The below resources have been selected and categorized into themes that impact accessibility within the education system. They are organized in a particular way that allows the reader to choose how they want to engage with the material presented.
TDSB would like to thank the numerous organizations and educational institutions for developing these resources and gives full credit to them for their work.
Defining Disability
Universal and Inclusive Design
Microsoft Office Applications
Document Accessibility
Web Accessibility
Accessibility Practices and Technologies
Accessible Events and Presentations
Accessible Events and Presentations
Read: Planning Accessible Events
Read: CNIB - Print That's Easy on the Eyes - Clear Print Accessibility Guidelines
Read: How to Make Your Presentations Accessible to All
Read: How to Merge Closed Captioning in Google
Read: How to Make Your Presentations Accessible to All - W3C - Web Accessibility Initiative - This page helps you make your presentations, talks, meetings, and training accessible to everyone in your potential audience, including people with disabilities and others.
Read: How to Merge Closed Captioning in Google
Assistive Technology at TDSB
Assistive Technology at TDSB
TDSB Assistive Technology
The TDSB provides software and resources to help member of the TDSB better understand Assistive Technology. Some of this support includes TDSB Teacher Support, Office Hours and How To Access Tools.
Additional Resources
Document and Application Accessibility
Microsoft PowerPoint Presentations
Microsoft Excel Spreadsheets
Google Docs
PDF Documents
Accessible Forms
Accessible Websites
How To Make Your Website Accessible
Website Accessibility Tools
How To Access The Web Using Any Device
Graphic Design
Accessible Graphic Design
- Accessible Graphic Design
Created by Ontario’s Association of Registered Graphic Designers and it covers both print and web design.
Colour Contrast
Adobe InDesign Accessibility
Resources
Videos
Social Media Accessibility
Best Ways to Improve Your Social Media Accessibility
Alt Text and Social Media
Top Tips
- Don't make assumptions about a person's disabilities
Many persons with disabilities feel frustrated when people make assumptions about what they can and cannot do.
- Be patient and understanding
Students may take more time or have difficulty communicating, be patient and understanding (but not patronizing)
- Speak clearly
Speak as you would with other students, clearly, facing your audience. Don’t speak facing away.
- Closed caption audio/visual materials
Make sure audio/visual materials you use are available with accurate closed captioning.
- Make electronic resources available for students
Slides, lecture notes, and forms should be available to all students in advance, in accessible formats easily read by assistive technologies.
- Check for legibility and clarity
Use Sans Serif fonts and contrasting colours in your materials. Checklists can help.
- Use alt-text
Use alt-text on images that are meaningful and convey value. Describe the image and add context if necessary.
- Make sure resources are compatible with assistive technologies
Students may need to use assistive technologies like screen readers, use the resources on this page to make sure your materials can be used with them.
- Use built-in accessibility checkers
MS Word and PowerPoint, and Adobe PDFs have built-in features to check your documents for accessibility.
- Ask for help if you don't know
Consult your local counselling office for additional resources and support.