[WCGA Initiative] How to Address Web Content Accessibility Guideline? Re-creation and Synthesis Strategy

How to Address Web Content Accessibility Guideline (WCAG)? Re-creation and Synthesis Strategy

 

Executive Summary: Addressing WCAG Compliance with Re-creation and Synthesis Strategy
The University of Maine System (UMS) is committed to complying with WCAG 2.1 AA standards by 2026, fostering inclusivity for all users, including those with disabilities. Challenges such as resource constraints, content diversity, intellectual property risks, outdated technologies, training gaps, and compliance deadlines necessitate a strategic, AI-driven approach to ensure accessible, legally compliant, and academically rigorous materials.

Strategic Recommendations

1. Content Collection: Centralize all teaching materials, digital assets, and legacy content to streamline auditing and modernization.
2. CLO Integration: Input course learning outcomes (CLOs) into AI models to align content creation with academic goals.
3. AI Training: Use institutional content to train LLMs, generating tailored, WCAG-compliant educational resources.
4. Structured Content Design: Organize content around CLOs for logical navigation and user-friendly experiences.
5. Synthesize New Materials: Recreate educational resources (e.g., summaries, videos, podcasts) to ensure accessibility and avoid IP violations.
6. Deployment and Updates: Publish content incrementally to meet deadlines and integrate feedback-driven improvements.
7. Continuous Improvement: Utilize campus media technologies for ongoing refinement and faculty training.

 

 

1. What is the WCAG for UMS system?

Accessibility Guidelines for the University of Maine System (UMS)

The University of Maine System (UMS) is dedicated to ensuring all digital content complies with WCAG 2.1 AA standards, fostering an inclusive experience for all users, including those with disabilities. This initiative supports compliance with the Office of Civil Rights and enhances usability across web and learning platforms.

Key Requirements for Accessibility

1. Text and Language: Use clear, jargon-free text with explanations for abbreviations.
2. Images: Provide descriptive alt text and ensure proper color contrast.
3. PDFs: Make accessible or convert to web pages using tools like Adobe Acrobat.
4. Videos and Audio: Include captions, transcripts, and live captions for streaming.
5. Uniform Styling: Follow the UMS Web Editorial Style Guide.

 

 

Resources and Tools

1. Training: Access webinars and Brightspace resources such as "Accessible Content Creation."
2. Guides: Utilize the UMS IT Accessibility pages for accessibility checkers and instructional support.
3. New Rule: Starting in April 2026, all digital content must be accessible by default.

By embedding accessibility practices into course materials and web content, UMS faculty and staff play a vital role in creating a universally accessible educational environment. For detailed support and additional guidelines, visit the UMS IT Accessibility resources.

 

2. What are Problems of WCAG in UMS?

 

3. Problems of Implementing WCAG in Higher Education

Integrating Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA standards in higher education, such as within the University of Maine System (UMS), encounters multiple obstacles, compounded by intellectual property (IP) challenges. Below is an analysis of these problems:

A. Resource and Funding Constraints
Issue: Ensuring compliance with WCAG standards requires substantial investment in training, technology, and personnel.
Examples: Limited funding delays content auditing and digital platform updates. Insufficient staff trained in accessibility standards compromises implementation quality.
Impact: Non-compliance risks legal and reputational repercussions, along with decreased inclusivity.

B. Volume and Diversity of Content
Issue: Universities manage a vast array of digital materials, including courses, research publications, and administrative information.
Examples: Difficulty in auditing and updating aging or third-party content for accessibility. Complex materials, such as multimedia and academic PDFs, present challenges for remediation.
Impact: Maintaining accessibility becomes a time-intensive, ongoing task, often deprioritized.

C. Legal Risks with Intellectual Property
Issue: Efforts to make content accessible can unintentionally infringe on copyright laws.
Examples: Unauthorized digitization of textbook chapters or journal articles shared online. Use of proprietary teaching materials, multimedia, or software without proper licensing.
Impact: Legal penalties, loss of publisher agreements, and diminished institutional credibility.

D. Technological Barriers
Issue: Legacy systems and outdated platforms may not support modern accessibility features.
Examples: Inflexible content management systems limit integration of accessible design tools. Costs and disruptions from transitioning to new platforms delay progress.
Impact: Accessibility efforts are hampered, especially in departments reliant on older technologies.

E. Knowledge Gaps and Training Deficiencies
Issue: Faculty and staff often lack awareness of accessibility requirements and intellectual property implications.
Examples: Unintentional violations of WCAG standards due to insufficient training. Misinterpretation of "fair use" or Creative Commons licenses when making content public.
Impact: Errors in content creation and distribution lead to non-compliance and legal risks.

