Accessible and Assistive Tech — Considerations for Developers
As a new student in technology, I find myself thinking about all of the ways that I will ultimately be able build a bridge between these new skills I’m learning and the issues that I am personally passionate about. My instructor made a passing comment in lecture recently about choosing one particular HTML tag vs. another (with the same basic function) because it made the webpage more easily understood by screen readers, which are typically used to translate screen text and images for visually impaired users. I was intrigued! And this lead me to explore exactly what the difference is between accessible and assistive technology, what are some of the latest innovations with each, and what can we, as software developers, do to create a development community that is more inclusive of and responsive to the needs to the disabled community? The topic is huge and much more than I can give justice to, but for those who are new to the field, like me, this should be a good place to start.
Well what exactly is assistive tech anyway? Assistive technology is an umbrella term that is used to describe devices for people with disabilities. Assistive technology is legally defined as “any item, piece of equipment or system, whether acquired commercially, modified or customized, that is used to increase, maintain or improve functional capacities of individuals with disabilities.” The screen reader referenced by my instructor would be an example of assistive tech. Other assistive tech devices for visual impairment would include things like screen magnifying software, tactile keyboards, as well as motion and eye-tracking devices. One very cool example of assistive tech I came across is the DOT Watch.
As developers, assistive tech could be an area to specialize in that would allow room for creativity and significant growth. According to US Census Data, nearly 1 in 5 people report having a disability, with more than half of those reporting a “severe” disability. The figures are roughly the same (20%) for the U.K. Those numbers represent a huge population of people who need and deserve to participate in dynamic, technology filled lives, should they so choose. We are the ones who can make that happen!
So, what is accessible technology? Isn’t that what we just discussed? Well, not exactly. Accessible technology is a technology that’s been designed with the needs of differently-abled users in mind. It’s technology with built-in customization features so that the user can individualize their experience to meet their needs. You may also see this referred to as computer accessibility or accessible computing. The ADA does have accessible tech standards, which can be found here: https://www.ada.gov/access-technology/index.html
One of the biggest challenges in computer accessibility is to make technology resources accessible to people with cognitive disabilities — particularly those with poor communication and reading skills. As mentioned earlier as it pertains to assistive tech, another significant challenge in computer accessibility involves making software usable by people with visual impairments. One last remaining hurdle is addressing the needs of those with motor and dexterity impairments, who may not be able to use a typical input device like a keyboard or mouse.
There are several ways that the development community is addressing these needs. One major way is through the use of accessible API’s. That is an API that allows assistive technology products such as screen readers and screen magnifiers to work with mainstream software. Here’s a link to a few noteworthy ones: https://blog.rapidapi.com/make-tech-more-accessible-with-these-apis/
We also see an increased use of accessibility features in mainstream software, such as keyboard shortcuts, Sticky keys, predictive text, and spelling checkers. Support for learning disabilities include specific software such as text-to-speech programs and switch-accessible software. We have also seen the formation of The Open Accessibility Framework (OAF) which provides an outline of the steps that must be in place in order for any computing platform to be considered accessible. Even in the short amount of time I’ve been in the tech space, I can already see how heavily collaborative it is, which makes a great environment for collectively deciding to approach programming with diverse needs in mind.
I started off by explaining why I care about this issue, but do you? should you? If you plan to be employed in the tech sector, I’m going to say that answer is a resounding yes! Airbnb recently acquired London-based startup Accomable, an accommodation platform that has accessibility at its core. The company subsequently announced an update to its peer-to-peer property rental platform, introducing 21 new accessibility filters to make it easier for those with disabilities to find accommodation based on specific search criteria. Before, travelers could search for “wheelchair accessible” listings, but now they can narrow results down by many more factors, including whether disabled parking is available and whether each room has step-free access or there is a roll-in shower with chair. Google recently revealed it was adding “wheelchair accessible” routes to transit navigation in Google Maps. Qualcomm will soon have Tobii’s eye-tracking smarts in its virtual reality headsets. Tobii is a Swedish company with super accurate eye-tracking technology that can be used in many scenarios. It is already being built into some laptops for more intuitive navigation. Uber offers UberAccess to help riders find wheelchair accessible vehicles. Amazon has an established relationship adapting for visually impaired Kindle users. Netflix has a voice narration feature that describes what’s happening in a given scene. I could go on, but the point is that companies care about these users, and they should, because with potentially 20% of the population considering themselves disabled, altruism aside, it would be fiscally irresponsible to ignore them.
Hopefully this has introduced a new thought or two into your development mindset. I chose to briefly introduce both accessible and assistive tech because they are so heavily dependent on each other. Assistive technology alone will never guarantee access for people with disabilities because things like websites, and software such as those used for eRecruiting, must be designed with accessibility in mind in order for people to actually be able to use them. I will leave you with a beautiful clip of Sue Austin, from Devon, UK. Sue is a disabled artist who aims to change perceptions of the wheelchair.
Until next time…
