Kirsty Williamson, Louise Stockfeld, Steve Wright, Fran O'Neill, and Don Schauder Information and Telecommunications Needs Research (ITNR), SIMS, Monash University
Since the Internet is predominantly text based, people with physical and intellectual disabilities often face difficulties. Certain literacy skills are required to use the World Wide Web, whether for recreation or to access information. In an attempt to improve literacy skills, web sites with content focussed on sports, arts and recreation have been developed for three different educational groups at the Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE (NMIT). The first group involves people with mild to moderate physical and intellectual disabilities; the second, people with severe multiple physical, sensory, and intellectual disabilities. A third website has been developed to assist the Deaf who predominantly use English as a second language (not included in this paper). The research has used an interpretivist approach, combined with action research, to understand the needs and abilities of the three different groups and, after the prototypes were developed, to obtain feedback to improve and refine the web sites. The final products will provide a variety of designs and models of best practice which aim to make the Internet less threatening and more accessible to the target groups.
The paper will describe this project, which is being carried out by Information and Telecommunications Needs Research (ITNR) at Monash University in collaboration with NMIT, and will demonstrate its outcomes for people with physical and intellectual disabilities. It has been funded by the Department of Communications Information Technology and the Arts.
Information and Telecommunications Needs Research, Monash University