PDF in the Classroom: The Future of Digital Textbooks

Proposal No: 1978

Bios & Handouts

Speaker(s)

• Karen McCall, Accessible Document Design Consultant, Coach, and Educator, Karlen Communications

Disability Area: Cognitive|Learning   Mobility   Vision   Deaf|HOH   Other Disability  

Topic Area: Legal   Best Practices   Web|Media Access   Alternate Format   Campus Policy   Curriculum Access   Assistive Technology   Information Resources  

Summary of Session

This session is an overview of how the PDF/UA standard for accessible digital content will impact the availability of accessible textbooks and assist alternate format production centres in providing differently accessible versions of accessible PDF course material.

Abstract

With the implementation of the PDF/UA or Universal Access standard, the evolution of accessible digital content reaches another milestone. For the first time there is an opportunity for students to access accessible digital PDF versions of textbooks at the same time others access the same content. For alternate format production centres, this means that content comes to them ready to be made differently accessible.

Kepoints

1. PDF/UA is an itnernational standard for accessible PDF
2. PDF/UA means that there is a consistency in doucment
3. Potential impact on alternate format production centres

Speaker Bio(s)

Karen McCall

Karen McCall, M.Ed. is the owner of Karlen Communications. She has been working in the field of accessible document design since 1999. She began her career in website accessibility and auditing and moved to accessible Word, PowerPoint and PDF documents in 2004. Karen is a Canadian delegate to the ISO 14289 or PDF/UA (Universal Access) and the ISO 32000 PDF committee. She has been a Microsoft MVP for Word (Most Valued Professional) since 2009 and a Microsoft Accessibility MVP since 2017 when this category of MVP was established. Karen has written several books on the topic of accessible document design for Word, PowerPoint and PDF documents as well as smaller publications with specific techniques for working with Office applications if you are using adaptive technology and/or the keyboard.

Handout(s)