Detail on agenda item #4, scope & dependency sections of WCAG WG charter

WCAG WG:

Here is more background for item #4 "WCAG working group and
Education/Outreach dependency" on the agenda sent by Jason
http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/w3c-wai-gl/2000OctDec/0299.html where
he summarized a proposal for the WCAG WG scope and the dependency with
EOWG; and the actual wording of the proposal.

I believe there will be some time towards the end of the WCAG WG call today
to discuss this.

Regards,

- Judy

-----

Proposal for revised WCAG WG scope paragraphs, and dependency with EOWG

Background first: The current scope section of the WCAG WG Charter
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/new-charter-2000>, includes the following:

>The WCAG working group will produce original technical documents
for
>authors with some familiarity with markup languages. The Education
and
>Outreach working group will produce derivations of the documents for
both
>technical and non-technical audiences. WCAG working group documents
are also
>intended to be read by user agent and authoring tool developers
who are
>implementing the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines and the
User Agent
>Accessibility Guidelines.

And the current dependencies section of the WCAG WG Charter includes the
following:

>The WAI Education and Outreach Working
>Group (EO WG) uses the Web Content
Accessibility Guidelines as the basis
>for promotion and dissemination
work, most notably the QuickTips and WCAG
>Curriculum. Since the
deliverables of the WCAG WG are original and technical,
>we rely on the EO
WG to advise us in creating derivative works for both
>technical and
non-technical audiences. WCAG WG will review EO work for
>technical
correctness.

This combination of WCAG's scope and dependency statements can be read
ambiguously, with one interpretation appearing to limit the WCAG WG to
producing normative and non-normative documents intended only to be read by
technical audiences, and the burden of non-technical derivations of WCAG
falling on EOWG. 

I believe that WAI's experience to date has shown that WCAG in particular
(as opposed to UAAG and ATAG) must be readable by a lay audience, for two
major reasons as well as a host of minor ones:
	(1) Many if not most people using WCAG are not as highly skilled
technically as the average reader of other W3C specifications, and if
WCAG's average audience cannot read WCAG comfortably, they may turn to, or
develop, other documents, potentially contributing to a fragmentation of
the standard;
	(2) Widespread reference or adoption of WCAG -- necessary for WAI to have
a sweeping impact on the Web -- is often driven by people who have a strong
appreciation for the need for Web accessibility but not always also strong
technical backgrounds, and/or who must present or propose guidelines for
approval by non-technical committees. If the document is not comfortably
readable by these audiences, again it potentially contributes to a
fragmentation of the standard. 

Given this need for a WCAG version that is readable by a lay audience, why
can't EOWG produce derivative works for WCAG, with a high ease-of-use
standard? I believe this would be inappropriate for several reasons:
	(1) EOWG is not populated or chartered to develop normative guidance on
how to make Web sites accessible;
	(2) A derivative guidelines document coming from EOWG could not be
formally referenced as a W3C Recommendation, yet a referenceable W3C WCAG
Recommendation is what is needed; 
	(3) EOWG has a full plate of other responsibilities, centering on
promotional aspects (getting the message out) and educational aspects
(training, illustrating) of Web accessibility, not exclusive to
WCAG-related issues.


I believe that the WCAG WG's core role should be to continue figuring out
what constitutes an accessible Web site, and to articulate understandable
and implementable normative provisions that define such sites as well as
the non-normative technical interpretations necessary to support
implementation in specific Web technologies. 

EOWG's core role, on the other hand, is to get the word out, not only about
WCAG but about all of WAI's work, and to develop more in-depth training
materials as derivative works from the normative guidelines where
additional educational resources are required -- but not to develop
derivative normative works.

Two previous examples of the Quick-Tips card, and the Curriculum for WCAG,
which the EOWG produced, I believe fall into the category of derivative
works intended for either a promotional purpose (Quick Tips) or a training
purpose (Curriculum); neither is intended as a easier-to-use version of the
guidelines themselves, and neither of them is normative. Both should have
been reviewed thoroughly by the WCAG WG; but the fact that the EOWG has
produced these two documents does not mean that general production of an
easier-to-use version of WCAG should fall on the EOWG.

Here are my proposals for revision of the WCAG WG's charter section on
Scope and section 8.5 Dependency:

----
[proposed revised scope]

2.1 Focus of activities

The WCAG WG will: 
- produce next-generation normative guidelines for accessibility of Web
content, including addressing issues of clarity raised since publication of
WCAG 1.0;
- collect, test, discuss and create techniques for WCAG-conformant content
in XML, RDF, SMIL, SVG, MathML and other W3C Recommendations and scripting
languages not yet addressed in the Techniques document;
- produce updated non-normative supporting documents, including techniques
documents and implementation tracking information;
- coordinate with other groups including W3C groups writing guidelines, and
EOWG regarding ease-of-use considerations in WCAG WG's development of WCAG
2.0.

2.2 Intended audience of deliverables

Since the release of WCAG 1.0, a number of readers have raised ease-of-use
concerns with the format and language of WCAG 1.0, given diverse audiences
which must rely on this document, including non-technical audiences. It has
also become clear that authoring tool and user agent developers also form
part of the technical audience of this document when implementing the
Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines and the User Agent Accessibility
Guidelines.

With regard to the WCAG WG's guidelines document, the Working Group will
produce a document with sufficient technical precision to be used as a
normative reference for Web content accessibility, and with language
accessible to non-technical audiences. Ease-of-use considerations may be
accomplished through layering multiple documents in a set, or by
integrating understandable language throughout the document, or by some
other means, but are a fundamental part of the guidelines document
requirements. 

----

[proposed revised dependency subsection 8.5]

8.5 Education and Outreach
Among its promotion and education work, the Education and Outreach Working
Group (EOWG) develops some promotional and educational materials based on
the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and other WCAG WG deliverables.
The EOWG relies on the WCAG WG to review any derivative promotional or
educational material it produces that is based on WCAG or other WCAG WG
deliverables. The WCAG WG relies on EOWG to help advise with regard to
ease-of-use considerations around WCAG deliverables, particularly for its
normative guidelines.
-- 
Judy Brewer    jbrewer@w3.org    +1.617.258.9741    http://www.w3.org/WAI
Director, Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) International Program Office
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
MIT/LCS Room NE43-355, 200 Technology Square, Cambridge, MA,  02139,  USA

Received on Thursday, 26 October 2000 13:00:47 UTC