Internet Learning Volume 6, Number 2, Fall 2017/Winter 2018 | Page 51

Internet Learning Journal
be necessary. Depending on when an
OER project is implemented, faculty
members will likely have competing
demands for their time. A well-implemented
OER project considers competing
faculty priorities and allots resources
and time to be creative in the
classroom. Otherwise faculty members,
like students, will possibly take inappropriate
shortcuts to meet deadlines.
Communication
Remaining in contact with internal media
development and classroom support
experts saves time and helps diminish
problems in the long run. We learned
this when replacing commercial language
software in an Arabic class. The
class our colleague created was greatly
improved, except that the Arabic font
and media files made did not work well
with the university’s learning management
system. Expeditious assistance
was needed, which caused some major
disruptions to program management
schedules. In the end, the class
was far superior, with the retention rate
improving significantly. However, the
process was not smooth or ideal. More
communication about planning and
proactive steps is recommended.
508 Compliance
Faculty members need to develop
American with Disabilities Act (ADA)
as well as copyright literacy to successfully
make the transition to OERs. Interactive
Accessibility (n.d.) explains that:
... the Department of Justice
(DOJ) published the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Standards for Accessible Design
in September 2010. These standards
state that all electronic
and information technology
must be accessible to people with
disabilities.
The ADA differs from Section
508 regulations, which are an
amendment to the Rehabilitation
Act of 1973 and apply to all information
technology, including
computer hardware, software
and documentation. (para. 1)
ADA regulations can be quite
complex, and guidelines seem to change
frequently. Therefore, it is incumbent
upon administration to provide both
training and knowledgeable support
staff for faculties.
When viewing potential OER
material, we had to constantly think
about accessibility issues. For instance,
there are some excellent resources
available at the UN Women Training
Centre website (i.e. its self-paced modules).
However, we could not use many
of these resources because they are not
508 compliant. In this regard, while the
material might be free, it is not completely
accessible. As a solution, when
we chose an OER that lacked, for instance,
a script or closed captioning,
our internal instructional designers
and media team would create one.
Then, we offered the script to the original
creator of the resource. Such accommodations
are crucial in both online
and brick and mortar instructional
environments.
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