Accessibility
A material is only teaching if the learner can get at it. Access is part of the lesson, not a layer on top.
Built in, not bolted on
Captions, transcripts, structure for screen readers, readable contrast and plain language are easiest at the time of writing. Retrofitting a finished course costs far more.
More than one way in
The same idea offered as text, as a diagram with a description, and as audio serves a wider group of learners, including many who never ask for adjustments.
Language and reading level
Short sentences and defined terms help every learner. We help rewrite materials at a chosen reading level while keeping the content exact.
Check, then check with people
Automated checks catch missing alt text and contrast. They do not catch confusing structure. Testing with learners who use assistive technology does.
Making one lesson reachable
Take a recorded lecture with a diagram on the slide. For a learner who cannot see the slide, the diagram is missing unless the speaker describes it. For a learner in a noisy dorm, the audio is missing unless there are captions. For a learner reading in a second language, the speed is the barrier.
Fixing each of these separately is slow. Authoring with them in mind is not: describe the diagram as you present it, caption as you record, and give the notes in short sentences. The result is a lesson that works for the learners who asked and for many who did not.
Our part is the tooling that makes this the easy path for the person writing the lesson, and the checking that catches what is left.