F. Compliance Pressures
Issue: Adhering to evolving accessibility and intellectual property regulations requires constant vigilance.
Examples: New rules mandating accessible content by default add urgency to implementation. Risk of lawsuits and reputational harm for non-compliance with WCAG or copyright laws.
Impact: Institutions must allocate resources to monitor updates and address vulnerabilities proactively.

G. Recommendations
To address these challenges, institutions should:

• Invest in Training: Equip faculty and staff with knowledge on accessibility standards and intellectual property regulations.
• Upgrade Technology: Modernize platforms to better support accessibility features.
• Audit Content: Regularly review digital materials for WCAG compliance and IP adherence.
• Develop Policies: Create clear guidelines for accessibility and copyright in educational content.
• Collaborate with Stakeholders: Engage publishers, software providers, and accessibility experts for sustainable solutions.

By tackling these challenges strategically, higher education institutions can foster inclusive learning environments while minimizing legal and operational risks.

 

4. Strategic Countermeasures for WCAG Challenges Using AI Tools

To address the WCAG challenges in higher education institutions, a comprehensive step-by-step strategy is proposed. This approach integrates solutions to key issues, including limited resources, content diversity, intellectual property compliance, outdated technology, training gaps, and compliance deadlines. By leveraging AI tools such as Large Language Models (LLMs) and audio/visual content creators, this strategy offers an effective and scalable pathway to achieving WCAG compliance by 2026.

 

 

Step-by-Step Strategy with Integrated Solutions

1. Comprehensive Content Collection: Gather all teaching materials, digital assets, and legacy content from courses, including PDFs, multimedia files, and text-based documents. This centralizes materials, streamlines efforts to modernize outdated legacy content, and addresses challenges related to vast and varied digital content.
2. Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) Integration: Define and input CLOs into LLMs to align AI-generated content with academic objectives. This reduces manual workload, ensuring educational alignment and addressing resource constraints while mitigating training gaps.
3. LLM Training with Institutional Content: Use the collected materials to train LLMs, enabling them to generate tailored, context-specific educational content. This accelerates the creation of WCAG-compliant materials and modernizes content, addressing challenges of limited resources and outdated technology.
4. Guided Course Structuring: Apply AI-generated insights to organize course content around CLOs, ensuring a logical flow and user-friendly navigation. This structured approach streamlines accessibility efforts and addresses issues related to managing vast and diverse content.
5. Re-creation and Synthesis of Public Educational Content: Use AI tools to create accessible resources such as paraphrased texts, summaries, videos, podcasts, and audiobooks. This approach reduces intellectual property compliance risks by synthesizing new materials and automates the creation of WCAG-compliant resources, easing resource constraints.
6. Deployment and Updating of Public Educational Content: Publish synthesized content incrementally to ensure WCAG compliance and seamless integration into course platforms. This phased approach addresses compliance deadline pressures and modernizes outdated systems.
7. Continuous Improvement via Campus Media Rooms: Use campus media technologies to refine and enhance content based on feedback and accessibility audits. This iterative process ensures content quality while offering hands-on training opportunities for faculty, addressing training gaps and compliance pressures.

 

5. Case Example: OLS 600 - Leading Organizational Change

Course Context: OLS 600, part of the Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership, heavily relies on John Kotter’s Leading Change and related derivatives like videos, articles, and summaries. Two significant issues arise:

1. Lack of Academic Diversity: Overdependence on a single source limits academic rigor and varied perspectives.
2. Intellectual Property Compliance Risk: Republishing proprietary materials risks copyright infringement.

Strategic Solution Using the Step-by-Step Approach

1. Content Collection: Gather all course-related resources, including Leading Change, supplementary materials, videos, and assignments. Audit for accessibility gaps, such as missing captions, alt text, and compliance with intellectual property laws.
2. CLOs Integration: Input OLS 600’s CLOs into an LLM, including:
   • CLO#1: Assess the role of leaders in organizational change.
   • CLO#2: Compare organizational change theories and leadership styles.
   • CLO#3: Propose strategies for implementing change in diverse contexts.
3. LLM Training: Train the LLM with collected resources and additional academic sources, such as Cummings & Worley’s Organizational Development and Change and Kurt Lewin’s Change Process Model. These supplementary sources enhance academic rigor and diversity.
4. Guided Structuring: Organize content around CLOs to establish a clear course flow:
   • Module 1: Leadership and Change (Detailed Topics and Agenda follows)
     
