PCG Academia actively participated in the National Scientific Conference entitled “Developing Quality of Life for People with Disabilities in the Digital Age. Inclusion or Exclusion?”, which took place on November 24th, 2021. The conference was organized by the Office for Persons with Disabilities at Cardinal Wyszyński University in Warsaw in cooperation with partners.

One of the main goals of this interdisciplinary event was to identify difficulties and opportunities in supporting people with disabilities with new technologies. Participants discussed how to counteract digital exclusion, identified limitations that make it difficult for people with disabilities to access new technologies, and pinned down ways to overcome barriers and improve the quality of life for people with disabilities.

PCG Academia representatives brought their expertise on supporting students with disabilities to the discussion. The conference closed with a presentation by our expert, Anna Warda-Ritzen, on building a culture of accessibility at universities.

Implementing accessibility at universities is not only a legal requirement, but also a desire to create a learning environment that is useful for all. But how do we create equal opportunities for students with diverse needs?

The Blackboard Ally tool, used by many excellent universities around the world, can help with ensuring better individualization of the learning experience for students with special educational needs. Ally helps ensure the digital accessibility of learning materials as well as websites content, removing barriers in their use for people with disabilities.

Blackboard Ally enables, among other things, the automated creation of alternative formats (electronic braille, audio, ePub) and analysis of content accessibility levels, as well as suggests specific corrective actions for faculty and page editors. Ally also provides reports that give insight into the level of digital accessibility across the university.

Blackboard Ally along with other solutions supporting didactics at the university can be tested within the Pilot Program: more information here.

We encourage you to watch the recording from the conference: