RE: Reponse: Designer Modules Thorough Review Survey

Hello Sarah,

 

Thanks for your comments. I will implement those grammar and style suggestions. They are very useful. I will also take a pass on
the use of "well" qualifier. 

 

Your concerns about the use of flashing content in topic "Movement and Animations" will definitely be considered and address before
publication. I see your point that these examples themselves can be dangerous for some users, but struggled to make sure students
identify what we mean without examples. If we were to keep the examples, I will work on the topic to communicate these risks
up-front. If we were to remove the "examples of flashing content", what would be a good way to make sure instructors communicate
and students understand what flashing content means without examples? Maybe we can achieve these goals by asking students to
research instead of through direct exposure to flashing content? 

 

Best.

--

 

Daniel Montalvo

 

Accessibility Education and Training Specialist

W3C/WAI

 

From: Sarah Lewthwaite <S.E.Lewthwaite@soton.ac.uk> 
Sent: Wednesday, December 1, 2021 2:24 AM
To: Daniel Montalvo <dmontalvo@w3.org>; wai-eo-editors@w3.org
Subject: Reponse: Designer Modules Thorough Review Survey

 

Hi Daniel and WAI EO Editors. Please find my responses to the Designer Modules thorough review survey. I hope this email submission
is acceptable, I had some issues with permissions accessing the review survey form. 

Best wishes, Sarah Lewthwaite


1. Introduction and Purpose


I have a major concern regarding a teaching idea listed in module 6: Multimedia and Animations in the topic: Movement and
Animations, on the use of flashing content in demos in the classroom and risk to students. Please see in submitted text for section
9 below. All other comments are relatively minor and relate to typos or small points on grammar, wording and so forth, with the
exception of an issue potentially with a sign language task also listed in topic 6. I'm happy to clarify any comments as needed.

 

2. Review Level. 
Level of review: I reviewed the materials thoroughly.


3. Designer Modules Overview Page. 


No comment. 


4. Designer Modules: 1 Visual Design 


Section: Learning Outcomes for Module: Main bullet point 7 - 'evaluate the overuse of design elements'. Should this be 'evaluate
the use of design elements, to avoid overuse'? the word 'overuse' appears to be indicative that any evaluation is actually about
right and wrong (not evaluating?), as 'overuse' is by definition too much use.

 

Section: Topics to teach: Topic: Color. Current text: 'Describe how some people rely on color to understand and distinguish
content. Explain that some people cannot perceive color well or at all.' From a strict social modellist perspective on disability,
the use of 'well' here might suggest a good/bad value dichotomy, sited in the individual. A possible rewrite might try to describe
difference without a value word. E.g. along the lines of 'Explain that some people perceive color in different ways, and that some
will not perceive color at all'. This slight issue is repeated in 'Teaching Ideas for Topic: Bullet point 3, which repeats the text
that 'some users cannot perceive color well or at all'. 


5. Designer Modules 2: Information Design 


Section: Learning Outcomes: Bullet point 6. 'discuss ways to break down information presented in tables, including use of simple
tables, lists, imagery, and plain text'. Suggest insert 'the' before 'use'. 'the use' is used at other points and appears clearer. 

Section: teaching ideas for topic. Bullet 1. States first showing and demonstrating regions etc. It then moves unexpectedly to
conceptual, role-based exposition: 'Explain that defining and planning the different regions is a designers' responsibility,
whereas adding the semantics is a responsibility shared with the developer.' This could be a separate bullet point.


6. Designer Modules 3: Navigation Design. 


Topic: Menus. The Teaching ideas in this section are very didactic (show, demo, explain) in comparison with some other sections
(e.g. site navigations: invite, students research etc). 


Topic: Page navigation: Ideas to assess knowledge. Second bullet: 'Practical - Give students a document and ask them to provide the
table of contents. Assess how students provide table of contents for documents.' Insert 'the' ahead of 'table of contents' for
clarity. 


