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Perceiving and comprehending information abilities differ in every learner. Providing different options for representation helps students to learn better and make better connections between concepts. In a digital learning environment offering choices for representations in a well-structured form helps students to learn.
Increase possibilities for modal perceptions
Increase possibilities for modal perceptions
Equally perceptible information for all learners is a key factor of reducing barriers of learning. Remember to provide the same information through different modalities and in a format that will allow for adjustability for users.
Offer ways of customizing the display of information. Remember to make malleable and customizable materials in a digital format. Focus attention that these aspects of materials can be varied:
size of elements
contrast between elements
colors and layouts
speed, volume and rate of media
font
Offer alternatives for auditory and visual information. Ensure that all learners have access to learning, options should be available for any information presented aurally. Provide text equivalents, visual information and descriptions. Provide non-visual alternatives for complex forms of visual information. Remember to provide possibilities to transform text into audio.
Remember explain language symbols
Remember explain language symbols
Symbols have different meanings for different viewers, providing only a single source of information is inaccessible. Providing different sources via alternative representations brings accessibility, clarity and comprehensibility to all learners.
Clarify vocabulary, symbols, syntax and structure. Remember to teach vocabulary and symbols, link them to alternative presentations of their meaning. Use alt-texts for graphic symbols. Provide alternative representations for syntaxes and structures. Make relationships between elements explicit and connections more visible.
Support decoding of text, mathematical notation and symbols. Provide options for learners that are unfamiliar or dysfluent with symbols.
Promote understanding across languages. Remember the multilingual approach and provide linguistic alternatives for key information. Offer options to use electronic translation tools.
Illustrate through multiple media. Remember that text is a weak format for concepts, providing alternatives like illustrations, simulations, images or interactive graphics.
What to consider when enhancing accessibility during representation of information?
“Students have different strengths and preferences when it comes to how they access, engage and comprehend the information (auditive, visual, verbal, interactive). Therefore vary how you express essential knowledge in the subject (pedagogical approach, tools, resources - sources of information).”(10)
Consider how you present knowledge and information, in what way you present assignments and tasks and in what way you present solutions. Ask yourself: Is there an overweight of a particular form of communication?(11)
In an online teaching environment present information in multiple formats and ensure the documents and learning material are accessible.(12) Traditional way of representing information in the form of lectures (classroom, online) can be replaced or supported in different methods.
How to offer alternative/ supplement teaching methods for lectures?
Offer alternatives to auditory and visual information(15)
Orally presented information available also in the form of text equivalents, visual information and descriptions
Make lecture material accessible in text equivalents
“Share PPP/notes/ presentations before or after the lecture”(16)
Use videos and include transcripts for videos(17)
“Organize audio or video record of lecture”
Methods(18) : Flipped classroom; blended learning; MOOC & SPOC; Problem based learning; Practical learning
Offer alternatives/ supplements to the textbook(19) : KhanAcademy, Youtube
How to support students to access the presented information?
Provide versatile learning environments(13)
Classroom, On-site visits, (Moodle as a learning platform)
Zoom for participating online
Accessible learning tools - audio, video, mobile phones
Provide courseware with multimodal learning material(14)
Accessible powerpoints
Subtitled shortvideos
Online links to professional webpages and material
Text documents online with ReadSpeaker
Observation diaries
Lectures and recorded lectures
Provide technical support
Support development of comprehension
Support development of comprehension
Main purpose of education is teaching learners to transform accessible information into usable knowledge. Focus on information processing skills and provide scaffolds that ensure everybody’s access to knowledge.
Activate or supply background knowledge. Present information in a way that primes, activates or provides pre-requisite knowledge, use anchoring to activate relevant information and use advanced organizers. Make connections that are explicit cross-curricular connections.
Highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas and relationships. Separating critical information from irrelevant information is one of the key skills. Provide cues or prompts to make that easier.
Guide information processing and visualization. Mental strategies and skills for processing information are the baseline of transforming information into knowledge. Embed models, scaffolds and feedback to help learners use these things effectively.
Maximize transfer and generalization. Transferring information to another context needs assistance, providing techniques that prompt and guide learners to employ explicit strategies. Offer checklists, reminders, opportunities, concept maps and opportunities to revisit linkage between subjects.
How to support comprehension?
Provide re-usable material in the context of the course/ program:
vocabulary of central terms and principles
key guides and curriculas
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