. He notes a couple of cool behaviours. For example, buttons can be activated with a space, links cannot. Buttons don't come up on screenreaders when they fetch a list of all links. Buttons use a normal mouse pointer on hover, use a pointing hand mouse on hover. In terms of styling, Eric recommends some kind of visual distinction, but he isn't as particular. Descriptive text for functionality is more important for users to understand where they are going.

Stepping back for a moment, I suppose my concern stems from Deque using 'button' to refer to something that really does look like a link. It might just be an oversight. But I think if it is, it's revealing a commonly tolerated inprecision in language that probably perpetuates devs using the wrong element, because in common speech, the two are interchangeable. I suppose I'm being influenced by Adrian Roselli's super strict view on language precision in naming patterns and components. I'm sure there are more urgent cases that require addressing, but we can maybe put this on the waiting list.

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 6/15

Noted October 21, 2024

Scoping Table Headers

It is not enough to simply designate some row or col through table headers. You also have to establish which data that row or col is associated with using the parameter of 'scope.' All data also needs to have the scope of 'row' or 'col' to work.

This is bit confusing for me, so I'm going to try to do it myself. I've created a small spreadsheet in LibreOffice Calc, and I'm going to try to recreate it in HTML according to accessible standards.

Ugly Paper Crane Tally
  Cardstock Origami Tissue
Summer Tones Red 50 22 34
Orange 12 14 16
Yellow 23 2 12
Winter Tones Green 65 6 35
Blue 33 7 34

This is pretty ugly, so let's practice CSS styling and get this looking spiffy.

Pretty Paper Crane Tally
    Cardstock Origami Tissue
Summer Tones Red 50 22 34
Orange 12 14 16
Yellow 23 2 12
Winter Tones Green 65 6 35
Blue 33 7 34

Okay, it isn't exactly amazing but it works and now I know about cool CSS selector tricks like :nth-child and :first-child and :not(), so I think it was worth it.

Deque also shows how to associate certain cells with heading using the headers attribute, linking directly to each table heading's id.

Additionally, nested tables breaking table heading and scope functionality so do NOT use them.

Table Summaries

A table summary is meant to improve understandability. Deque orients this towards SR users, but likely everyone can benefit from this. It lists a couple techniques that can be used to support this: putting it in figure's figcaption (pair with aria-labbeledby on the table itself), putting it in the caption element, visually hiding it, and associating a description with the table through aria-describedby.

I'm incredibly suprised to learn that the "presentation" role exists. Harm reduction, I suppose.

Iframes

I know zero things about this. Should be fun!

Iframes need a title. I feel like this is definitely something I've looked past before.

Okay, I'm a bit bamboozled. There's a second page on titles that says the source page of the iframe must have a valid title (they're using MUST here, so it's WCAG). But we can't control some of these. It seems like this is specified because of JAWS behaviour. I'm kinda bamboozled, need to consult external sources.

The wording is a little bit weird, but in a different section of Deque, they basically say that this weird behaviour is mostly concerned with documents. So documents also need an accessible name, and it should ideally be the same one as you put in the title attribute just so experience is the same across the board. I don't have JAWS so I can't test to see if this behaviour still persists.

The thing about trying to preserve heading hierarchy between the child iframe and the parent website seems a bit strange. Say I was hosting a pdf file on my website, and just wanted to show a preview using an iframe. Should I mess with all the heading structure of the pdf just so that the iframe hierarchy structure should be presersved? This just leaves a really odd experience to anyone who uses the pdf file on its own, not in the context of the document. I'm sure it applies to some cases, but it feels weird.

Use aria-hidden="true" for meaningless iframes. I feel like there should also be a bypass mechanism.

Not-so-useful Semantic Elements

I've never in my life heard of the 'q' element before. I'm also so surprised that their section on blockquotes is so sparse. Adrian and Heydon's guides are much more comprehensible, and illustrate how complex this element actual is below the surface.

There's also a note on the code element. I am very bad at the code element. I write everything in raw HTML and the code element makes me backspace and double check that everything is oriented properly-- it's just a hassle. I genuinely think that if I insisted tagging every instance of code on the website by hand, it would make me want to not post to this website any more.

The pre element is suggested to accompany large blocks of code. I've also never heard of pre. I'm excited to see it whenever it pops up in Heydon Pickering's HTML elements guide.

del and ins should be used for strikethroughs and additions but must be supplemented with visually hidden text or some other kind of mechanism. The mark element is the same for highlighted text. Make sure visually hidden supplements are available for critical instances of these things.

Good Markup Practices

These were once all considered essential to meet 4.1.1 but now that's deprecated. Deque has preserved the pages relevant to this for posterity.

Interlude: Course Complete!

I'm officially done the Semantic Structure and Navigation course. I'm going to just zoom through one of the easier ones now on Accessibility Fundamentals. I've covered a good part of this material already through other courses, but I suppose this is also a good course to just zoom past and secure the certificate.

Disability Fundamentals

It's pretty exhausting that every single instance of a Disabled person using tech has to somehow make the additional point that the Disabled person has thus 'overcome' their disability in some capacity. And that metric is decided by their ability to participate in civil society. Why can't some non-extroardinary people real people feature in these examples?

This all just feel very outdated and like it was designed by people who don't know the field of Disability Studies, which is what my background is somewhat in. Much less Crip Studies.

COGA goes far beyond just the one example they gave of Down Syndrome. It also betrays the reality of most folks with intelectual disability. Most of them don't have any particular diagnosis beyond the state of 'intellectual disability' generally, which is defined via a IQ test. If there was any place to give a wealth of different examples, this would have been the place.

Meh. I have notes. They need to hire someone from the humanities to have at this course.

Distinguishing Links from Text

The wording here is a little ambiguous, whether it is necessary to provide a hover style that is not just a change in colour. It definitley is the case for links, I just don't know about hover styles. Is this WCAG?

Ian Llyod of TPGi makes the case that it is not a WCAG failure, as the hover is not seen as essential functioning. People can only trigger hover by moving their mouse to the required thing. Maybe if everyone was operating system with invisible mouses, this would be a requirement. But that isn't the case, so Ian doesn't think it fails any of the Contrast SC. Focus indicators, on the other hand, can fail Non-text Contrast.

In other words, I don't need to fix the Hover style on this website!

Deque also gives another friendly reminder that navigation menus are an exception for underlined links.

Interlude: My Website Needs a Skip Link

Rolling up my sleeves here. I've been putting it off because it looks scary. But I think it's time.

Back to Notes contents.

Access Trauma and the Aesthetic World

Noted October 17, 2024

Mastodon seems to be my newest way to pick up new articles to read up on. I am feeling more optimistic than usual, a client actually might be on the horizon. I am terrified. I feel the stakes.

It's apt that I somehow came across the work of Robert Kingett, whos articles I'll be doing commentary on today. I've been doing so much work on the technical side of things and haven't paused much to examine the more theoretical, justice-based aspect of what it means to participate in the accessibility space. I've been thinking about what it means to set a rate for my services. What am I profitting off of? How do I participate in this space in a way that is most world-building? How do I embark on my own internal accessibility journey as a Disabled subject myself, with many access priviledges that the people I am advocating on behalf of don't have?

1. Combatting Access Trauma

I suppose I am struck by a hence of devastation in reading this. There is nothing positive about access trauma. I think it mirrors how I've seen some BIPOC narrate their experiences of racism, and it mirrors how I've seen some Indigenous people narrate the experience of settler colonialism over generations. Kingett uses the words, 'relentless, unforgiving.' As if there was some sin on the part of the victim that brought this upon themself.

Access trauma. I don't experience that. When I audit stuff, I experience, perhaps a empathetic version of access frustration. I might say, 'Please, you should have known better. I don't know HTML and even I know this is clearly wrong.' I always have so much empathy for that person who designed the inaccessible website. I don't easily perceive the harm.

