Including Accessibility Within and Beyond Undergraduate Computing Courses
Annalu Waller, Vicki L. Hanson, David Sloan · 2009 · Proceedings of the 11th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (Assets '09) · doi:10.1145/1639642.1639670
Summary
This paper describes the University of Dundee's approach to integrating accessibility and inclusive design throughout its entire four-year undergraduate computing curriculum, rather than treating accessibility as a standalone topic or elective module. The School of Computing at Dundee is internationally recognised as a centre for accessible technology research, with over 30 years of work in areas such as augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), predictive text, web accessibility, and ageing and dementia. This research expertise feeds directly into undergraduate teaching. The curriculum is structured progressively: first-year introductory modules explicitly address accessibility when discussing user input validation, data structures, and algorithms (including an assistive technology team project); second-year modules integrate accessibility into Information Technology and Applied Computing courses; third-year teaching connects accessibility to the broader philosophy of usability, legal requirements, and commercial reasons through HCI, Internet Programming, GUI Programming, and Database courses; and fourth-year students undertake research frontier modules and individual honours projects. A distinctive pedagogical approach involves "workshop sessions" where students work directly with older adults to identify email system problems and prototype more accessible alternatives. Beyond the undergraduate programme, the paper describes how the university's Digital Media Access Group (DMAG) has extended accessibility expertise campus-wide through a Web Accessibility Service established in 2006.
Key findings
The integrated curriculum approach produced several observable outcomes. Student projects covered a wide range of accessibility topics including tools for people with dyscalculia, non-text AAC systems using natural language generation and mobile communication, Blissymbolics on PDAs, web accessibility evaluation tools, and joke generation systems for children. The workshop sessions with older adults proved particularly effective at helping students appreciate the complexity of accessible design — students who initially proposed simple solutions discovered through direct user contact that their assumptions were wrong, fostering "accessible thinking" by third year. The Web Accessibility Service expanded the university's accessibility efforts beyond computing students to all web content authors across campus through training workshops, an online accessibility resource, one-to-one support, and review of authoring tools for ATAG conformance. The service influenced the university's web content management system procurement (evaluating candidates for accessibility support) and contributed to the adoption of a formal Web Accessibility Policy in May 2008. The approach also fostered "accessible thinking" as a default mindset rather than a checklist exercise — regular coursework was marked down if user diversity was not considered.
Relevance
This paper presents one of the most comprehensive models for integrating accessibility into computing education, and the challenges it describes remain highly relevant. Most computing programmes still treat accessibility as an optional topic or a single lecture within an HCI course. Dundee's approach demonstrates that pervasive integration — where accessibility is assessed in every module, not just specialised ones — can produce graduates who view inclusive design as a default rather than an afterthought. The progressive structure from awareness (year 1) through practical experience (year 2-3) to research contribution (year 4) provides a replicable framework. The extension beyond the computing department to campus-wide web authoring support through DMAG illustrates how academic accessibility expertise can drive institutional change. The model's emphasis on direct contact with disabled and older users, rather than purely guideline-based teaching, addresses the persistent gap between knowing accessibility rules and understanding why they matter. For organisations building accessibility capability, the combination of education, policy, tool procurement, and ongoing support services offers a holistic template.
Tags: accessibility education · inclusive design · higher education · curriculum design · web accessibility · professional development · organizational accessibility
Standards referenced: WCAG 2.0 · ATAG 1.0