Improving Accessibility in Digital Learning

The Visual Lounge

Did you know that making your educational content more accessible can enhance the learning experience for everyone? In this episode of The Visual Lounge, Matt Pierce sits down with accessibility advocate and CEO of Build Capable, Sarah Mercier, to explore the world of accessible learning design.

We hear about Sarah’s journey and insights on making educational content more accessible to all learners, when she realized just how important it is, and her tips for getting started with your own content.

She discusses how accessibility isn't just about accommodating specific disabilities, but about removing barriers for everyone. Sarah provides practical tips for content creators, such as incorporating closed captions, transcripts, and audio descriptions into video production. She encourages a "progress over perfection" approach and suggests starting with small steps and continuously improving accessibility practices.

Learning points from the episode include:

• 00:00 - 01:28 Introduction
• 01:28 - 07:20 Why is it important to get better at accessibility?
• 07:20 - 12:50 How to make accessibility a part of your practice
• 12:50 - 16:10 Getting started with accessibility and dealing with feedback
• 16:10 - 17:08 How to find out more about Sarah and her resources
• 17:08 - 17:32 Outro

Important links and mentions:

• Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahcmercier/
• Build Capable: https://buildcapable.com/