Perhaps it relates somewhat to this other feeling I've had recently: My ASL is not that great and it won't get great until I use it a whole bunch. Hearing people get all up in arms about the idea that only Deaf people are allowed to teach ASL, or that Deaf people have the final say on what ASL is and is not. But hearing people don't carry that access trauma that has caused ASL to flourish into the beautiful linguistic miracle that it is, despite all of the horrid persecution that has attacked. Perhaps ASL is beautiful because of that persecution. I'm rambling at this point.

I also think about the beauty of Protactile. And in reading Kingett describe the pursuit to "cultivate spaces where [they] don't have to battle access trauma," I think about how generative those results can be. The whole of humanity is better for it when Deaf and Disabled people live in systems that include them.

Reading my words back, I think the word 'beauty' might not be coming across in the way that I intend it to, and my inner Tokiponist is not satisified with that. I think it is good when people can take care of each other while living autonymously in kinship environments that can catch them when they fall. I would like to live in a world like that. And I see that happening linguistically in the languages of ASL and Protactile.

The feeling described in Kingett's article appears to me that it doesn't apply to people who only have temporary disabilities. I suppose my question would be: is access trauma characteristic of what it means to be Disabled? Could we perhaps even use this framework as a kind of litmus test? What harms come from exercising this idea?

In my own work as a communicator, how do I convey the urgency to people who are not Disabled? Are the words, 'relentless and unforgiving' resonant?

2. TTS Audio Description

I once was sitting opposite a very well-respected accessibility advocate in my city. She's potentially the most respected in the entire city. I was asking her about why the videos on a certain platform that she was responsible for, weren't audio-described. I had only started to embark on my journey. I was curious, but I was also a bit judgemental. She looked at me shamefully but confident, and answered as if she hated every single syllable that left her mouth. She described that during COVID, they had released a batch of videos that sought to educate Disabled people on the benefits of vaccination, and to prepare them for the rollout process. They paid an enormous sum to get these videos audio described. It took up a very substantial part of their budget. To date, these videos have 2 views each.

There was a very real financial argument for the 'undue hardship' placed on this organization to meet this requirement. It was a non-profit that could not even grant benefits to half of their full-time employees.

And this was my first introduction to the realm of audio description as an accessibility requirement and how hard of a barrier it is to meet.

Kingett's article describes the practice of Text-to-Speech Audio Description as being craft-less. Audio Description is an art of its own, and the offloading of such an art to AI scriptors and speech synthesizers does not appreciate this fact. It is not enjoyable. It does not create a beautiful experience, it creates mere compliance. It's sterile, flattenned, void of colour. "It's not inclusive," Kingett writes.

This is a good article for me to be exposed to. I understand this argument. I had never been exposed to the aesthetic experience of audio description before. As an artsy person, I resonate with this. I agree that it's horrifically sterile. It also makes me want to learn how to write audio description and to explore it as a medium of art unto itself.

For videos like that vaccine information one, perhaps the cost minimization that the AI tools could provide would be worth it. A person does not walk into a vaccine information video to be aesthetically pleased. But the other side of this is that AI makes mistakes, and I can't imagine how sensitive it would be in conveying such important information as a human could.

This does make me increasingly interested in learning at least the fundamentals of audio description. I already have skills like making transcripts and caption writing. It seems like a skill that wouldn't not be useful to have.

Blind audio description writers remind me slightly of Deaf interpreters. Deaf interpreters work alongside a hearing ASL-English interpreter to communicate to another Deaf person in the most reflects Deaf worldviews and visual communication culture. They often are called to interpret high-stakes situations when there can be no misunderstandings in meanings. They also may be employed in mental health contexts. Between blind AD writers, and Deaf interpreters, there is this idea that there is a cultural layer that only fellow peers have access to. When this cultural layer is involved, the level of inclusion spikes wildly. We're not really talking about sterile accessibility in this case, we're talking about something more.

3. Against Access, by John Lee Clark

I somehow also stumbled upon this piece in my Mastodon feed today, and it brings together ideas that I've been talking through from the previous two articles.

I'd prefer that you read the text again instead of looking at my summary here. John Lee Clark is DeafBlind and is one of the leading figures in the new Protactile movement. Protactile is a language that was developed by DeafBlind, for DeafBlind, and emerged naturally when DeafBlind started to meet together without using sighted interpreters. It is also a philosophy about making freedom where you won't be provided it, creating communities of peers, and prioritizing your own aesthetic experience instead of trying to model the hearing and sighted world within your own home.

In this essay, John Lee Clark describes an alternate to the paradigm of 'accessibility.' Instead of prioritizing 'how to make the thing accessible,' prioritize beauty within the constraints of the tactile world, and then run with that. For Clark, the sterility and near scientific hunt for accuracy that proponents of 'access' hunt leaves the emotional and beautiful world unrepresented in a series of highly 'accurate' but unappealing replicas. In order to achieve inclusion, Clark needed more than just translation. He needed a transformation of the information to fit the way that he navigates the world. He needed whatever 'translation' to accomodate the communication values that he has as a Protactile user.

I suppose reading this article, the conclusion I come to is that access is not enough if we want to create a world that is beautiful for Disabled people. It doesn't mean that the goal of accessibility is any less noble, it just means that it is egotistical to assume that it alone is sufficient to create the endgame. Accessibility, as John Lee Clark narrates it, cannot create joy. That is the work of some other goal. Maybe, full participation of Disabled people in society is what we need to fix this.

Back to Notes contents.

Articles and Shmarticles

Noted October 16, 2024

I have a lot of administrative things to do today, so my session might be very brief. Yesterday, tables did a number on my psyche. But it might just be the person talking. Faulkner re-linked a post on tables that they wrote back in May, so we're gonna start with that.

1. Steve Faulkner on Tables and aria-label

I haven't actually come across the words 'implicit' and 'explicit' yet, but I understood this concept when I had my 'aha! moment' regarding roles five days ago. Faulkner pairs this glossary with a couple of rules for labelling. Labels that are visible are better than labels that are hidden, and when present, should behave as expected (after checkboxes and radio, before everything else) and you should rely on native roles over any kind of ARIA implementation.

Hmmm, I don't know of any scenario where an anchor element with a valid destination should be given an aria-label that overrides text content. Maybe if it's an image, and you wanna override the alt text? Regardless, Steve indicates that this is a valid case.

Also discusses some potential misuse of the abbr (abbreviation) element that I am most certainly guilty of on another one of my websites. Very conflicted on how to provide an accessible experience for that one. Maybe some kind of hidden text thingamajig would help. It's a pretty unique case and it is particularly ideological. I'll deal with it later, back to Faulkner's content.

Good to note that aria-label is not supported in blockquotes very well.

I should start marking code using the code element, but I don't know where to start. Let's test it now. aria-describedby. I don't know anything really about how this affects different user experiences. DigitalA11Y discusses role=code in relation to how it presents on screen readers. The screen reader will read out exact punctuation. This is another diversion, back to main content.

Interestingly, it overrides the legend element in fieldset, and overrides figcaption in figure.

So it should NOT be used for images, which means the alt shouldn't be the accessible name. What's the point with it being okay to use on 'anchor' then?

Key takeaway from this article that I'm getting after looking over all the Things: just because you can add an ARIA label to something, and it is permitted under WAI-ARIA 1.2 specification, it doesn't mean you should do it.

2. Matzuo's Perfect Lighthouse Score with Piss-Poor Accessibility

I have heard rumours of this article, but today was the first time I saw it linked, so let's dive in!

A delightful read! A lot of these feel like 'gotchas' and I wanted slightly more real-life feeling instances to drive the point home that this happens all the time on real, breathing website, and not just a website that is optimized to be unusable. Though, I suppose this article is speaking to people who don't have a good idea of different ways technology can support alternative user experiences, so it has to target itself at the seeing population of mouse-users.

3. Cognitive Accessibility with Melissa Morse

Plain language is something I'm interested in, but the practice itself appears to be poorly defined. Sometimes using simple words is actually obfuscating, I know this as a Toki Pona speaker. Toki Pona requires a person to break down things into their basic components, but then it requires the interlocutor to really zone in and lesson to the relationships that join all of these very simple parts together. It's a process that can be quite mentally taxing. Of course, they're not talking about this when they say 'plain language.' But from my view, 'plain language' seems like something that is very easy to not get right. I wonder how the field of plain language specialitists sorts itself out. I saw a website of such a person the other day.

