accessstem & accesscomputing: creating sustainable partnerships at local & national levels...
TRANSCRIPT
AccessSTEM & AccessComputing: Creating Sustainable Partnerships at
Local & National Levels
Sheryl Burgstahler, Ph.D.Affiliate Professor, Education
Director, Access Technology Services, DO-ITUniversity of Washington, Seattle
• 1992, grant from U.S. National Science Foundation
• Now DO-IT Scholars program funded by State of Washington
• Other grants fund special projects
• Total: > $50,000,000 since 1992
Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, & Technology
DO-IT Goal
To increase the success of individuals with disabilities in postsecondary education & careers, using technology as an empowering tool
Handouts
• AccessSTEM
• AccessComputing
• How You Can Engage with DO-IT
All are available in both HTML & PDF formats at
www.uw.edu/doit/Brochures/Programs/
Disabilities related to:
• Hearing
• Seeing
• Learning
• Attention
• Health
• Speech
• Mobility, physical skills
• Communication
Primary Sources of Evidence
• Literature review • Outcomes of prior projects
• Suggestions from practitioners
• Input from students with disabilities (SWD)
• The Northwest Alliance for Students with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics
• Led by DO-IT
• Partners:Bellevue College, Seattle Central Community College, Seattle Public Schools
Goal
To improve academic & career outcomes for students with disabilities in science, technology, engineering &
mathematics (STEM) fields
Sheryl Burgstahler, PI & DirectorMari Ostendorf, Co-PI
Objectives 1 & 2
1. Implement changes within partner postsecondary institutions to make STEM more welcoming & accessible
2. Support engagement of stakeholders in fostering STEM education &
careers that are
welcoming & accessible
Objective 3
Implement evidence-based practices to increase numbers of individuals with disabilities moving through critical junctures to STEM associate, baccalaureate, & graduate degrees & careers
Objective 4
Support & expand an online resource center
UW Lead
• Engages with partner leaders to assess needs, plan/implement activities, collect data
• Engages with "A-Team” students to assess needs & plan & implement activities
• Engages & supports SWD at partner schools (e.g., mentoring, leadership opportunities, workshops, internships)
UW Lead
• Assists partners with institutional change• Collaborates with other RDE Alliances• Engages online Communities of Practice• Disseminates information & resources • Improves & evaluates project• Participates in AccessSTEM/AccessComputing/DO-
IT Longitudinal Transition Study (ALTS) to track progress of students supported with NSF funds since 1993
All Partners
• Engage in Alliance collaboration—identify needs & develop/host/promote/evaluate activities
• Assist with campus-focused CBIs • Promote institutional change • Engage in CoPs • Conduct faculty/staff UD & other training• Engage with SWD to (1) recruit to activities & (2)
promote project goal
Other STEM Alliances
Department of Computer Science & Engineering
DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, & Technology) Center
Collaboration
Increase the participation & success of individuals with disabilities in
computing fields
Richard Ladner, PI
Sheryl Burgstahler, Co-PI & Director
Broadening Participation in Computing Alliance
Goal
Organizational Partners
• AccessSTEM• East Alliance• Reaching the Pinnacle• Midwest Alliance• Virtual Alliance for Deaf and Hard of Hearing• CAITE• CAHSI• EL Alliance• National Girls Collaborative Project• STARS Alliance• CCCE Alliance• NCWIT• ARTSI• Georgia Computes!• Into the Loop• CMD-IT
Midwest Alliance
Virtual Alliance forDeaf and Hard of Hearing
Georgia Computes!Into the Loop
• Gallaudet University• Rochester Institute of Tech• National Tech Institute for the Deaf• Landmark College• Carnegie Mellon University• Auburn University• Georgia Tech• City University of New York• University of Rochester• University of Maryland, Baltimore County• Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville• North Carolina State University• Washington State University• New Mexico State University
Institutional Partners
Objectives
• Increase the number of students with disabilities successfully pursuing degrees & careers in computing fields
• Increase the capacity of postsecondary computing departments to fully include students with disabilities in computing courses and programs
• Create a nationwide resource
Alliance activities promote:
• Student success• Academies, internships,
mentoring, conference attendance
• Institutional change• Capacity building institutes, promotion of UD,
collaborations, communities of practice
• Knowledge dissemination• Articles, publications, checklists, website,
online Knowledge Base
Working with StudentsAlliances promote self-determination; college transition & success; careers in STEM
Working with InstitutionsAlliances promote universal design & effective accommodations
Promoting self-determination; college transition & success; careers in STEM
Engagement with Students
Challenges for students:
• Diminished support systems after high school
• Little access to successful role models
• Lack of access to technology that can increase independence, productivity, &
participation
• Inadequate self-advocacy skills
• Inadequate accommodations
• Low expectations & other negative attitudes on the part of people with whom they interact
-National Organization on Disabilities
Critical Junctures
Opportunities! News
• Created collaboratively, tailored to each campus
• Distributed to SWD in spring & fall
AccessSTEM/AccessComputing Team
Student members participate in:•E-mentoring•Workshops, trainings, labs•Leadership experiences (e.g., panels)•Tutoring•Industry/research internships (89 complete)•Other work-based learning such as corporate visits, mock interviews, resume-building
College & Career Prep Activities
• Experiences in dorm, cafeteria, facilities• Learn about resources• Become experts on assistive technology &
other accommodations• Practice discussing disability &
accommodations with faculty• Engage in mock job interviews• Hear from successful college students with
disabilities
• Computer, science labs, lectures
• Practice self-
advocacy
• Field trips to
Microsoft
• College &
career prep
activities…
Summer Study
Year-round Participation
• Communicate online with each other, staff, & mentors who support their postsecondary education & career goals
• Get together for pizza & networking• Participate in internships, mock interviews,
& other work-based learning activities• Meet with staff for individual consultation• Participate in panels & other leadership
opportunities
Interns at
Microsoft
Informal Science Accessibility Reviews
Encouraging other programs to replicate this popular & productive student intervention
Engagement with Japan
• Two faculty members from University of Tokyo visit DO-IT Seattle, each for one year, to learn evidence-based practices
• DO-IT Summer Study began at University of Tokyo in 2007
International ExchangesBetween
DO-IT U.S. & DO-IT Japan
They shared their experiences & tips for success in postsecondary education & careers.
