Accessible Print refers to printed materials that have been made accessible for persons with disabilities. Students with limited mobility, print-based learning disabilities, or who have complete or partial vision loss often require Accessible Print materials in order to have equal access to academic coursework. In this section you will find information on how you can help to provide accessible print materials to all students in your courses.
In Class Materials:
Some students, primarily low-vision and blind students, will require that all in-class print materials are made accessible to them. Typically this involves providing the student with accessible digital copies of Power-Point slides, handouts, or in-class assignments. Below are a list of resources to help you create accessible digital copies of your print materials before distributing or presenting them in your classroom.
Online Course Materials:
Individual faculty are responsible for making sure that course materials posted on Blackboard and other online course management systems are accessible to all students. This includes PDFs, Power Point slides, and links to outside resources. Below are a list of resources to help you create accessible print materials before posting them online.
Occasionally, students or faculty members may need make accessible copies of course documents, journal articles, or textbook excerpts. This can be done by enhancing a digital copy using screen magnifier or printing the materials and using one of the two desktop magnifier in Disability Support Services. Selecting the option to create a Searchable PDF will run the OCR (optimal character recognition) software and allow the PDF to be read by screen and text readers.
Textbook Accessibility:
The Disability Support Services (DSS) office helps to put qualified students in touch with accessible formats of their textbooks each semester. Because acquiring or converting to accessible formats takes time and labor, it is important for faculty to submit their book lists to the bookstore as early as possible. If you are considering adopting an online textbook, please be sure that it has been tested for accessibility. If you have any questions about whether an online textbook is accessible, please email DisabilityServices@otc.edu.
Many courses at OTC, both seated and online, now use AutoAccess course materials. These materials are online textbooks which are meant to improve access and affordability. Many of these course materials have accessibility options.