Accessibility info for instructors

When providing instructional materials for students, please ensure the following:

Textbooks

Please order all textbooks and other course materials by no later than November 15 for Spring semester and by April 15 for Fall semester. This will ensure that there is sufficient time for conversion of textbooks into needed accessible formats should students with disabilities enroll in your classes. Whenever possible, choose textbooks that have electronic text versions available to facilitate conversions (see www.publisherlookup.org). Department chairs can assist by ordering textbooks for late-hire faculty for the coming semester in advance, or by identifying a list of materials that are already available in accessible formats (e.g. see www.aph.org/louis). Please contact the Hornet Bookstore at 278-6448 for further information on timely textbook adoptions.

Alternate Media Referral and Conversion Process (.DOC, 79 KB)

Print Materials Copied by Hand

Should students with disabilities enroll in your class, you may be asked to provide clean and clear copies of syllabi, handouts, and other instructional materials in advance (in electronic text whenever possible) to facilitate conversions to accessible formats. If this is not possible and the print material is essential to the teaching of your course, you will need to implement an equally effective alternative method of instruction to provide equal access for students with disabilities. Contact Services to Students with Disabilities (SSWD) (www.csus.edu/sswd) at 278-6955 if you have questions about providing access for a student with a disability enrolled in your class.

Videos and Films

Please ensure that all videos and films to be used in courses (including web-based courses) are captioned or subtitled. For instructions on how to check to see if your videos/DVDs are captioned, see www.csus.edu/sswd/deaftips.html. Please contact Classroom Support Services at 278-6611 to make arrangements for showing a captioned version. If it is not possible to obtain a captioned version, and the video is essential to the teaching of your course, contact SSWD at 278-6955 to discuss alternative methods of instruction that will provide your Deaf or hard-of-hearing student with access to the video.

Online Instructional Materials

Instructionally related materials posted on faculty websites or on web-based delivery systems such as WebCT must be made accessible, so that all students can access the information, including students with disabilities. Images should be described using alternative text, headings should be used properly, and scanned documents should be recognized as text so that the material can be readable by screen readers. See campus technical accessibility requirements at www.csus.edu/web/accessibility. All web content for brand new courses must be made accessible by Fall 2008 or when a student with a disability enrolls in the class, and all web pages must be made accessible by Fall 2012. If you need assistance with the development of accessible instructional material or WebCT, please attend Faculty & Staff workshops (see www.csus.edu/training), view training handouts at http://www.csus.edu/training/handouts/ or contact web-courses@csus.edu.

Other Electronic & Information Technology Materials

If you are developing or purchasing electronic or technology-based instructional products please make sure that they meet the Section 508 (www.section508.gov) technical accessibility standards (applies to IT purchases above $15,000 starting Fall 2008). Please obtain information from the vendor on how the product meets accessibility requirements. If an accessible IT product is not commercially available, or if an exception to the requirement applies, please document how you will implement an equally effective alternative method of instruction if a student with a disability enrolls in the class. Contact the ATI Project Coordinator at ati@csus.edu or 278-7821 if you have any questions about accessible IT procurement.

For more instructional materials accessibility strategies and where to go for additional help, contact the Instructional Materials Specialist in AIRC 3012.