Digital Badges to Promote Improving Accessibility of Digital Course Materials and Being a Champion for Accessibility

Audience Level: 
All
Session Time Slot(s): 
Institutional Level: 
Higher Ed
Streamed: 
Onsite
Special Session: 
Diversity & Inclusion
Abstract: 

Learn about a new digital badges initiative at one large public institution to recognize faculty for their great work improving the accessibility of their course materials and motivate them to become champions for accessibility. 

Extended Abstract: 

In an effort to further promote faculty adoption and use of available tools and approaches for improving the accessibility of digital course materials, this institution has established a new digital badges program to recognize faculty for being champions for accessibility. Through this new digital badges program, faculty can earn digital badges for their work being student-centered, increasing their overall course accessibility score, finding and fixing accessibility issues using Blackboard Ally, and adding captions to multimedia materials. Because improving accessibility is an ongoing process and not an all-or-nothing endeavor, most of the badges offer multiple levels. Faculty are encouraged to start small and work their way up to the top! When faculty earn them all, they can become an Ally Hero! 

During this session, learn about this institution’s new digital badges program implemented in the spring 2022. Preliminary feedback and lessons learned will be shared and we will discuss principles for success that can be applied to any similar faculty recognition and incentive initiative. 

Position: 
7
Conference Session: 
Concurrent Session 7
Conference Track: 
Access, Equity, and Open Education
Session Type: 
Discovery Session
Intended Audience: 
Administrators
Design Thinkers
Faculty
Instructional Support
Students
Training Professionals
Technologists
All Attendees