Gentle reader, we’re already at our tenth blog post!
Photo by Adrian Curiel on Unsplash
LibGuides for All
Help me celebrate by checking out a resource I created on a theme that’s been running throughout my blogging careeer: Accessibility.
Take a look at “LibGuides for All” — it’s a site I created to help folks get started in creating accessible LibGuides.
I think that switching how you do stuff at work in your professional practice, as an individual but especially as a group, can be a little overwhelming and stressful. So, I collected some introductory material on digital accessibility, especially as it pertains to larger social questions in academia and STEM and college, and also created some how-to videos. I’m hoping this website can be used in conjunction with an in-house workshop on creating accessible LibGuides.
I asked for some feedback from colleagues and they were all for changing our practice to include digital accessibility. However, there was some reluctance in spending time on it without a directive from on high. I think I need to emphasize the fact that these are habits not big huge new ways of mind-altering change.
Big Questions
What has your experience been with professionals and whether they are willingness to incorporate small changes such as those found in LibGuides for All?
Please let me know what you think of LibGuides for All. You know me by now — I love your feedback.
“There is access and then there is accessibility” is a phrase used by C. Booth in “Why Accessibility?” authored for the American Library Association. This may sound like a Jane Austen title, but, in fact, it’s a clever way to show the distinction between access and accessibility.
Accessibility in STEM
Creating accessible materials is important for everyone. Let’s take that for granted. However, it’s important to ask about science’s particular relationship with accessibility. According to an article in Nature, ableist cultures in science have made it harder for science people to declare a disability. This means that there are more science people with disabilities than we know of. This is in keeping with a National Academies report that shows a predominant attitude in STEM that “innate talent” is the key to success in STEM fields.
Knowing this helps me to realize that it is more important than ever to create accessible materials in my role as a science librarian.
Accessibility in STEM Libraries
As a librarian who has worked with science and engineering materials, I can tell you that there is a challenge to creating and maintaining accessible information. I think there are two fronts to the battle:
Librarian created material
Publisher created material
In this post, I’ll talk about Librarian created material.
Accessible Research Guides
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been working to update Research Guides at my temping gig. Research Guides are online pathfinders created to help students learn the best sources to find books and articles for their research papers.
What have I found?
A lot of pdfs that need to be replaced with machine-readable material
Guides that have little navigation or hierarchy
Images without alt-text
A feeling that the guide was more about the creator’s knowledge than the reader’s path to success
I don’t want to sound like I’m just complaining — these guides are rich with very good content. The access is there. Just not the accessibility. I’ve also found that revising and remediating for accessibility has improved them in so many ways that will benefit everyone. I’ve been chanting the W3.org mantra “Essential for some, useful for all.”
I’ll roll up my sleeves and get back to work on it!
Question for you
Gentle reader, I ask you to comment on this:
Have you ever introduced the concepts and practice of accessible design to fellow colleagues? If so, were you met with any negative reactions? Did they ease over time? When I first was introduced to these concepts, I will admit that I encountered a mix of emotions: overwhelmed and guilty as well as motivated to change the way I work. I think it’s important to realize that it may take a little time to adjust to these ideas. What has been your experience?