Interesting that within this first section of the article, Morse doesn't offer the idea of 'language summaries.' I'm a big fan of this.

A final comment is given to the increased focus of COGA in the latest WCAG. They're all triple A standards though. Unusual Words, Abbreviations, Reading Level, and Pronounciation. I don't know how people evaluate 'Reading Level.' What is a Flesch-Kincaid readability test? Oh my god, it measures syllables per word. I promise you, I am capable of writing some really freaking dense thing using minimal syllables. This is not a good formula. They're also not speaking toki pona. This seems a bit underthought.

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 5/15

Noted October 15, 2024

Back after a long weekend. Let's get cracking, lads!

Single-Key Shortcuts

Deque brings up the example of Gmail as having lots of keyboard shortcuts. I remember I was trying to use it a while back. Native keyboard navigation was not great. I couldn't seem to open any emails and I had to just enable keyboard for that. Some other applet thingies have a learning curve with keyboard navigation. Slack, I couldn't manage to figure out either. I have a low attention span and it just didn't work out for me.

Also on the topic of single-key shortcuts, I have a bookmarklet but I don't entirely know how to operate it. I should learn to do that at some point. Alright, I feel like I know what's up now. The wording on the ReadMe is a little bit weird, but I get it now.

Distraction: CSS

I'm literally spending so much time just styling my focus indicator in new interesting ways, and adjusting my colour palette. My hover indicator is cool now!

Tables

Tables should be named via caption or aria-labeledby and you shouldn't use weird spanned columns because it can be frustrating to navigate. column or row headers need to have to be meaningfully described in a th element and must have an appropriate scope attribute (either "row" or "col").

Back to Notes contents.

Deque University 4/15

Noted October 12, 2024

Showing the Current Page

I added styles in my main nav to indicate the current page, and I also added aria-current="page" to those same things. I feel like I don't typically notice when this feature is implemented, but I suppose I will start noticing now. I kinda wanna learn how to implement a skip link. And speaking of which...

Skip Links

I was reading the portion on Skip Links and became curious about how it related to SC 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks. Because the keyword that Deque uses for these things is 'should' instead of 'must.' Which means it isn't actually in the WCAG, and this was surprising to me! What else could bypass blocks possibly be solved by? First I read the official wording, SC 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks from W3C, and then I read through this Issue thread for 2.4.1 Sufficient Techniques. I totally agree that H69 should be removed as a sufficient technique. Actually I agree most of the sufficient techniques grouped under section 2 are very suspect. Reading through all the a11y people talking about this was quite illuminating.

Eric Eggert in particular had a couple notes about what it means to be listed as a sufficient technique. As did Steven Faulkner.

Something I am still curious about: What if your nav has like 3 items? Should a skip link still be provided? Is it needed? It really doesn't save that much time.

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Preparing for a Potential Client

Noted October 12, 2024

Have a potential client, and I've promised to send them a bit of a package for them to review prior to our first meeting. But I don't quite know the direction I'm going to take this, so let's start by taking a look at their website. If I know what the endgame is, I can prepare for it.

I'm typing this out here because I have major task avoidance regarding this, so here's to hoping it all turns out well. Watching Matuzovic yesterday doing preliminary audits was oddly motivating.

Here are some things I am noticing in the audit:

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Deque University 3/15

Noted October 11, 2024

span links

Nice to see the whole role="link" tabindex="0" pattern laid out for me because I would have thought that the role="link" would have been enough for the thing to receive focus.

Also good to see that horrid span Javascript not-link pattern called out as a 'Bad Example' in this text. I came across it on my own a week or so ago and was so horrified. I suppose the way this pattern could be vaguely improved is role="link" and tabindex="0" but it's just bad. Oh it's so bad.

Link label precedence

title will be overtaken by anchor text (including alt text), which will be overtaken by aria-label, which will be overtaken by aria-labelledby. This makes aria-labelledby misuse potential because it can override what would otherwise be considered 'normal' behaviour.

Visually hidden text

Okay so I've seen many snippets use some kind of form of this but I've never stared right into the logistics before. clip is used to make the text invisible and it looks like it clips out a shape from the..? What? Let's look into this with another source.

Whoa okay so according to theMDN web docs for 'clip', the feature is deprecated and replaced by 'clip-path.'

I am confused. What is a shape function? wow it can move?! What?!

Okay a lot of this doesn't apply to my use case. I am going to look elsewhere for examples of hiding text from sighted users and shoving it onto screen reader users. Let's peak in on an artical by Darren Lee.

Darren's first example illustrates where a mismatched aria-label can fail Label in Name and can prevent voice-navigation people from accessing your content. Darren eventually goes on to show a custom .visually-hidden class in CSS and uSo Deque gives this example that a role="navigation" shouldn't directly be applied to a ul. The rationale is that the "ul" already has a role as an unordered list and the navigation role would override that. ses both clip and clip-path to achieve it. Very confusing because there is not explanation of this code.

Time for a new article, this time by James Edwards at TPGi. And the question's answered, and many other things clarified. What we essentially do is make whatever content we have into a 1px by 1px square, and then use clip/clip-path to hide it. clip, being deprecated, is included in the pattern to support Internet Explorer. Technically, most browsers support a 0 width and 0 height on this pattern. But Safari's the one exception, so we can't just ignore them. And this fantastic article also links to a really great O'Hara article that advocates that we need to fix other things so this pattern is not needed. Edwards refers to .visually-hidden as a 'hack.' I think that's accurate.

Distraction Time: Live Auditing on YouTube

Found a set of videos by Manuel Matuzovic that have him walking through websites checking for accessibility features. It's really cool to see someone else do this in real time! And I am kinda excited by the fact that I know everything he's talking about. It's in German, but Matuzovic has captioned his videos and so the auto-translate works amazingly. Good stuff!

Consistent Navigation

I didn't know the whole rule applies to link text + destination. Makes sense though!

ARIA role breakthrough

So Deque gives this example that a role="navigation" shouldn't directly be applied to a ul. The rationale is that the "ul" already has a role as an unordered list and the navigation role would override that.

This helps me better understand what a 'role' is. Because of course as we all know, roles are already baked into HTML5 and when we use most native elements, we don't need any kind of ARIA role applied. Here's the kicker: because it already has a role. ARIA roles and the native roles are the same thing. I thought they were somehow different! AA okay but they aren't. They are the same thing. What does this look like on the back end?

Okay here's another breakthrough. People have been talking so much about the 'Accessibility Tree' right and I've really had little idea of what they meant by that. I of Course saw that whole Accessibility panel in the Firefox inspect panel. But I didn't ever.. look on the left side of the screen? I was just looking at the 'Name' column and not the 'Role column.' But it's all there. It's all there for you. It's so obvious. Oh my gosh I can't believe I missed this. Before people were talking as if it was so obvious to find the role of any given thing and I was so perplexed by How it was possible. I thought that people had memorized that oh, anchor elements have the role of 'link' and all these various things have these various roles. I thought they were getting all of this from the pure HTML but No. This makes So Much More Sense. Part of my 'Aha' moment can be attributed to this handy tool that lists HTML elements by accessible role by browser in a handy little chart.

Distraction Time: Trauma-Informed Design

Design for Real Life is free now! says Mastodon. It has a very impactful Chapter 1. But the lack of attention of accesssibility within the online version of the text has me thinking that while this is a text I should get to eventually, maybe it shouldn't be my priority now.

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Deque University 2/15

Noted October 10, 2024

h1 comments

Good to see Deque reiterate the 'one h1' guidelines. I previously had trouble sourcing this, I had seen it on a Yale guide but I had to hunt it over and over again. Interesting exceptions for overlays, and for blogs constructed similarly like this one. I think that the way that I've set this up is accessible? Right now, I have a 'back to notes' link at the bottom of every entry. I like this because I can navigate easy to the table of contents when I'm on Keyboard only mode, like I am now. I am unsure how convenient it is for screen reader usability. It might mess with the amount of links. It's also probably not great that every single blog post is smashed onto one page. It would be a bit beyond me right now to separate them out into distinct pages. Maybe I should reconsider this at some point, for ease of navigation purposes.