7. Designer Modules 4: Interaction Design 


Topic: Keyboard interactions. Ideas to assess knowledge, slight grammatical issue in bullet 1. It states 'Short Answer Questions -
Ask students about commonly used modifier keys of operating systems, browsers, and assistive technologies.' Change 'of' to 'for',
or consider 'Ask students about the commonly used modifier keys in operating systems, browsers and ATs'.

Ideas to assess knowledge for module: first bullet: "Practical &mdash:" appear in text.


8. Designer Module 5: Images and Graphics


Topic: informative images. Teaching ideas. At present, the practical of giving students an image of text and asking them to
cooperate with others on generating alt-text is given as an assessment idea. Given the formative nature of this task (they will
learn through practice), should it be incorporated in teaching ideas, rather than assessment? 

Topic: complex images. Ideas to assess knowledge, 2nd bullet: Quote 'Practical - Have students cooperate with developers and
content authors to implement a map in a way that everybody can understand its meaning and interact with it.' in this statement does
'everybody' refer to everyone in that team (the student, developer, content author) or is this referring to achieving a 'universal'
understanding for all. This task may need to be slightly more reworded, so it can be understood and be achievable for students.


9. Designer Module 6: Multimedia and Animations


Topic: Movement and Animations: Teaching Ideas for Topic, second bullet point. I'm deeply concerned that the second bullet states
'Show examples of flashing content and explain that this can cause seizures.'. This asks teachers to put their students at risk.
'Show examples of flashing content' assumes that there will be no epileptic students or others with photo-sensitivity in the class.
We MUST reconsider this example, we cannot ask teachers to show students potentially dangerous flashing content. Later in Ideas to
Assess Knowledge: Optional ideas include 'give students flashing content and ask them to determine.'. Again, I'm deeply concerned
about the risk to some students that this task would infer, and the need for this to be fully communicated to teachers, to ensure a
safe learning environment. This needs more consideration by EOWG and CTF. 

In the next Teaching Ideas bullet point, the curriculum refers to animations that cause dizziness etc. Whilst this may be less
critical than my previous point on seizures etc., I have a similar concern over the caveats necessary to effectively deliver this
in class without discomfort or risk to some students. 

Topic: Alternatives to Multimedia content. Opening line: 'Description of visual information is essential for people who cannot see
the visuals'. I suggest change to remove 'the' before 'visuals'. In the second sentence, 'the' can be removed before 'audio'. 

 

Teaching Ideas for Topic: Bullet 4 on showing examples of sign language. I have a concern that teachers will not necessarily be
aware of the variety of sign languages. Can we highlight this somehow? Additionally, three points: we seem to conflate deafness
with using sign language here. Clearly sign languages are very important to deaf people, however, not all deaf people use sign
language. Secondly, we state 'Explain that sign language is essential for people who are deaf and do not understand written
language well'. As raise in an earlier section, the use of 'well' has an association with a value judgement. In my experience of
higher education in the UK, we would talk about people who are deaf and use BSL and for whom spoken/written English is a second
language. It's important that teachers and students understand that Deaf people who use sign language are not 'bad' at reading -
they are working in a second language. Lastly, we state that 'providing sign language interpretation is a responsibility shared
with the content author'. It is unlikely that the content author and designer use sign languages. So interpreters would need to be
commissioned. Is this kind of commissioning usually undertaken by content authors and designers? Or is this more of a product team
decision? This needs to have more nuance to be fully understood I think. I appreciate it is difficult to specify language in this
bullet point, as we are communicating to audiences in so many different territories, with their own sign languages/sign dialects.
However, I think we really need to add more detail here to avoid misunderstandings. 


10. Designer Module 7: Forms 


Topic: Errors. Ideas to assess knowledge: Bullet point 2: 'Practical - Give students a form field submission containing errors and
ask them to provide messages about each of the wrongly submitted field.' Field should be plural (fields) at the end of this
sentence.


11. Additional comments


As stated earlier I have a major concern regarding a teaching idea listed in Module 6: Multimedia and Animations in the topic:
Movement and Animations, on the use of flashing content in demos in the classroom. Please see in submitted text for Section 9
Designer Module 6, above, on potential risk to students.