For almost a year, we’ve been rushing from one virtual meeting to the next, and learning to schedule and host Zoom meetings as we go. One aspect of organizing virtual events that may get lost in the rush to learn and adapt to new technologies is accessibility. The Wake Forest Accessible Working Content Group has been hard at work to ensure that everyone has the resources they need to anticipate and accommodate the needs of all participants in virtual spaces.
One new resource is the Improving Accessibility and Inclusion in Virtual Spaces blog post and an extensive resource for planning accessible virtual meetings. These offer tips on creating a welcoming environment, offering alternative methods for accessing presentation materials, anticipating technology challenges during webinars, and pacing virtual presentations. The blog post serves as a high-level overview of things to keep in mind, while the resource is more of a detailed checklist that will come in handy when planning bigger events such as a webinar.
If you’re interested in other accessibility resources, visit the Technology Accessibility at Wake website for more blog posts, tips, and upcoming trainings.
5 Comments on ‘Improving Accessibility in Virtual Spaces’
Thanks for highlighting this critical work, Carrie. I’m glad Wake is making a commitment to improving accessibility!
Turning on closed captioning in Zoom helps many people and can be as easy as flicking on the lights when you enter a meeting room. I encourage my colleagues to change their settings and start the habit of flicking it on for meetings. Eudora and Jonathan have 3 upcoming dates (Feb, Mar, Apr) of an overview session explaining and briefly demonstrating the ease and benefits with multiple products. Sign up via the PDC website.
Thanks for sharing these straightforward and (relatively) easy-to-implement practices!
Awesome stuff, thank you Carrie!
Thanks for sharing this resource-it is so on point. I think it can also be used when meeting new individuals! Thank you.