Why, oh why, is it not possible to navigate via heading on VoiceOver and TalkBack? Is there any particular reason that this function isn't supported? Is it not suitable? Seems suspect.

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Deque University 1/15

Noted October 9, 2024

I'm getting lazier about recording down the progress of my learning. I've started on the module titled Semantic Structure and Navigation. Here are some things I'm struggling with:

Accessing Landmark menu on Talkback

Language shifting

So, you're supposed to change the language whenever you have text in another language. Even on the word-by-word basis. To what extent does this apply? There are many loan words in English. Loaning is such a popular mechanism for word formation.

Here's some tangible instances that I can think of: Often, fans of anime will refer to that anime by its Japanese title instead of the English one. But they will write the title out in latin characters. For example, a fan of Attack on Titan might say: "I love Shingeki no Kyojin! It's my favourite anime. I think everyone should watch SnK." Do I have to put language tags around that? In theory, the title has just been loaned. It isn't even in the Japanese script. But they are unambiguously words that aren't in English. Do we put them in a span and tag them as Japanese?

What about websites that are teaching language? Do they have to tag every single instance of the foreign language with alternate tags? That can really add up.

What if the language doesn't have a two digit ISO code? What if it has a three-digit one? Does it make sense to provide a two-digit one as a backup if the screen reader doesn't support it? For example, Spanish is a very popular choice for rendering Toki Pona. How does that even work? Is there some kind of query you can do to check for that? I have no idea how that works out logistically.

Backwards compatibility

Deque recommends setting all landmarks to display as block and to use Javascript to preload tags that may not be support in Internet Explorer 8 and below. I would have liked for them to spell out IE without acronymning it, but whatever. I do like to see these examples of techniques that can be applied pretty consistantly and that really cater to inclusive design.

Who Benefits from Landmarks

Deque suggests that there is little benefit for sighted users for landmarks, or really anyone outside of screen reader users. That's why they introduce the ARIA roles and html5 elements as interchangeable. A correctly placed main does help everyone though. Are there ways to access these through switch controls? There really should be, that seems like a really good feature. A Google search reveals that other folks have thought the same thing and implemented it through an aptly named Landmark Extension.

Briefly, I'm reminded of what Heydon says how we will never know our users, and we should never seek to know our users, and we don't need to know them. We just need to design for the technology.

role="heading"

I don't like this but I understand why it's there. Is it possible to apply ARIA roles in CSS? Is that a stupid question to ask? Yes it is probably. I thought I read somewhere at some point that aria-level was a broken attribute in some browsers, but I completely forget where I read that and I might have literally dreamed it.

Note to self: a classic definition of a heading in plato's cave must have content associated under it. Or else it ain't a heading.

Technique for New Window Indication

The idea behind this is to use describedby to point to a piece of text that is both .visually-hidden and aria-hidden that is then put onto an anchor element. I'm ever skeptical of aria, so let's look at other sources to see whether there's issue with this kind of implementation.

Adrian's article on aria-describedby features a lot of video evidence as to how this interacts with different engines. And it's not supported universally in all contexts. Adrian recommends to not rely on this for critical information. In the thing suggested by Deque, this is probably fine. The information is not critical, it's unprescence doesn't fail a WCAG criterion specifically. But it is not great. Adrian also links to some other articles and I'll take a peak at those too.

O'Hara's aria-describedby article is from 2018, but it's still clarifying. aria-describedby is only used in interactive areas, with some edge cases. Scott makes a similar conclusion that while the feature is very useful and good, relying on it critically and uniquely is a no-go.

Also nice to come across aria-described and just as normal, it's Safari that's dragging everyone else behind. Catch up, Apple.

Deque also suggests that outside websites should be noted externally. Disapointing that there's no easy icon or whatever that shows this.

Links must be visually distinguishable

Cue Heydon and their 'Underline your fucking links, nerds!' or whataever it was. If it is in an obvious navigation then it doesn't count. That was the one piece I was missing.

In terms of people who don't want to underline their links, uh contrast ration of 3:! is pretty drastic.

Weird Question

With aria-desrcribedby and aria-described being in such states they are in, is it permissible to fuck with an image so that the image doesn't appear but the alt text will appear on hover if there is a screen-reader user? That doesn't seem right but I wonder about how bad it could possibly be.

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WAI-ARIA. Take #2. Part 2.

Noted October 8, 2024

Small Update

Applied for the scholarship to Deque's prep courses for IAAP and WAS. That will give a lot better structure to my learning than has been given so far. Working with freeCodeCamp is okay, but it's very not great when their recommendations are not accessible or best practice, and that happens a lot. Completing those modules will also just be a way to list the courses I complete on my portfolio directly. I don't need to take IAAP, or WAS. I hope I get it!

Don't Use ARIA Menu Roles for Site Nav

And we're back and learning about how to take the First Rule of ARIA and put it into practice.

We're also learning about the Second Rule of ARIA, which I am less familiar with. Do not change native semantics. Maybe this is otherwise worded as don't use an HTML element in a way that makes it appear as something else and it becomes confusing as to what it actually is?

Adrian clarifies the intention of the menu, menubar and menuitem ARIA roles. They are intended to be used to act like a desktop application. Like VScode, for example, has a menu bar in the top. web applications aren't like this. The vibes are different.

Adrian also clarifies that the HTML5 element nav should be used in most scenarios over the ARIA role 'navigation.' This ARIA role is the role

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WAI-ARIA. Take #2 Part 1.

Noted October 7, 2024

ChatGPT, I guess

This helped. I asked it to really, really dumb it down for me and to focus on it's relation to SC Name, Role, Value. Basically, WAI-ARIA helps in the design of some advanced components that don't have native HTML equivelants. It can also be used for live region alerts, when designers insist on using placeholder= as a label, for Icon-only buttons. Most of this can be revealed using Devtools when auditing. I'm going to try to look at Roselli's articles listed under ARIAbuse.

ARIA Grid As an Anti-Pattern

Absolutely love it when Adrian puts together some kind of video demo with captions and everything. I know how to navigate via keyboard now and so I understand the demos more. This was a good window into seeing how the authoring practices guide might get things wrong sometimes. Also, don't use grid unless you're trying to recreate Excel.

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Neurodivergent Learning

Noted October 4, 2024

Reflections on Yesterday

Yesterday, I wound myself all up and got into shutdown mode. I closed all my tabs, turned off the 'limit' timer on TikTok and YouTube, wrapped myself in my weighted blanked, and took time to myself. It's hard to explain the amount of factors yesterday. I'm reminded about the article about spoons and neurodivergency, and I felt that in action yesterday. Some unexpected things happened yesterday during the day, and when my touchpad's settings got overrided by a ghost yesterday, I completely broke. And as a result, I don't want to learn about WAI-ARIA today. I need someone to tell me how to do it. The video I tried to watch wasn't helpful. I still feel so ashamed. It's such a little thing but it feels like everything. So we're going to be kinder to ourselves today. And we can get back to WAI-ARIA on Monday.

Articles

James Edwards on Associating Inputs and Labels

I recently was taught the explicit+implicit pattern in freeCodeCamp, so it was good to see that they were doing something right. It was a surprise to learn about implicit association, but I suppose it makes sense, though why doesn't Dragon support this? To be fair, Dragon doesn't seem to support many things. Does it even support ARIA? I was reading yesterday that it might now. But that article was from a while ago, should check again.

On Motion Actuation: Don't Rely on Sensors

I basically know everything here already but I was interested in this article because I never heard the word 'sensor' used this way before. Fascinating. How do devices actually sense gestures like shaking the device? Is there a little eardrum and eardrum fluid in the device? Is it a tiny wee ball that rolls back and forth? Not to mention, how does the device know that I am holding it upside down?

