Web Accessibility Issues with Blackboard at Edith Cowan University

Abstract

Website accessibility is a very real and pressing issue in Australia and internationally. Tim Berners-Lee credited with founding the Web, states “The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect” (Henry & McGee, 2010). This paper is the result of research conducted into the website accessibility of Blackboard as implemented at Edith Cowan University. This well-known commercial Learning Management System is used for e-learning access and content delivery. Testing was conducted to determine the level of adherence of Blackboard to internationally-recognized best practice web accessibility guidelines. An analysis of the results of this research demonstrate that while Blackboard scores “better than average”, this still constitutes a failing grade in terms of overall usability for people with visual disabilities. Incorporation of the features of the WCAG 2.0 would ensure that Blackboard meets current best practice guidelines.

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