The Office of Accessibility (OA) wants to provide faculty and instructors with quick answers in regards to classroom accommodations as we move to an online classroom environment:
Q: A student is approved for extended time on a Blackboard exam. How do I adjust the
time?
A: To adjust extended time on exams and/or quizzes, you may follow this link from
the Office of Online Learning to Add Test Exceptions to a Test (pdf).
Q: A student is approved for flexibility with assignment deadlines, attendance, and
exam dates. Is this necessary for online courses?
A: Yes! Please keep in mind students may need these accommodations as they may experience
an exacerbation of their disability, especially in this time of adjustment, heightened
anxiety, and uncertainty. Also, the student and instructor need to communicate regarding
the goals and expectations of the class. The student understands that they still need
to complete the work and that their grade can still be impacted using this accommodation.
Instructors and students can use the accessibility guidelines to assist in conversations regarding the expectations of the class. OA staff can
assist in conversations as well.
Q: Will OA staff be available for students and faculty even during the remote instruction
period?
A: Yes! OA staff will be working remotely. However with the assistance of technology,
we will be able to initiate conversations via e-mail and can then explore options
such as Skype, telephone, or other online options to engage in discussion and conversation.
OA staff can be reached at OA_Team@winthrop.edu.
Q: Will OA staff will continue to register new students?
A: Yes! OA staff will be able to register students via phone, Skype, or Zoom. Students
will still need to submit documentation as specified on the site. Staff will be in touch with them to arrange a virtual intake appointment.
Q: I plan to show videos in the class. Some are from Youtube; others are a screencast
of my lectures. I know they should be closed captioned, but are not. What should I
do?
A: Make sure Voice-over PowerPoint presentations, YouTube clips, videos, audio clips,
etc., are closed captioned or have an accompanying transcript. Dacus Library offers resources to help faculty locate appropriate videos that are already captioned.
The Office of Online Learning is able to assist with providing instructions on properly captioning YouTube videos
that are stored on your own YouTube channel. They can also assist with items that
may need to be sent out for captioning or to generate a transcript.
Q: Are there any good resources to ensure I have made my course accessible and ADA
compliant?
A: The Office of Online Learning has provided a Continuity of Instruction page to assist faculty. That office also can 'turn on' Blackboard Ally for your course. Blackboard Ally scans your course and indicates which documents,
i.e., PowerPoints, PDFs, Word documents and more, have issues with accessibility;
provides instructions for how to improve the accessibility; and provides alternative
formats for the documents.
Other resources:
Have more questions? Please contact us!