Accelerometers measure the force of acceleration on itself at any given time and can therefore determine the angle it is held at based on how the acceleration changes, unless the device is in free fall.That's how devices know where they are oriented in space. But it can't tell what direction it is pointed, that is determined by magnetic sensors that are pointed at Magnetic North.

Making Maps Accessible to Screen-Readers

This feels like a hard task!

I'm confused. So hmm, maybe I walked into this under a misapprehension. The title of this article is not 'Making Maps Accessible to Blind People.' Which would be a different conversation, I think. How do we make location information and complex directions accessible to Blind people? A map is such a visual medium, would a medium change be necessary here? The article is short and doesn't answer this question.

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It's (not) WAI-ARIA time.

Noted October 3, 2024

ARIA is the scariest part about all of this. I'm actually very nervous to get into this. I don't know where to start. I have the WAI-ARIA Overview page open in front of me. This is honestly very scary and I haven't even started it. Let's read the introduction. Or something. Let's just start taking notes. Can't keep procrastinating and stalling by typing poetry here. Or maybe I can. Who reads this? Who waits for me here? Are you waiting for me to give up this facade, to tell you some new information, are you only here to mock me?

How do people even pronounce UAAG? Is it a groan? Because that's how I feel right now.

I am done the page. I don't understand some things. Does 'rich' Internet applications mean that it was funded by more than one dollar? How is it that most form controls are readonly? Don't you have to.. use them? What? Also, when I'm using a keyboard I have no freaking idea how to access these secret region-marked navigation techniques. Are they just referring to screen readers as 'keyboard-only users' here or what exactly is going on? What page do I click on next?

Looking at WAI-ARIA 1.2 actually gives me a panic attack. What the hell is this?

Deep breaths. I'm so disoriented that my touchpad is behaving incredibly weirdly and whenever I disable my touchpad using my keyboard shortcut, it just doesn't get disabled. WTF. Also Slack just kicked me out because I use Firefox ESR. What is the world even coming to?

I'm going to watch a video and swear to god if this is trash I'm going to go and make myself tofu.

I AM EXTREMELY DISORIENTED. WHY IS IT NOT LETTING ME DISABLE MY KEYBOARD.

Here's the deal: all of my keyboard settings have been completely overriden by a fucking ghost. Two finger scrolling is disabled. The speed is all innacurate. It's all wrong. It's all wrong! And that would normally be fine because I can now navigate by Keyboard but it's NOT LETTING ME DISABLE IT. And it doesn't get disabled when I'm typing so FUCK!

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Scatterbrained Notes

Noted October 3, 2024

Haven't updated here in a few days, but I've been caught up in freeCodeCamp, as well as with case studies. Here's some random things I've learned about during that time:

Widgets, in a Squarespace Website

I was on a squarespace website that looked promising. It was fairly simple, with apparently no form elements, so I thought it would be a doozy. And then the widgets. Two widgets injected into the native site: one of which could not be tabbed onto, and the other was hell to operate by keyboard alone. I didn't even get to evaluating these widgets thoroughly, I was so perplexed by how widgets are made and sold and incoporated into these otherwise okay websites. One of them, a take-out ordering system that didn't receive focus, was a span element with two scripts underneath it. It seems it was the scripts that button-ified the span in some way, but that wasn't available within the HTML markup, so it bamboozled me. How could it be a button, if it was just a span with no visible anchor element?

This got me thinking. Initially, I would have figured that the fix would be simple: just add a tabindex=0 to the span. But if the anchor element was made within the Javascript and if it had all of the styles applied secondarily, would that even work?

I tried in the Inspector and it worked. So I was confused. Because surely, if there was no focus there, the Javascript must have somehow overruled the tabindex to be -1 or something. Something must have been done to override the native anchor behaviour. Unless.. maybe there are ways to make links that don't require anchor elements?

And then I found this horrible anchor-less span link pattern hosted on a website with some of the worst tab indexing I've seen in my life. Now, I am not so proficient to decipher whether this is the exact kind of pattern that this widget-maker used to get their span to become a link, but just knowing that this is out there makes my stomach churn. This should honestly not exist.

The same widget-maker also manually set all of their tabindexing using positive values. Seeing that in the wild was honestly wild.

I don't want to comment much on the second widget, a reservation booking platform, because being that keyboard navigation was neigh impossible, it's obvious that whoever made this website did not account fo accessibility when choosing a vendor.

Smaller Note on Text Contrast

On a couple websites, there was a bunch of floating light-coloured text against some kind of busy background. I was thinking about ways to remediate this. My first instinct is to put a solid border around the text itself.But that isn't a property that exists in CSS, right?

Here's how to add an outline to text, using two different properties. -webkit-text-stroke is one option, but it doesn't have great interoperability. text-shadow requires a little bit more work but it has better support. This should be a strategy that can remediate for contrast requirements across many of these websites. I hadn't noticed it before, but Adrian Roselli uses this a lot on his blog.

My brain is going, "See? A11y isn't about what we have to subtract, it's about what we add to our plate!" and simultaneously I'm thinking of an example of a nav that had something like 120 links in it that I saw the other day. Certainly we can cut out some of those links, right? Shift left, shift left, shift left.

Ethical Dilemna

The most accessible website that I found during these past few days was built using a website builder and hosting service that is owned and operated by colonizers of Palestinian land. Finding that out was like a suckerpunch to the gut. I am really comforted by people like Heydon Pickering and Steven Faulkner who champion progressive values within the accessibility work, and I especially like the tagline that Heydon has on their website: "I do not work with surveillance capitalists or religious organizations engaged in proselytization."

I need to be so vigilant and selective about which organizations I approach when all of this gets off the ground.

Two minutes later update: I just found another website made by the same hosting service and the accessibility is NONEXISTANT. So glad to see this!

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You're (Maybe) Not Going to Learn A11y at FreeCodeCamp.org

Noted September 28, 2024

It's a bold title, I know. And it's also probably preemptive. I started on the 'Responsive Web Design' course offered by FreeCodeCamp and I see not great accessibility practices. Accessibility is an essential criteria, why not teach good accessibility practices throughout? Why are you recommending these contrast things that kill WCAG Contrast (Minimum), why are we suggesting to use target="_blank" by default, why are we putting alt text on decorative images?

Like, I understand. This is an entry level course to people who have never done anything computer-related before in their life. And I see the eight or so modules down, there a big thing dedicated to 'Web Accessibility.' But if we are talking about shifting left, we need to integrate these things from the beginning. How hard is it to just mention, this is a decorative image, so let's set the alt text to null? Even mention that WCAG exists! Gosh sake.

It's so frustrating because the course does bring up the word 'accessibility' more frequently than you'd think. But it doesn't actually teach WCAG-compliant practices, much less best practices. Of course, I'm only on the third module. It just feels icky.

I am curious, is the website freeCodeCamp.org itself WCAG 2.2 AA Compliant? I would be surprised if it is. I'm now used to expecting inaccessibility by default. I don't need to get this heated. Slow and steady wins the race.

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Inclusive Checklist(s)

Noted September 26, 2024

I happened upon Adrian Roselli's Basic Custom Control Requirements and Heydon Pickering's Inclusive Web Design Checklist. I thought I'd read through them and make notes!

1. Roselli's Checklist

Interlude #1

So I just set my focus styles on my site to be a nice contrasty orange box. Not sure why I chose orange but Orange Shirt Day is upcoming, so maybe that's why? I also got curious abouut titles. I was under the impression that titles are just the name of the site, but actually they should reference the specific page. Makes sense. Dunno why I thought otherwise. I'm looking at Technique G127, but is there any best practice guide that is more specific?

Jackpot. A best practice guide for title by Amber Hinds titled Every Page Needs a Meaningful and Accurate Title and it looks like it knows what it is talking about. I love this article, it's so specific! Big Takeaways: need to avoid duplicate titles. I also need to include the website name, and an emdash is an acceptable solution to tier them. I never even thought that this would be an important consideration for results appearing in the 'history' tab. I feel empowered to set proper title attributes for everything in my site! I really should do this across all the sites I author content for.