2. Japan & U.S. Scholars communicate in electronic video conferences.
1. Two U.S. participants traveled to Japan to assist with the first Summer Study.
A participant from Japan gave a talk about his disability to participants in U.S.; they discussed their disabilities on the Island
3. DO-IT Island in Second Life (a virtual reality, cyber space) was developed by project Interns in U.S.
Promotinguniversal design & effective accommodations
Working with Institutions
Accommodation =
Alternate format, service, &/or adjustment for a specificindividual
“Coffeepot for Masochists”, Catalog of Unfindable Objects by Jacques Carelman; in Donald Norman’s The Psychology of Everyday Things, 1988
Universal Design =
“the design of products & environments to be usable by all
people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for
adaptation or specialized design.”
The Center for Universal Designwww.design.ncsu.edu/cud
• An attitude that values diversity, equity, & inclusion
• A goal
• A process
• Practices that make learning products & environments welcoming, accessible, &
usable for everyone
UD is:
Apply UD to:
• Instruction• Student Services• Information Technology• Physical Spaces
Examples of UD in STEM Course
• Arrange seating so that everyone has a clear line of sight for viewing demonstrations
• Use large, bold fonts on uncluttered overhead displays & speak aloud all content presented• Provide multiple ways to gain & demonstrate knowledge, using multiple senses• Avoid unnecessary jargon; define terms• Provide scaffolding tools (e.g., outline)
Examples of UD, continued
• Provide materials in accessible electronic formats, including mathematics symbols & figures
• Accommodate a variety of reading levels & language skills, when appropriate
• Provide regular feedback
• Test in same manner in which you teach
UD of Science Labs
UD of Science Labs, cont.
• Install mirror above demonstration area• Use large print, high contrast letters for
signs & labels• Buy lab products that can be used by
individuals with wide range of abilities (e.g., plastic instead of glass, tactile models, large-print diagrams, non-slip mats, object clamps, surgical gloves)
To apply checklists:
• Cross off those UDI practices that do not apply to your situation
• Check UDI practices you already employ• Put a date for implementation of UDI
practices you plan to employ in the future to create a timeline
• Periodically check your progress
Quiz
A faculty leader along with a total of 9 other instructors & students met to discuss potential curriculum changes to a chemistry course. One participant requested a sign language interpreter. When the invoice arrived…
Who is right about the cost of interpreters?
a. Accountant: “Ouch. $80 for one person? That is expensive!”
b. Faculty leader: “Oh, no, the cost was only $8 per person.”
Universal design (proactive for everyone) & accommodations (reactive for individuals)
Policies & procedures that address both
We need:
•
•
Engagement of Practitioners in Communities of Practice
More than 300 members of online CoPs for:broadening participation projectsdisability services personnelSTEM educatorscomputing/IT facultyveterans-serving organizationsindustry & career services
Vets CoP Messages
•Networking: …I have accepted a position with the Veterans Administration in Seattle…
•Advice: I am looking for wisdom & guidance on next steps for getting appropriate medical documentation for veterans seeking services…
•Announcements: There will be a Senate procla-mation to honor the Military on the Senate Floor at…
•Resources: Check out our newest featured video at www.washington.edu/doit/, Returning from Service: College and IT Careers for Veterans…
• Faculty publications, tailored for your school, with legislation, UD, accommodations, resources
• CBI proceedings
• Peer-reviewed journal articles & other published papers
• …
Examples of Publications
Veterans Video & Publication• Champions the great potential that veterans with
disabilities have in their pursuit of STEM fields• Informs stakeholders of best practices
Accessibility of Science Labs, Computer Labs, Computing Departments, …
Empowering institutions to improve accessibility
• Q&A: How can I make my computing department more accessible to students with disabilities?• CASE STUDY: Distance Learning: A Case
Study on the Accessibility of an Online Course• PROMISING PRACTICE: The ImagineIT
Workshop: A Promising Practice in Engaging Students with Visual Impairments
Knowledge Base
Knowledge Base
• Q&A: Where can I find electronic text versions of books for students who have visual impairments or other print disabilities?
• CASE STUDY: Earth Science: A Case Study on Teaching Concepts to a Student with a Visual Impairment
• PROMISING PRACTICE: Accessibility Reviews: A Promising Practice to Improve the Accessibility of Local Science Education Programs
Ultimate Impact of Activities
1. Making STEM opportunities available to more citizens
2. Enhancing STEM
fields with the talents
& perspectives
of people with
disabilities.
You can engage with us in:
• Student activities
• Institutional change
• Knowledge dissemination
…
Student Engagement
• Summer Academies• Paid Internships• E-mentoring• Leadership Opportunities
• Panel presentations• Student summits• Technology conferences• Student case studies
Institutional Change Activities
• Capacity-building institutes• Other training or
dissemination activities on your campus
• Communities of practice
Formula for Success:
• Employ practices that are evidence-based• Literature review• Outcomes of prior projects • Suggestions from practitioners• Input from students with disabilities
• Evaluations of interventions reveal• Indicators of participant success • Institutional change
www.uw.edu/doit/Research/index.html
Resources
www.uw.edu/doit