Collaborative Research: Innovative Materials for Promoting Accessibility Curriculum and Teaching

This project aims to serve the national interest by improving accessibility education in undergraduate computing and building a community of practice to support instructors. As software increasingly shapes participation in education, employment, and healthcare, digital accessibility has become an important computing competency. This creates opportunities to further integrate accessibility concepts and practices into undergraduate computing curricula. This Level 2 Engaged Student Learning project seeks to advance accessibility education in undergraduate computing through research, evidence-based instructional innovation, and faculty support. It plans to investigate how experiential learning opportunities can motivate students, increase accessibility awareness, and foster intentions to design accessible software in the future. Expected outcomes include empirically informed instructional resources, evidence-based guidance for teaching accessibility in undergraduate computing, and broader dissemination and adoption of these resources through a community of practice and open educational materials. The goals of this project are to (a) advance the understanding of the challenges that instructors face both before and after teaching about accessibility; (b) investigate the challenges that students face when learning about accessibility; (c) expand, improve, and rigorously evaluate a set of accessibility resources, including updated accessibility games with a stronger focus on universal design, along with lecture notes and interactive assignments; and (d) create supportive structures, professional development opportunities, and an online community of practice for instructors who teach accessibility that will provide guidance, networking opportunities, guest speakers, and resource sharing. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.