Assistive Technology in Higher Education


DOJ Agreement with UC Berkeley Over Digital Content Accessibility Could Have Huge Impact on IHEs

A new consent decree between the Justice Department and University of California, Berkeley resolving allegations that UC Berkeley’s digital content is not accessible enough may have much broader implications for education institutions with free online content and courses that are not fully ADA compliant — regardless of the platform where the institution’s content exists.

world map of languages

ReadSpeaker Text-to-Speech Offerings Now Total 245 Voices and 68 Languages

Integrated text-to-speech provider ReadSpeaker has announced its audio library now features 245 voices and 68 languages, including some considered threatened and endangered, with new ones continually being developed by on-staff linguists and language experts.

SXSW EDU

SXSW EDU Releases Preview of Lineup for 2023; Emphases Include Diversity, Equity, Student Agency

SXSW EDU recently unveiled nearly half of the lineup for its 2023 event scheduled for March 6–9, 2023, in Austin, featuring topics considered the most pressing in education, the organization said.

Teach Access

OER Initiative Offers Tools to Expand Awareness of Digital Accessibility

Teach Access, a nonprofit focused on digital accessibility skills education, is launching a collection of free online teaching resources designed to help faculty teach accessibility across a range of computer science, technology, and design programs.

ReadSpeaker tools

Moodle Learning Platform Integrates Text-to-Speech Tools

Students using the Moodle open source learning management platform can now listen to learning content in more than 50 languages, thanks to a new integration with digital voice and text-to-speech tool ReadSpeaker.

artificial intelligence captioning

Echo360 Adds AI-Powered Captioning Service to Video Learning Platform

Echo360 has partnered with Rev to bring the AI-powered captioning service to users of the EchoVideo learning platform.

woman sitting at desk using a screen reader

Why Every University Needs an Accessible Standard Website Template

Templatization can help institutions steer clear of common web accessibility errors — and ensure that all students have equal access to the content they need to succeed.

1EdTech Updates QTI Assessment Standard to Enable Accessibility Features

1EdTech Consortium has updated its digital assessment interoperability standard with added accessibility features and improved rendering to enable greater access in large-scale testing for students with special needs, the nonprofit said in a news release.

Google for Education has unveiled new features for Google Classroom, Google Meet, and Chromebooks

Google Unveils Slate of New Features and Integrations for Chromebooks, Classroom and Meet

Google has introduced a slate of new apps for Chromebooks — including a new free Screencast app and a free Figma design app — as well as new functions in Google Classroom and Google Meet, and the company announced integrations with popular ed tech apps that will launch later this year.

New Texthelp Tool Adds Accessibility Functions to PDF Files

Texthelp, a provider of literacy and accessibility technology, has introduced a new web app called OrbitNote that adds accessibility features to PDFs, including the ability to type, highlight and leave voice memos on documents, the company said in a news announcement.