September 2002
Advances in information and communication technology (ICT) have changed radically the way individuals share, access and process information. Those with access to ICT are able to share, search and store digitized information at high speeds across distances that may span the globe. Large amounts of information on an enormous variety of topics and from many different points of view can be easily and inexpensively distributed and acquired. ICT also offers opportunities for users to interact with the information and its authors in ways that can be much faster and simpler than other forms of communication.
The capabilities of these new technologies can provide a viable alternative to traditional distance education methods such as televised lectures, correspondence, and electronic conferences and even to traditional school-based education. ICT is poised to play a revolutionary role in how institutions, educators and learners approach distance education and learning. There are also important opportunities to provide distance education services to people who have excluded from these traditional forms because of a lack of means to access the materials. ICT allows information to be prepared and presented with alternative input and output technologies to accommodate individual requirements. In addition, interaction strategies can be designed to accommodate the needs of individuals rather than being prepared for one delivery technique such as printed text. However, it is important that access for people with disabilities be considered at the beginning of designing ICT-based learning systems so that a variety of learner needs and abilities can be included.
The Creating Barrierfree Access to Learning Environments initiative provided a customizable ICT environment for on-line, video-based learning material. This system allows individuals to select the method and alternative display methods. For example, learners could select closed captions to be shown along with the video. Users also had control over caption colour, background colour and location of the captions on the display. In addition, further information that related to the video-based learning material could be added such as links within closed captions, and text or graphical annotations for further explanation of the existing material.
This report provides a description of various ICT related systems and issues of access on the stakeholders in education. A complete description of the Barrier-free system can be found in section 2. The results of a series of evaluations related to access and ICT in general, and then to the barrier-free system are presented.
The Classroom
The traditional classroom involves an expert teacher and a community of learners. In the constructivist tradition, new knowledge is created as the teacher and learners share information. Until recently, however, creating a community of learners in the distance education mode was difficult and even unlikely. Instead, in this mode, learning was usually a solitary process. Online education can remove the barriers of separation and potential isolation amongst learners and educators; it can provide opportunities for both synchronous and asynchronous learning that can allow the formation of an on-line community of learners. (synchronous learning takes place amongst learners at the same time (i.e. online conference) and asynchronous learning occurs at different times such as with a bulletin board discussion). This online community of learners is different than the community of learners formed with traditional classroom environments. Olsen, Olsen & Meader (1995) and Hiltz et. al (1985) suggest that each technology (e.g., traditional telephony, email and video conferencing) is distinctive by the nature of the medium from which it is constituted. Each method of delivery has particular strengths and weaknesses; some of which are due to the technologies employed. The goal in using a particular technology is not to replicate identically that which can be easily achieved when learners are face-to-face. Rather, it is to find ways to allow participants to achieve all the interactions that are necessary to complete the defined task in a productively and efficiently. It is the properties of the medium that contribute to these unique experiences and influence the impact of the various factors on the success of task completion and the formation of the online community of learners.
Essentially, ICT reduces the distance in distance education but it still cannot be considered identical to same place/same time teaching. Instead, one could think of online learning as a classroom in which each individual is separated by a rice paper wall. Communication is possible through the wall and one might even be able to see the instructor or other students yet a separation exists albeit a barely tangible one.
Learning in the rice paper classroom is comparable to the traditional classroom and in some cases better than learning in the traditional classroom (Schutte, J.G. 2001, Schoech, D. 2000). Schutte (2001) found that students in an online statistics course taught completely over the World Wide Web, scored an average of 20% higher than students learning the same subject in a traditional class in mid-term and final examinations. Furthermore, the virtual class had a significantly higher perceived peer contact, time spent on class work and understanding of the material at semester end than the traditional class. It is important to note that the online students in this study received two face-to-face sessions of instructions on using the relevant technology for the course (i.e. email, and Internet Relay Chat). While many Web-based courses have self-selected participants who may possess the knowledge and desire to use technology necessary to participate successfully in the course; provision must be made within the online course for students who do not have this skill (Thomson, J.S., Stringer, S.B., 1998).