Interlude #2

I was checking a site for contrast and was looking at the APCA, because Seirdy recommended it. I looked through the slack for more guidance, backread the logs, and then concluded by reading Eric Eggert's entry, WCAG 3 is not ready yet. WCAG 2 contrast does need to be reworked. What is the best way it should be reworked? I think Eric makes some very good points and critiques of APCA rollout. In an ideal world, way more resources would be dedicated to W3C and to a11y research so that this area can be researched more. Even the APCA guy admits, that there needs to be so, so much more research. But in the meantime, I'll try to make my site support a dark mode that has enough luminescence so that the content is perceivable.

2. Heydon's Checklist

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What Skills? (Scrap)

Noted September 25, 2024

Up until this point my notetaking sessions on this blog have been pretty thematic, but this actually doesn't capture the process that I've been taking these days of staring at the A11Y Slack and delving into various article that link to these articles and those articles. I've not made notes on a lot of those articles that I scanned. I want to take two steps back today and actually focus on a strategy for learning going forward.

I need to do more case studies. I also need to take a skill-build approach. Here's some skills that would be nice to just have, taken from Donna Bunguard's presentation The Myth of the Accessibility Unicorn.

What doesn't feature on this list is equally notable. The approach I am taking is more centered on inclusive design than on what this list suggests. WCAG knowledge and compliannce awareness does not constitute the body of knowledge that one needs to understand the range of user experiences that might occur from different patterns. Screen reader proficiency, well which one? Mobile testing, well which one, and what kind? There's also nothing about document accessibility here. I think some basic knowledge of this is needed.

It also doesn't say things like 'good html,' or 'ARIA' or Javascript. You need some familiarity with this to assess why patterns are doing what they are doing.

I've been obsessed with Heydon Pickering's content recently. Here's another great idea from another one of their articles, What the Heck is Inclusive Design? It reads: HTML is a toolkit for inclusion. Their stance that 'universal design' and 'inclusive design' are the same thing, except 'inclusive' is more honest, seems inaccurate from my understanding. It seems like they have two different ideological positionalities. Inclusive design feels a hell of a lot more feminist and internationalist, than the idea of universal design does. But I'm going off of vibes right now. This is not scientific evidence for anything.

Maybe I need to write a skill checklist or build like a report card, or self assessment for myself. I'm saying this because my current approach is unfocused, just as is any initial hyperfixation dive.

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Blog Notes: Adrian Roselli Edition

Noted September 24, 2024

Today I'm taking some peeks around Adrian Roselli's blog, that gives a whole wealth of information. I want to read it like a textbook. My goal for this will be notes on five articles.

1. Progressively Enhanced HTML Accordion

2. Keyboard-only Scrolling Areas

3. Avoid aria-roledescription

4. Stop giving control hints to screen reeaders

5. Don't use Tabindex Greater than 0

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Day Two of Keyboard Only

Noted September 22, 2024

I didn't think I'd come up with another entry on this so early on in the process. I intend to experiment with Keyboard-only for at least the next week, maybe even beyond. I type an embarassing amount of search queries ending with 'keyboard shortcut' into Firefox. I often forget about how to do the things. It's obvious that the learning curve is great.

But this entry isn't about complaining about the learning curve. It's about the fact that so many of the applications that I want to use are no longer accessible to me. Yesterday, I mentioned that I can't share my screen without at least one manual touch on my laptop screen. Today I found that Roll20 (used for Dungeons and Dragons) and Colonist (a Catan spoof) both have no support for Keyboard-only users.

It was naive of me to think that both of these platforms which are international in nature and very dear to me, would have this kind of support. I think I was operating under some kind of idea that all the websites of companies local to me were inaccessible and/or had little keyboard support because my area is a bit of a brain drain. But Roll20? That should've been a no brainer. I was so naive. The site is unusable.

There are a few keyboard traps that I've had to navigate out of. F6 is helpful, but surely there are more sophisticated techniques. I use Ctrl+F Esc+Enter a lot to get to links that I can't otherwise get to. That is certainly new information. I now better understand what the P2: Workaround available was describing in this earlier post.

I do get angry when it isn't accessible. I don't know that I necessarily have the right: I can enable my touchpad at any time, and my screen is a touchscreen. I want to meet people who actually use this approach with their tech. I haven't yet found a blogger that is a Keyboard-only user speaker on A11y issues. I should do that as soon as possible.

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Concerning Focus Indicators

Noted September 21, 2024

Failure descriptions for a non-visible focus indicator are described twice in the WCAG 2.1 documentation: Technique F55 and Technique F78. Technique F55 deals with a situation where the focus comes onto the element, and then is removed for whatever reason. Technique F78 deals with styling that leaves the focus indicator invisible, for whatever reason.

I do like a consistent looking focus indicator. I don't like it when it changes forms on me. But that's just a personal preference. It's good to know that a consistent indicator isn't actually prescribed according to WCAG.

But what even causes things to not be able to be tabbed onto?

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Entering my Keyboard-only Era

Noted September 21, 2024

I just disabled the touchpad on my device. I still have the potential to cheat (my laptop is a convertible and has a touchscreen). But it seems like a good idea to become fluent in a variety of different kinds of interactions with devices. Keyboard-only with site seems like an ideal first pass.

My first anxiety: I don't know how to open new applications! I have VSCodium open, Firefox with some tabs open. How do I open a new application?

I'm using KDE Plasma, so I'm looking at this video titled Challenge: KDE Plasma only using Keyboard! The YouTuber here is struggling to access stuff in the bottom right of the screen. This video isn't really a tutorial but a proof of concept, so let's just go to the KDE Documentation. I have now learned about the Meta key. I can open new apps with ease!

Holy shit we managed to navigate to the panel using Meta+Alt+P! This means I can use the custom power consumption program that I would have literally no way to navigate to otherwise!

Next task: adjust the spacing. Currently my windows are split right down the middle, I want to adjust the split in my screen to the left.

I have my System Settings Shortcuts up and am looking at the shortcuts associated with KWin, the Windows manager. There is a thing to 'edit' the tiles, but it doesn't seem to accomplish what I want it to accomplish.

Unfortunately, I'm having a lot of fun. But Keyboard-only breaks frequently on KDE. I have to go back and forth just to get focus back, it seems. But I have resized my tiles, successfuly! It just requires Alt+F3, tabbing to 'resize.' Perfect!

I have also discovered caret browsing. I am dying here, this is so amazing! I can now select text just by shifting, after enabling F7 of course! Good stuff! I also want to know how to do it without caret browsing, by using a combination of Ctrl+F and pressing the Esc key. Afterwards, things can be selected via Ctrl+shift and arrow key navigation.

I do appreciate all of the little hints that Google gives me. Activating Discord is also pretty daunting. I am curious to see how much I really can do with just a keyboard. So far, the only thing I truly found myself unable to do was streaming to Discord. The windows selection app by KDE, called 'Portal,' didn't let me tab to select which part of my screen I wanted to share. I'm going to try a couple more times, I might just have to mess around with it a little.

I took a screenshot of the issue and was trying to edit it using the file viewer in KDE called 'Glenview.' Unfortunately, I'm locked to the bottom left corner of the Glenview application and can only increase and decrease the zoom on the photo. I can't access the editing tools.

I'm not surprised that it is KDE features that seem to have the least support. I already know what a nightmare Orca is, so it is unsurprising that this is also not so user friendly. Hold on a minute, I have just found a work-around for screenshot cropping. It turns out the screenshotter does have some support, so let's get this arranged.

The file manager, Dolphin, is not so intuitive either. Perhaps I'll table this and attempt to put the screenshot in tomorrow.

I've somehow messed up my windows proportions and now they aren't tiling correctly. Alas, the learning curve!

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To Become 'Qualified'

Noted September 20, 2024

Most people who go through something like the hundred days of A11Y or who take on careers as consultants take on the full CPWA: First starting with the CPACC, and then going in on the WAS.

I do think the CPACC will be worth getting within the next year, and maybe I ought to start targeting preparation at that. There is only one other person in my city that has CPACC. I also don't think CPACC will be very difficult to get. I have covered a lot of these kinds of things in my previous positions. But I do have some hestitation.

