Luis Salvador-Ullauri

Evaluation of the web accessibility of higher-education websites

This article describes a study to assess the accessibility of the contents concerning the websites of 20 universities from all around the world. The accessibility assessment was carried out to verify compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0) published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The main goal of this study is to determine if even people with disabilities can access and use websites of the universities with higher academic prestige. Besides, in our approach we also make use of the Website Accessibility Conformance Evaluation Methodology (WCAG-EM) is an approach for determining how well a website conforms to WCAG 2.0. The WCAG-EM provides a guidance on using the methodology and considerations for specific situations. From the results, we can conclude that the majority of the tested websites do not achieve an acceptable level of compliance. Universities with high academic prestige do not show a greater level of web accessibility. By performing the evaluation of university websites, we have identified that there are major barriers to a large number of users.

Toward a Combined Method for Evaluation of Web Accessibility

This study describes the problems of web accessibility, especially for people with disabilities, as external conditions can distort user behavior and limit the data that can be obtained. Several studies recommend combining some methods with each other to achieve better results. This article proposes a combined approach, with the application of automatic and heuristic tools to make websites more accessible. In this study, we apply the Web Site Accessibility Assessment Methodology (WCAG-EM) considered in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0). From the results, we conclude that most tested websites can achieve an acceptable level of compliance. We propose that future work can focus on optimizing this combined approach, also this study can serve as a guide to help develop more inclusive websites.

Quality evaluation of government websites

This article describes a study on the quality evaluation of governmental websites of 20 countries with the highest level of competitiveness. The accessibility assessment was carried out to verify compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0) published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The main goal of this study is to determine whether people with disabilities are able to access and use government websites. In addition, we considered the Website Accessibility Conformance Evaluation Methodology (WCAG-EM) to determine how easily a website can be accessed according to WCAG 2.0. The WCAG-EM provides guidance on how to use the methodology and considerations for specific situations. From the results, we conclude that the majority of the websites do not achieve an acceptable level of compliance. The websites of governmental institutions with the highest level of competitiveness do not show a greater level of web accessibility. Several non-compliance errors were found on the websites; by performing this evaluation, we have identified that there are major barriers for a large number of users. Therefore, there is significant work pending to make the websites examples of best practice in e-government sites.

Web accessibility polices of higher education institutions

This article describes a study on the assessment process of web accessibility policies adopted by 51 university websites across the world, which are ranked by Webometrics. The web accessibility assessment was aimed at validating compliance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0; these guidelines are defined and published by the World Wide Web Consortium. The primary goal of this study is to identify a group of universities with academic prestige and determine their level of commitment to providing accessible information about university facts and activities through their main websites, as well as making it available to everyone including people with disabilities. Awareness about the scope of web accessibility policies is a topic of interest for organizations that are operating a website. Some policies can be applied to address internet issues such as privacy of personal data and web accessibility for people with disabilities. Policies of web accessibility are dynamic in nature due to the evolution of technology; therefore, any gaps in web accessibility should be addressed immediately and applied at different levels within an organization. From a legal perspective, in some websites, policies are depicted in the legal terms posted in the website, and in the functionality and features that the website offers to its users. In the evaluation phase various parameters were tested such as the implementation of web accessibility policies, version, level, availability of contact information for complaints, conformance logo, educational information, and help and support tools.

Method for Accessibility Assessment of Online Content Editors

This paper defines a method for evaluating the accessibility of online content editors by considering Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0) and part B of the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (ATAG 2.0). The method includes 63 accessibility features that should be met by the images, headings and tables, which are inserted through an online content editor. The compliance of these guidelines contributes to the creation of accessible content so that visually impaired people using assistive technologies can easily access the content. Furthermore, the results of this study provide criteria for those people who have the responsibility of selecting an accessible online content editor. The proposed method has made it possible to meet the objective set out in this research document and can be used to evaluate the accessibility of learning management systems and course management systems.

A Serious Game Accessible to People with Visual Impairments

Serious games allow people to learn through fun activities. This type of video game has a growing demand and its use has spread to several areas of education. However, accessibility for several kinds of disabilities has not been considered in its design due to the challenges it poses. However, there are video game development companies that have defined certain accessibility guidelines for several kinds of impairments. Many accessible games have been evaluated for different types of impediments and a set of high and low-level accessibility strategies has been obtained so that game developers can use them to improve their designs. These initiatives allow the development of serious accessible games in different areas of education. This article presents a serious game proposal accessible to people with visual impairments. The video game is aimed at reinforcing the binary calculation skills of engineering students.

A Mobile Serious Games Assessment Tool for People with Motor Impairments

Accessibility is a feature that often is not considered in the design of products or services and video games market is not the exception. Serious games is a category of video games that allows to educate in different areas through fun. They have become an important support tool in the learning process. However, most serious games do not focus on vulnerable groups such as people with motor impairments. On the other hand, the number of mobile serious games has increased with the use of mobile devices. Despite this, accessibility for people with motor impairments has not yet been considered a necessary feature in the development of this type of video games. Some video game developer groups recommend general accessibility guidelines for the design of such applications. However, it has become necessary to formalize, consolidate and analyze these initiatives in order to define a model for evaluating the accessibility of video games for people with motor impairments. This paper presents a compilation and analysis of accessibility guidelines for the development of video games for people with motor impairments. It also proposes a categorization of existing guidelines that allow to evaluate a video game accessibility level. As a case study, these accessibility guidelines are used to assess some mobile serious games and identify their accessibility level for people with motor impairments. We propose an assessment tool for those who wish to develop accessible serious games for people with motor impairments on mobile devices.