Monday, December 20, 2010

Disabilities-Accessible Content

By Lori Becker, President & CEO

Have you noticed lately that many school district web sites are now committed to making content accessible to all, including those with disabilities? These school systems are sensitive to their audiences and are setting positive examples of the importance of accessibility for all.

These schools systems are following the requirements outlined in Section 508 of the Workforce Investment Act. Even though Section 508 standards generally apply to the federal government, schools are now requesting Section 508 compliant materials. Publishers developing online content for the classroom are finding that school systems have become very interested in technology materials that meet Section 508 guidelines.

The National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) outlines a structural digital format for printed materials for K-12. These XML-based source files allow school districts to create alternate versions of core text materials to Braille, talking books, etc. As you have no doubt experienced, the states are requiring that these NIMAS conversions be a part of the adoption submissions.

As your product plans are finalized and you schedule your programs for state adoption submission dates, be sure and give us a call. At Publishing Solutions Group, we can help you tag your content to meet Section 508 standards as well as NIMAS. Our technology specialists will work with you to tag content in the formats you need for your upcoming adoption opportunities.

No comments:

Post a Comment