Part of me is already disillusioned, based on Adrian's post lamenting the state of a11y professionals and specifically calling out IAAP for catering to overlay companies. This does make me want to not give money to them. There is also Craig on the exclusionary nature of pushing the IAAP as a given. I see this and feel this and it makes me want to learn everything I need to learn instantly.

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First pass at a Tier List

Noted September 20, 2024

I'm taking inspiration from my notes on Eric's blog yesterday to note down or hierarchize what accessibility failures are of first and ultimate priority. Eric offered four criteria to start with: Pause Stop Hide, Three-Flashed Threshold, Audio Control, and Keyboard Trap.

Framework 1: Five Priority Levels by Intuit

After a bit of scrounging around on Google, I've found this source by Intuit that lays out 5 tiers of priorities, titled Setting priorities for accessibility issues. Here's what their system looks like:

P0: Non-interference requirements
This level cites the four same criteria that Eric sites. This can totally break the user experience and is the most likely to complete obstruct user flow. Major legal concern.
P1: Interference/impossible to use
This tier also encompasses critical failures that are not covered by those four non-interference as cited directly by the WCAG. This includes custom elements and accessible names (non-perceivable) that interfere with user flows. Major legal concern.
P2: Workaround available
This level describes instances where the user can still manage to get through the user flow by deducing the surrounding information, or using sophisticated keyboard control to break through a 'soft keyboard trap.' It's where there's clearly a barrier there and it *should* for all accounts and purposes, be considered broken code. Yet there is just enough stuff going on around that the product is still usable, by the hair on one's chinny chin chin.
P3: Tedious/Annoying
Lisa puts things in this category like broken Skip to Main Content links, redundant information, custom components that require a bit more extra thinking to use than if the semantic equivelant was used. I know the author's intention here and I see the caveat s they put in the desciption. But hell, Skip to Main Content can be very, very tedious for switch control users. And I'm already seeing an instance where the Skip to Main completely obscures information from the screen reader user.
P4: Non-Barriers
This describes things that either fail the guidelines but don't actually interfere with any user flows (the example here is given for improper labling of elements that are actually never interacted with by the user) or instances that take away from what would be best practices.

Lisa Rathjens, the author of this post, gives plenty of caveats while outlining this framework. I've also inserted some of my issues with it. It's incredibly pragmatic and does not at all lean on best practices accessibility, or digital accessibility that falls beyond WCAG's scope. But I think it can be adapted to fit a more best-practice centered-model. This is a good start, I'm curious to see what else is out there.

Framework 2: An A11Y Issue Prioritization Matrix

The author of this prioritization tool talks in terms of cost-benefit analysis and project management, so I can already tell that this framework is not going to sit as well with me as Lisa Rathjens' framework. But also, the audience of this tools appears to be slightly different.

This matrix is proposed as a communication tool to motivate project managers and the people actually doing to remediation to feel that the work is worth pursuing. I struggle with this framing because accessibility should be considered a baseline and these arguments run counter to creating a larger culture that considers disabled clients to be as worthy of reaching out to as any other client. But I also understand that the BBAs and BAs live in two separate worlds, right now. Enough of this tangent. Let's look at the four scales that the matrix ranks against:

  1. Extent/Frequency of occurence. How many pages within the website does it impact, is it present at key user flows?
  2. Size of audience impacted. I don't like this one, not going to lie.
  3. Impact of the issue. This is equivelant to non-interference/interference/workaround/tedious, except this framework only lists the levels of 'high, medium, and low.'
  4. Estimated cost. Also don't like this one.

The matrix then creates two values: Value for money, and Political Risk Aversion, by multiplying different values across these four matrices.

I actually don't have a lot of good things to say about this framework, the word choice here is unfortunately too pragmatic for me. It doesn't think enough about impact and it wants me to not prioritize issues that only a minority of users are going to encounter. Reading this over, it seems like it runs counter to the principles of inclusive design. Additionally, best practices seem to not feature at all in here.

Framework 3: Deque's Stragic Planning tool for Accessibility Prioritization

This framework is from 2016 and is hosted directly on Deque's blog, authored by Glenda Sims. It is directly addressed to clients of digital accessibility consultants, and to project managers. So it has some of the same framing problems that I brought up in the second framework I analysed.

This is also set up as a map, but this one has two axis. Front and center in the chart is 'User Impact.' This is a relief to see. One big departure from the other prioritization matrix is that it emphasizes that number of users impacted doesn't not really matter when it comes to factoring in litigation risk. A single user can issue a lawsuit. In this framing, user impact specifically refers to the amount of interference that it can potentially bring on a single user. The second axis of the chart is 'Litigation risk' and refers directly to the law. Unsure about how this can be fully separate from User Impact: most lawsuits need to have some form of User Impact situation happening in order for a lawsuit to even be brought to relevancy.

Two additional factors play a smaller role, but actually aren't positioned on the chart. They are annotated in the margins: Product Lifecycle and Remediation Cost. I like that these instances are not considered front and center, but they are included for pragmatism. The consideration of the product's lifecycle is new to me: It makes sense to not fix something that has plans to be retired anyway. It is also easier to catch things that are younger in the lifecycle, that are in the first stages of development (shifting left).

Closing Thoughts

I didn't end up drafting a tier list today. The biggest takeaway I have from this small dive is that it is better to assess against user flows than outright declare some WCAG criteria to be more universally of higher priority than others, with the exception of the four non-interference criteria. Additionally, I learned that supporting my client through articulating the priority of certain issues is essential to making my advice actually getting implemented. It is an essential communication tool, and will be very valuable in high-volume projects.

This whole discussion also brings up a larger question: How do we get companies and web devs to bring in best practices outside of WCAG and to care about things without really zooming in on the legal issues?

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New info from Eric Eggert's Blog

Noted September 19, 2024

I'm going to be jumping around Eric's website today making some brief notes on a selection of his articles.

1. WCAG A and AA distinction mostly academic

2. The infuriating inefficiency of accessibility audits

3. It's the hope that kills you

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New info from Seirdy's Best Practices 2/2

Noted September 19, 2024

On Optimization

Starting at the 'Long-page performance' section in Seirdy's Best Practices blog post.

The 'decoding' attribute

The 'decoding attribute' is proposed as an alternative to lazy loading. Last time, we learned lazy loading was not inclusive because it doesn't work well with users with poor connections, it is also disabled by some browsers. It's also a 'fingerprinting vector,' and I don't know what that means but it sounds scary. The decoding attribute only targets images. Seirdy doesn't really exploain the technicalities of why decoding is good, while lazy loading is bad. I think it lies on the network level: lazy loading actually defers networks requests, which decoding seems to have a similar effect without actually interfering with network requests themselves.

The CSS attribute 'contain'

Time to learn about CSS containment! Seirdy doesn't give me much, so I'm looking outside to other sources.

So I understand containment, but not the property 'content-visibility.' I don't understand, if you are already using 'containment,' why would content-visibility be an issue? Here's my guess: regardless of containment, the entire DOM will be rendered through upon the first rendering of the page. 'content-visibility' will make it so that only content that is visible on the page will be rendered. This doesn't stop the entire DOM from being combed through (that would be something like "display: none;" so AT can still get access to the page's structure.It's not lazy-loading. The whole thing is, in fact, loaded. You just can't see it, so no strain is put on the GPU.

It's lazy-rendering.

Seirdy notes that there is no harm in including this, it's a progressive enhancement feature. that older browsers will simply ignore. But they also include a lot of stuff about the 'contain-intinsic-size' property, which I have tried to understand and can't understand yet.

Why is Optimization an Accesibility issue?

Seirdly links to this amazing slide deck by Eric W Baily titled the intersection of Performance and Accessibility. This is a really nice deck because the slide deck itself is optional, everything you really need to know is in the accompanying speaker's notes, which really makes it feel like we're experience Eric's talk. But beyond the amazing design of the talk, the content really lays out what is at stake when it comes to optimization for accessibility reason. It comes down to understand the Accessibility Tree.

