Including Accessibility in Computer Science Education
Catherine M. Baker, Yasmine N. Elglaly, Anne Spencer Ross, Kristen Shinohara · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 22) · doi:10.1145/3517428.3550404
Summary
This workshop paper addresses a persistent gap in computing education: accessibility knowledge and skills are rarely included systematically in undergraduate computing curricula, despite being essential for producing software professionals who can build accessible products. The authors — faculty from Creighton University, Western Washington University, Bucknell University, and Rochester Institute of Technology — organized a workshop at ASSETS 2022 to bring together computing educators, accessibility researchers, industry professionals, and disability advocates to develop consensus on what should be taught about accessibility. The paper documents how accessibility education currently depends almost entirely on individual professors' interests, is rarely organized across a degree program, and lacks curricular reinforcement. Prior research found that students who learn accessibility in one course often forget it by graduation, and graduates entering the software industry find themselves lacking the knowledge needed to implement accessibility in their work. The workshop was structured around asynchronous brainstorming, a synchronous prioritization session, and small-group discussions on specific teaching materials and approaches. The organizers drew on established curricular frameworks including ABET accreditation criteria and the ACM/IEEE/AAAI CC2020 computing curricula guidelines to structure their approach to defining learning objectives.
Key findings
The workshop identified several critical issues in accessibility education. First, accessibility topics need to be integrated across the computing curriculum rather than confined to a single elective course — a two-tier system was proposed where Tier 1 covers foundational knowledge all students should acquire and Tier 2 addresses enhanced proficiency for those seeking deeper expertise. Second, learning objectives should be structured using ABET's three phases: Introduce, Reinforce, and Emphasize, with an added fourth category of "Use in Industry" to connect academic learning to professional practice. Third, the scope of accessibility education should extend beyond technical implementation skills to include understanding disability, ethical considerations around discrimination, and the social context of accessible technology. The workshop aimed to produce a white paper outlining prioritized learning objectives and a public repository of teaching artifacts (assignments, syllabi, exercises) contributed by participants. The paper also notes that accessibility is currently taught through diverse methods including lectures, projects, videos, games, and community-based learning, but these efforts remain fragmented and uncoordinated across programs.
Relevance
This paper is directly relevant to organizations and educators working to close the accessibility skills gap in the technology workforce. The documented disconnect between what graduates know and what industry needs explains much of why digital products continue to ship with accessibility defects. For practitioners mentoring junior developers, the two-tier framework offers a useful model for structuring on-the-job accessibility training — starting with foundational awareness (disability models, ethical obligations, basic standards) before building technical proficiency (WCAG implementation, assistive technology testing, accessible design patterns). The emphasis on reinforcement across multiple courses rather than one-off exposure aligns with what accessibility professionals observe in practice: a single workshop or course is insufficient to build lasting competency. The call for involving disability advocates and industry professionals alongside educators in shaping curricula reflects the same multidisciplinary approach needed for effective accessibility programs in organizations.
Tags: accessibility education · computer science education · curriculum design · teaching accessibility · workforce development
Standards referenced: ABET · CC2020