Increasing Skills in Accessibility through Integration in the Undergraduate Computer Science and Information Technology Curricula

This project aims to serve the national interest by developing resources for instructors and students to gain experience in both the technical and design aspects of developing accessible software. The World Health Organization estimates that 15% of the world’s population has some form of disability. While computing technologies such as computers, mobile devices, and the Internet have become essential for full participation in society, many of these technologies are not accessible for individuals with disabilities.

Computing professionals must make design choices and take specific steps to ensure that the computing technologies they develop are accessible to all individuals. Most computing practitioners are not up to this task, and most faculty do not have the expertise to teach these skills. In many computing programs, exposure to accessibility consists of a stand-alone lecture, assignment, or project within a single course.

Rather than focus on a single course, this project intends to evaluate the effectiveness of different approaches to teaching accessibility throughout an entire computing program.

This three-year project plans to investigate the degree to which different instructional materials and activities across the undergraduate computing programs at the University of North Texas result in both short- and long-term skill and attitude shifts for students. Examples of the approaches to be integrated into the required, undergraduate courses include lecture material, related assignments, and projects that bring together relevant technical content and their relation to the needs of persons with disabilities.

The result will be a greater number of graduates who are better trained in accessible software design. Interaction with persons with disabilities, which is a component of one of these interventions, will provide students with the opportunity to develop skills that promote inclusion during hands-on project activities. The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students.

Through its Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.