Accessibility of Tests in Higher Education Online Learning Environments: Perspectives and Practices of U.K. Expert Practitioners

• Main Author: Laughton, Simone
• Other Authors: McDougall, Doug
• Language: en_ca
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: accessibility; online test; higher education; technology; 0727; 0288; 0710
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/43995

This study is an investigation of the perspectives and practices of U.K. expert practitioners regarding the accessibility of tests in higher education online learning environments. As a growing area of concern in the higher education field, the accessibility of online tests is a particularly complex and challenging topic. To explore this topic further, twelve U.K. higher education expert practitioners were consulted. Five major themes that were identified by the participants included: 1. Requirement for balance between academic integrity and accessibility; 2. Need for inclusive design to better support the creation and delivery of accessible online tests; 3. Issues related to the mainstreaming of accessible online tests and testing processes; 4. Resources required to support the design and delivery of accessible online tests; and 5. Technology issues and approaches. The participants shared their research findings, experiences, and reflections regarding their work related to different types of online tests and accessibility.