   • Module 2: Organizational Theories (Detailed Topics and Agenda follows)
     
   • Module 3: Strategy and Implementation (Detailed Topics and Agenda follows)
     
5. Re-creation and Synthesis: Use AI tools to generate WCAG-compliant public materials:
   • Paraphrased summaries of Leading Change avoid copyright violations.
   • Multimedia resources, such as introduction videos, audio summaries, and podcasts, are developed.
   • All resources include captions, transcripts, and accessible design elements.
6. Deployment and Updating: Publish the synthesized resources to a course platform, ensuring they comply with WCAG standards. Conduct iterative updates based on student feedback and accessibility audits.
7. Continuous Improvement: Leverage campus media rooms to enhance multimedia content. Train faculty in using AI tools and accessibility best practices to sustain and improve course materials.

Outcome: This strategy ensures that OLS 600 becomes a model for accessible, academically diverse, and legally compliant educational content. The comprehensive approach addresses WCAG challenges effectively, promoting inclusivity and enhancing the learning experience.

 

5. Conclusion

The University of Maine System (UMS) demonstrates a strong commitment to WCAG 2.1 AA standards, fostering inclusivity for all users, including those with disabilities. Despite this commitment, the integration of WCAG in higher education faces several challenges, such as resource constraints, content diversity, intellectual property compliance risks, outdated technologies, training deficiencies, and compliance deadlines. These challenges demand a strategic and comprehensive approach to ensure accessibility while maintaining legal and academic standards.

Through innovative solutions, including the strategic use of AI tools like Large Language Models (LLMs) and multimedia content creators, UMS can effectively address these challenges. By systematically collecting, synthesizing, and updating content, institutions can create accessible, compliant, and academically rigorous educational materials. A case example like OLS 600 demonstrates how this approach resolves specific issues—ensuring academic diversity, mitigating intellectual property risks, and aligning with WCAG standards.

In conclusion, by adopting a structured, AI-powered strategy, UMS can establish itself as a leader in accessible higher education, fostering an inclusive and innovative learning environment while meeting the 2026 compliance mandate.

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Case of Re-creation & Synthesis

Comparative Analysis of Renovation Efforts for MA OL OLS 510: Foundations of Organizational Leadership Module 1 (YourPace)

 Executive Summary

The revamped Module 1, "Exploring Foundational Theories of Organizational Leadership," improves on its predecessor with enhanced structure, accessibility, and engagement. The updated module introduces a YourPace-compliant design, refined content to ensure originality, and interactive assignments like video-based milestone tasks. These updates foster deeper learning, critical thinking, and practical application, reducing vulnerabilities to AI-generated outputs.

 Comparative Analysis: Before vs. After

Aspect	Before	After	Advantages of After
Structure and Layout	Limited structure; lacked a standardized module/topic framework.	Follows YourPace’s structured module/topic format for seamless navigation.	Improved navigation and consistency across modules, enhancing the learner experience.
Accessibility	Did not explicitly meet web accessibility guidelines.	Fully compliant with web accessibility standards, ensuring content is inclusive and publicly accessible.	Ensures equitable access for all learners, aligning with modern educational standards.
Content Development	Relied on pre-existing external sources like Ted Talks and articles; risked IP overlaps.	All content recreated or synthesized, eliminating overlaps and ensuring originality.	Enhances institutional ownership of materials and avoids intellectual property concerns.
Introduction	Brief and generalized overview of leadership theories.	Detailed introduction offering comprehensive insights into foundational theories and leadership evolution.	Provides learners with a clear and engaging starting point for the module.
Assignments	Traditional writing assignments, vulnerable to AI-generated outputs.	Interactive 3-minute video task encouraging critical analysis and verbal communication skills.	Promotes competency-based learning and minimizes reliance on AI tools.
Rubric Alignment	Rubrics lacked clarity and specific connection to learning outcomes.	Calibrated rubrics that align closely with Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs).	Provides transparent and targeted evaluation, ensuring alignment with learning goals.
Multimedia	Relied on external multimedia resources like YouTube videos.	Includes newly created videos directly uploaded to YourPace, with IP fully retained by UMPI.	Strengthens institutional ownership and ensures high-quality, aligned multimedia content.

 Conclusion

The updated module significantly improves structure, accessibility, originality, and learner engagement, providing a more effective and modern educational experience.

 

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2024. 11. 20: Added Case of MAOL OLS 510

2024. 11. 19: Initially Archived