Now. I had guessed that something like the accessibility tree existed under the hood. It makes sense that the there has to be a separate interface from the DOM itself that AT can interact with. The Accessibility tree is modeled from the DOM and can be viewed as a version of the DOM with all things that aren't essential to accessibility stripped off. This is for performance reasons, and it is what the AT interacts with.

In this use case, Eric talks about a case they came across while editing where there was a very deep, nested tree of elements in order to create some kind of feature in 'settings' where users can select their preferences. The porblem is that each 'selection' was made with custom div elements, not semantic HTML. And each feature was something like 6 elements with 9 attributes and a DOM length of 3. With 66 CSS selectors containing 141 properties. In other words, it was a very heavy design.

So what was the problem? It overloaded the parallel model that the accessibility tree was creating, and the screen reader technology crashed. It was entirely unusable for users of NVDIA/JAWS on Firefox.

The fix? semantic HTML that reduced the amount of div nesting, taken from a project called 'a11y_styled_form_controls' and visually indistinguishable from the original.

With this small case study, we can see that performance is a consideration with accessibility. Seirdy often discusses very niche technology and AT when testing for performance, but this case study shows that even mainstream AT can get bogged down by too much Javascript.

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Should Phone Numbers be in an Anchor Tag?

Noted September 18, 2024

Some Background

Specifically, I am curious about this question from the a11y point of view. A quick Google search has this phone number hyperlink guide that makes the argument: most of the userw who access your site are doing so on smartphones. Making the number a link improves usability: no need to copy and paste for the link. This seems like this would be good for accessibility. But before making conclusions, let's see what other sources say.

Source #1: Maybe Doesn't Know What He's Talking About

Google gave me a LinkedIn post that you shouldn't read talking about putting an ARIA label on a phone number so that the screen reader would 'pronounce it properly' with the three digits, pause, three digits, pause, four digits. Some people in the bottom make some good arguments against this: This will not provide a ubiquitous experience around different forms of AT and already makes a unwieldly intervention on something that screen reader software and users know about and are equipped to deal with. Users can read character by character and control their own speed!. Particularly, Matthew Putland pointed out that it would actually detract from the experience of braille display users of screen readers due to the way that braille itself adds number characters before numbers. Seems like this is an instance of no aria is better than bad aria, as they always say!

But this actually doesn't answer my question. What about anchor links? what about other ways we can make phone numbers accessible?

Source #2: TPGI

TPGi's article offers a collection of really helpful tips. They concur with Matthew Putland's assessment that aria labels should not be used to override screen reader users' preference. Also they provide a clear answer to my question: Yes! You should add an anchor element, and you should use the tel: prefix to your code.

Source #3: WCAG Supplemental

I found a note in the Cognitive Accesibility note in WCAG supplementals simply saying to format in number in the way your locale typically desingates phone numbers. This improves the readability for cognitively disabled folks, and improves readibility for text-to-speech voices (this is a bold claim-- where is your evidence)?

Source #4: ADA Site Compliance

We're beyond the discussion of anchor elements at this point, but while we're talking about different disability-technology interactions, here's another point that ADA Site Compliance makes: Don't only have a phone number listed in your contacts. Some people don't want to use the phone! The article lists Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing/late-deafened people as the target for such an intervention, but I can list so many more. Social anxiety! Those who can't use their voice! People who have trouble articulating sounds well! Auditory processing disorders! I can't understate social anxiety! This is a super great, and perhaps only tacitly related point, but it's an important one.

In Summary

I was worried that anchored telephone numbers would be distracting to people using things like JAWS, NVDIA, and Talk-Back. I saw no accounts of such a phenomenon, but learned some other key things instead:

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Concerning PDFs

Noted September 18, 2024

I currently know very little about nearly all aspects of PDF accessibility, so today I will ask a question to myself and answer it.

Under legislated WCAG 2.1 and under the AMA, is it required to have all PDF documents acceptable? For example: would it be enough to simply indicate that plain-text versions of the PDF are available? Would a plaintext document be considered a replacement for this?
Preliminarily, ChatGPT tells me the company is liable. What about links to external PDFs, where is the line drawn? Time to read PDF techniques from W3C. Apparently something called PDF/UA, guidelines released in 2012, is applicable here? Now taking a look at this slide deck from a subject matter expert. Ironically it's a PDF. Key takeaways from this: in America, inaccessible PDFs have been the subject of Section 508 lawsuits. Additionally, 'tagged PDFs' are considered the only PDFs with the potential to be accessible.

The PDF slide deck is a goldmine. Here's another thing to learn: if you 'Print to PDF' (as I often DO!) the resulting product will be stripped of all semantic markup, all tags, with the weird exception of tables. It makes sense, table behaviour can never not be weird.

More gems from the slide deck:

Bouton emphasizes that we should be first asking the question: is a PDF the best way to accomplish what we need?

Personal Reflection

I am thinking back to the time I spent at my former workplace and the amount of PDFs that we generated on a daily basis to throw up on our website. We did it so much and I'm sure we're not alone.

I don't know why I though PDFs were exempt from WCAG. It's obvious in hindsight. I think I didn't know enough about PDFs to understand even the beginning of how they can be made accessible. But it comes down to semantic markup, as it always does. I shouldn't be surprised.

I need to get into the habit of making accessible PDFs in my personal life as well.

Ironically, I often read PDFs with a text-to-speech engine. And I understand where all the bullshit comes in, I've just never considered that there might be fixes to this. If only all the headers were marked, semantically as headers!

Another big consideration here is that a lot of PDF content I read are scans of content, or instances where the PDF was not meant to be consumed on a device.A lot of this content is done by volunteers who are simply going for quantity over quality. But there are bigger problems that those specific sites have to worry about, legally, than accessibility lawsuits.

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New info from Seirdy's Best Practices 1/2

Noted around September 16, 2024

Seirdy's Best Practices guide is the blog post in question.

'Maximally inclusive' as catering to the edge case, niche browsers, old browsers. What possible kinds of users are there? Inclusivity goes beyond accessibility: language barriers, class barriers.

Questions about things I don't understand:

What is TLS?
According to Wikipedia, it stands for Transport Layer Security and it secures the HTTP protocol. I need to ask about the scope of this one is in particular, I know very little about cybersecurity.
When Seirdy talks about not relying on scripts, are they talking about literally all Javascript? Probably...
According to Copilot, Seirdy's referring to client-side scripts, which is basically just Javascript. PHP doesn't count because it's server-side. As for what popular things rely on scripts, dynamic content loading, animations, interactive forms, real-time updates, media controls, and e-commmerce things are all Javascript things.
What does the cache have?
A cache is a folder held in your version of the browser you are using. It stores it in there to allow faster reloaded of key assets. I didn't understand how it could be stored 'on the device' before-- but it does this by storing in itself. How does Firefox get stored on your computer? Firefox's cache is in the same folder.
What does it mean to be a 'blocking' resource?
A resource that can cause the website to be blank, even if most things get loaded correctly. A blocked resource effectively makes it so that this doesn't mean anything.
What is 'semantically-meaningful compressed markup?
Googling this combination of words only brings up Seirdy's article.
What is 'lazy loading?'
When the page loads things only as needed. This is most used for pages that have lots of javascript.
What is 'infinite scolling?'
So this is when the content comes from the bottom endlessly. Like TikTok! Actually not like TikTok, but this is how I'll be thinking about it. Particularly, it makes footers difficult to reach for AT users.

Seirdy makes a great point that an overloaded CPU means that speech synthesis might be thin. I expect it's similar for voice-controlled contol, eye-control (like with a Tobi). They make a lot of hemming and hawing about the importance of quick and efficient asset loading and I don't think I appreciated this section until they made that comment. In this case, ease of loading is an inclusivity issue.

Seirdy talks a lot about 'user flows' as being a more accurate framework than 'page weight.' But I want to learn about the latter before appreciating the former, so let's go on a-- it's REALLY JUST the AMOUNT OF BYTES??!??!

Page weight is considered a speed metric, maybe. But Seirdy's framing puts these bytes into context (user interaction and goal). I wonder why bytes wouldn't be a good assesment, aren't bytes bytes?

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