Accessible Accessibility: Making Sense of Specific Review Standard 8.3 in the APPQMR

Matthew Emile Vaughan, PhD

Instructional Designer

Columbia University School of Professional Studies

April 24, 2020

All Presentation Documents Available:

​

https://tinyurl.com/qmdocs

Agenda (tweaked for Online)

1. Review LOs and Intended Audience(s)
2. Brief tone-setting feedback discussion
3. The Premise: storyboarding to improve facilitation in the APPQMR (w/ demo)
4. Complexifying the APPQMR
• Intro to Slides 61-78, and their aims in the APPQMR
• Drill down on issues related to SRS 8.3
5. Facilitating the APPQMR:
• The “Right Way”
• The “Less Is More” Way
• Implications
6. Drill down on the “Less Is More” Way, w/ Rationales
7. Q & A

Learning Objectives for This Session

Learning Objectives

1. Recognize the key issues for teaching “How to Write Helpful Recommendations” and Standards 7.1 and 8.3 in the APPQMR workshop
2. Interpret the Rubric Annotation and APPQMR Presenter Notes related to these topics
3. Craft a personal plan for teaching “How to Write Helpful Recommendations” and Standards 7.1 and 8.3 in the APPQMR workshop

​

Intended Audience(s)

• APPQMR Facilitators
• QM Coordinators
• Master Reviewers
• Anyone interested in storyboarding for F2F instruction

Discussion Prompt

Slides 61 - 78 in the APPQMR workshop have to do with three distinct topics:

​

1. How to Write a Helpful Recommendation
2. SRS 7.1 (Learner Support)
3. SRS 8.3 (Accessibility)

​

Which of these three topics is, as you understand it, more important for the APPQMR workshop? Why?

CUSPS Storyboard Tool

Slides 61 - 78: Drafting Helpful Recommendations �(from the QM PPT Overview)

​

“Participants learn more about how to draft a helpful recommendation (in QM terms) and about General Standards 7 and 8, which focus on support and accessibility and usability for our online learners. Participants will consider Specific Review Standards 7.1 and 8.3, apply the Rubric, cite evidence from SBS 3053, and draft a helpful recommendation. Participants will be required to submit the recommendations he or she wrote to the Facilitator to be marked successful for the workshop.”

​

Drafting Helpful Recommendations

• This is arguably the most difficult concept for new QM participants (i.e., those who are taking the APPQMR.
• Mastery of this skill is central to the aims and function of the PRC.
• Participants will, realistically, only “scratch the surface” of this skill during the APPQMR. But that initial feedback is crucial to the learning path of the APPQMR.

SRS 7.1 & SRS 8.3

​

7.1. “The course instructions articulate or link to a clear description of the technical support offered and how to obtain it.”

​

8.3. “The course provides accessible text and images in files, documents, LMS pages, and web pages to meet the needs of diverse learners.”

SRS 7.1 Is No Minor Consideration

Discerning whether or not this standard is “Met” is often complex. Learner Support can look/feel very differently, depending on institutional structure. “Examples of information about technical support:

1. A clear description of the technical support services provided by the institution, including a link to a technical support website
2. An email link to the institution's technical support center or help desk
3. A phone number for the institution's technical support center or help desk
4. Links to tutorials or other resources providing instructions on how to use the tools and features of the learning management system and other course technologies”
5. A link to "frequently asked questions"

SRS 8.3 Is QM’s Most Important SRS

Accessibility is becoming -- appropriately so -- one of the most contentious/important considerations of online learning. Are we generating content that alienates the very people the “Online Promise” attempts to include?

• SRS 8.3 is now a 3-point, “Essential” standard, in the 6th ed. of the HE Rubric.

Accessibility concerns are particularly complex:

• Blending ones’ pedagogy, technology savvy, and learner support;
• Utilizing the native Accessibility Checkers within respective LMSs;
• Protecting institutions against legal action of various kinds.

Special Materials related to SRS 8.3

Key Issues for SRS 8.3

1. Word Documents
2. PDFs
3. Linked Pages (i.e., HTML)
4. Color

Also important:

• Closed captioning
• Alt-tag best practices
• Using native Accessibility Checkers in your chosen LMS

Summary” Key Issues for APPQMR Facilitation

​

• Time in the day. This comes at 2:15pm - 3:15pm.
• Quantity of new material covered previously.
• The central nature of the “Drafting Helpful Recommendations” header. That’s the most important issue from QM’s stanpoint. Or is it?
• The complexity of the SRSs under consideration (7.1 and 8.3)
• Slide 76 links to supplemental resources on SRS 8.3
• An 11-slide SoftChalk intro to SRS 8.3
• A link to ~13 mins worth of videos about SRS 8.3

Crafting a Personal Plan for Teaching

• Option 1: The “Right” Way
• All QM-scripted content covered.
• All Activities accomplished exactly as the scripts dictate.
• The timing to be more or less honored.
• Option 2: The “Less Is More” Way
• Be more selective on what content to cover.
• Re-Think the Assignments:
• Scrap some
• Shorten some
• Do some

The Right Way

Implications

• Best Case Scenario: 50 minutes of Activity + 10 minutes of intermittent facilitation
• No time for any tech/logistics hiccups
• Not much time for discussion
• Most important: no time for coaching in the Activities

​

The long and short:

QM has given us too much content to cover responsibly in the one hour! F2F APPQMR facilitators should think less about “checking the boxes” than about generating lasting learning among participants. The “Less Is More” way is intended to be one way to do just that!

The Less Is More Way

Drill Down for the Less Is More Way

Rationales

• It is better to cover one topic in depth than several surface skims.
• Linking folks to the resource documents they will need will be crucial.
• Using the “Draft a Helpful Recommendation” mandate as the central one will provide an infrastructure for when/how to do the other objectives.
• You can still accomplish each LO if you are intentional.

Q & A

What are some general thoughts about my suggestions here?

What would you recommend for how to cover this amount of content? The APPQMR clearly has to be tweaked constantly!

​