As a gamer, I must applaud what game developers are doing these days when it comes to making their games as accessible as possible for their target markets. Basically, for those who don’t know, they are now implementing accessibility options for those who want to enjoy their games as much as they can. Having a game playable for those who are visually impaired, have hearing difficulties, autism, and so on, must be really liberating. For me, I often have to magnify or zoom in on text that is so scrawny. I don’t understand why other developers make their heads-up display (HUD) or text so small. Like, we have massive TVs these days!
This got me thinking about my lessons in the classroom. Am I attending to my students’ needs when it comes to accessibility? Can I do more?
Here is a list of things that I’m doing. Could you suggest some things that you do that I can add to my approach?
- I like to keep my board (or HUD) as organised as possible.
- I don’t use cursive writing on my board.
- I like to colour code words.
- I turn off the lights during the playback of videos.
- I place my speaker for listenings in the middle of the room and not at the front.
- I am very conscious about the projection of my voice depending on where I am standing and where the students are sitting.
- When using an IWB or on Zoom, I zoom in on texts and/or sentences as much as I can.
- I play non-lyrical music during writing tasks.
As a side note, students with Special Educational Needs (SEN) is something that I am really interested in. I have taught students like this before but I feel I could do with a bit more training to help me approach them in the way they would prefer.
It would be great to hear from you, the reader, about what you do in the classroom. Leave a comment below. Thanks in advance!
P.J. Ryan 