The Educator
Taking education online will change the role of the educator (Sweet, 2000, Belanger & Jordan, 2000, Baumgartner, P. & Payre, S., 1998). How these changes will come about and what changes we may expect are difficult to predict. It is clear that virtual classrooms tend to be more learner-driven than the traditional classroom (Schoech, 2000, Grubbs, L, & Lockey, Mick, 2000, Wallace, E. & Smythe D., 1999, Dooley, K.E., Edmundson, C., Hobaugh, C., 1997). This trend may be related to the flexibility of the online course as well as the ease of peer contact and thoughtful discussion permitted by asynchronous communication tools such as bulletin boards and email. Some suggest that traditional face-to-face learning could become obsolete as computer assisted learning becomes more popular and cost-effective (Schoech, 2000, Sweet, 2000, Belanger & Jordan, 2000).
While online learning increases flexibility for the learner, the opposite seems to occur for the instructor particularly if the course includes synchronous chats. Most instructors report increased time demands in both the preparation and mediation of their online course (Schoech, 2000,). For example, Instructors may find that the amount of correspondence with students alone creates a heavy workload (Schoech, 2000). Training in managing the communication technology may be necessary for the online instructor.
Certainly, the instructor (if there is one) for an online course will need to have training in courseware, relevant technology and online mediation (Wallace & Smythe, 1999, Thomson, Stringer & Sharon, 1998). Finally, development & delivery of the web-based course requires collaboration between the instructor, content providers, developers and technology support staff. These collaborations may be a challenge to instructors who are accustomed to developing courses on their own.
The Institution
The role of the institution also changes with the increase in web distance learning (WDL). Indeed, the physical entity of the institution may not be necessary to learners and instructors as is evidenced by the International University (IU) an independent, non-profit, «virtual university» that offers bachelor and master degrees in business communication only through online courses (Zuniga, R.E. & Pease, P., 1998). Institutions of higher education that traditionally draw from local populations may see this demographic change as local students become able to attend distant schools via the Internet while maintaining the financial benefits of living at home with parents. At the same time, some institutions will have a growing distance education population that will have different needs and expectations from the local student population. For example, access to resources such as journal articles and databases via the Internet.
The Learner
We have already discussed that the learner typically drives learning in the virtual classroom and that the learner, through online distance education, may have access to learning that is equal to that of the on-campus student. Access to online distance education, however, presumes that the student is able to finance the technology investment required to participate successfully in the program. Even with the trend towards improved technology at lower cost, this investment may be unwieldy for students especially the recurring costs related to having a high-speed or broadband internet service provider (ISP).
Students in one study of an online course reported that class discussions were far richer than that in face-to-face classrooms (Schoech, 2000). Similarly, all but one of the 70 respondents to a survey of IU students agreed with the statement, «I would recommend that others take a course that: uses electronic communication . . . » (Zuniga & Pease, 1998). One explanation for this difference is the flexibility of time permitted to online students particularly in asynchronous discussions in which the student has time to reflect, research and compose their thoughts before sharing them with the class in digitized form. Other studies have shown that students in a virtual class spent significantly more time on class and had a significantly higher positive affect towards the course content than students of the same course in a traditional setting (Schutte, 2000).
Like educators, students must also possess the requisite technology skills in order to take full advantage of an online course. In order for delivery of an online course to be successful, the technical competency and support available to the student must be considered (Thomson & Stringer, 1998). Indeed, some students may require training in order to be effective participants in web-based education (Schutte, 2000, Thomson & Stringer, 1998).
A potential benefit of distance education is the potential to make online courses completely accessible to all learners provided guidelines for accessible design are followed and mandated. Creating accessible online education requires a two-pronged approach that considers both learners and course developers. For learners, the appropriate kind of accommodation must be determined. Broadband access provides opportunity to provide information in novel ways such as multiple video or caption tracks. The optimal way to present educational material to learners via these new methods must be investigated. For course developers, information about how to provide accessible content as well as reasonable access to accessible learning materials must be provided. This project addressed these two aspects of accessible learning. This section of the report details the activities of the evaluation component of the project.