Creating Accessible STEM Content

Text-to-speech (TTS) aids, e-readers, and audiobooks improve reading fluency and comprehension by allowing students with reading challenges to focus more on the content and less on the actual mechanics of reading.

The ATI offers a number of options to support students with challenges related to reading. The most commonly used solutions are as follows:

TTS Resources

Organize notes, record lectures, type or write notes, to improve note taking skills, retention, and comprehension by allowing students to focus more on the course lecture content and less time taking notes. 

The ATI offers a number of options to support students with notetaking. The most commonly used solutions are as follows:

Notetaking & Organizational Resources

Writing aids assist students with planning and organizing tasks that support the writing process. Students with executive functioning challenges may struggle with sequencing of tasks, organization, planning, and cognitive flexibility. Deficits in these areas can oftentimes lead to paralysis when it comes to writing.

The ATI offers some options to support students with challenges related to writing. The most commonly used solutions are as follows:

Writing Aids

The ATI offers a number of options to support students with visual impairments. This includes, but is not limited to, screen readers, screen magnification software, CCTVS, etc.

The most commonly used solutions are as follows:

The ATI offers a number of options to support deaf and hard of hearing students. This includes, but is not limited to, FM amplification tools, live captioning support, and post-production captioning and transcription for public-facing and instructional video content.

Additional information can be accessed below:

The Mason CARES guide offers instructors assistance with creating accessible instructional content. This resource provides guidance on making the learning platform more accessible, creating accessible instructional resources (i.e., documents, audio, video), making web conferencing sessions more user-friendly, and posting accessible social media content.

Consider the following resources in your course development process:

ATI offers resources for students, faculty, and staff to create and ensure equal access inside the classroom, on campus, and at home. One-on-one and group training on AT may be requested using our Request Services Form.

Choose from the options below to learn more about the different types of AT solutions available:

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Accessibility Standards include guidelines to ensure that all electronic information, resources and services provided by Mason are accessible to people with disabilities.  This includes, websites, online learning systems, software and hardware applications, telecommunications, desktop and portable computers.

The following information provides guidance on how to create accessible components for web and software applications in accordance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act  opens a new window and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 opens a new window.  For additional information about meeting accessibility requirements, please contact the IT Accessibility Coordinator.

 Major components included in accessibility guidelines include: