References

Moore, M. & Kearsley, G. (1996). Distance Education: A Systems View. Belmont, CA. Wadsworth Publishing.

Sample Sites to Help Students Determine if Distance Education is for Them

Do I Want to Learn at a Distance? Distance-Educator.com
http://www.distance-educator.com/portals/quiz.html

Are Distance Learning Courses for Me? Center for Independent Learning
http://www.cod.edu/dept/CIL/CIL_Surv.htm

Example Study Guides

PE Technikon George Campus Agricultural Management III
http://saaslin.petech.ac.za/AgMan/studyg/agman3/GUIDEAM3.htm

Mississippi State University AISE 8103
http://www.msstate.edu/dept/ais/8103/units/week14.html

Web Accessibility
(Because this is such an important area, we have provided several subheadings dealing with Web and accessibility topics.)

General

Chong, C. (2002). Web Accessibility: Making Your Web Site Accessible to the Blind. Retrieved January 26, 2004, from http://www.nfb.org/tech/webacc.htm

Isom, J. (2000). Web Access for the Blind: Freedom, Frustrations, and Fixes. Retrieved January 26, 2004, from http://www.webaim.org/techniques/articles/blind

Nielsen, J. (2000). Designing for Web Usability. Indianapolis, IN: New Riders Publishing. (see Chapter 6: Accessibility for Users with Disabilities, pp. 296-311.)

Paciello, M. G. (2000). Web Accessibility for People with Disabilities. Lawrence, KS: CMP Books. Web Accessibility Guidelines.

Robertson, J. S. (2002). Making Online Information Accessible to Students with Disabilities. The Technology Source(July/August).http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=948

Robertson, J. S., & Harris, J. W. (2003). Making Online Information Accessible to Students with Disabilities, Part II. The Technology Source(January/February). http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=1008

Schmetzke, A. (2001). Online Distance Education - "Anytime, Anywhere" but Not for Everyone. Information Technology and Disabilities, 7(2). http://www.rit.edu/~easi/itd/itdv07n2/axel.htm

Smith, A. (2002). Understanding Web Page Accessibility: A Focus on the Visually Impaired. TechKnowLogia, 4(3), 71-72. http://www.techknowlogia.org/TKL_active_pages2/Archives/main.asp?IssueNumber=17
You need to navigate a bit to access this article. From the Archive page, select the July - September 2002 issue. Click the "view full table of contents" link. Scroll down the table of contents to the "Technologies Today" section. Select Smith's article in html or pdf format.

Thomas, M. M. (2003, January). Accessible Web Pages: Advice for Educators. Syllabus, 16, 26-28.
http://www.syllabus.com/article.asp?id=7095

Web Accessibility Initiative

http://www.w3c.org/wai
The Web Accessibility Initiative established the initial guidelines for accessible design.

Section 508 Standards

http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/summary.htm
This page contains the original Federal Access Board’s Standards for Electronic and Information Technology

http://www.section508.gov
This is the central site for Section 508. It is designed to assist Federal employees in understanding and implementing the Section 508 guidelines.

Web Accessibility Resource Sites

National Cancer Institute
http://www.usability.gov
An extensive resource site devoted to accessibility.

WebAIM (Web Accessibility in Mind)
http://www.webaim.org/
WebAIM is a FIPSE & LAAP grant-funded project coordinated by Utah State University. It is specifically focused on assisting higher education institutions to identify and solve web accessibility problems. WebAIM also hosts an open discussion forum on accessibility issues.

EASI (Equal Access to Software and Information)
http://www.rit.edu/~easi/index.htm
EASI provides training opportunities and resources. EASI also publishes the Information Technology and Disabilities (ITD) electronic journal.

The National Center for Accessible Media
http://ncam.wgbh.org
A national research and development facility that works to find solutions for making multimedia accessible.

The Alliance for Technology Access
http://www.ataccess.org/
Provides information and support services to children and adults with disabilities.

Web Site Validators

Bobby
http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/index.jsp

The Cynthia Says Portal
http://www.cynthiasays.com/

Wave 3.0 Accessibility Tool
http://www.wave.webaim.org/index.jsp

Disability Simulators

Webaim Screen Reader Simulation
http://www.webaim.org/simulations/screenreader
Simulates the experience of using a screen reader. Illustrates how inaccessible content affects screen reader users.

Webaim Low Vision Simulation
http://www.webaim.org/simulations/lowvision.php
Simulates the experience people with specific visual impairments (macular degeneration, cataracts, and glaucoma) have when trying to view a web site.

Vischeck Color Blindness
http://www.vischeck.com/vischeck/
Provides information about color blindness. Allows you to test web pages through a color blindness simulator.

Glossary

Accessibility refers to ensuring that course content and associated instructional activities, regardless of form or structure, can be accessed and used by all people, regardless of their abilities.

Auditory learners would rather hear someone read a lesson than read the lesson themselves. Auditory learners learn best when interacting with others in a listening/speaking activity.

Disability as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities

Formative assessments take place during the course.

Kinesthetic learners appreciate the opportunity to physically manipulate objects to derive meaning.

Summative assessments take place at the end of a course.

Visual learners prefer text, graphs, charts, diagrams and photos to assist their understanding.

Support Materials

Factors Affecting Success in Distance Education

General Characteristics of Typical Distance Education Students

Distance Education Students' Frequently Asked Questions

Support Structures for Students

Student Assessment

Example Objects for Students to Manipulate

Rollover example 1
Rollover example 2
Click-ons
Drag and drops
The examples presented here were developed by the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines. IRRI has granted Roadmap to Effective Distance Education Instructional Design permission to include these examples.