Section 504 of the The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states: "No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 705 (20) of this title, shall, solely by reason of his or her disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance or under any program or activity conducted by any Executive agency or by the United States Postal Service." (US Department of Labor, n.d.)
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 "is the nation's first comprehensive civil rights law addressing the needs of people with disabilities, prohibiting discrimination in employment, public services, public accommodations, and telecommunications." (EEOC, n.d.)
Students are protected under Section 504 and ADA. The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) a component of the Department of Education (ED) enforces Section 504. Title II of the amendments to the regulations implement the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), published in the Federal Register at 73 Fed. Reg. 73006 on December 1, 2008. (US Department of Education, 2013)
Institutes of Education have a legal obligation to provide ADA compliance for all materials. Learning Institutions can be sued for not providing accommodations to disabled students. This is considered discrimination.
"The Department of Education Rulings"
“Covered entities under the ADA are required to provide effective communication, regardless of whether they generally communicate through print media, audio media, or computerized media such as the Internet. Covered entities that use the Internet for communications regarding their programs, goods, or services must be prepared to offer those communications through accessible means as well.” (University System of Georgia, 2014)
To accommodate the disabled, educational institutions must provide methods for the disabled to receive the course materials. This includes alternative text or alt tags for images that visually describe the image, all text materials must be compliant with screen readers, all video and audio media components must be accompanied by a written transcript compliant with a screen reader.
Examples of meeting ADA compliance:
Alt tag for the image: A red 1959 IBM Selectric Typewrite with black keys, sitting on an orange table.
Download the Transcript for the Trends Presentation Mobile Learning: Analysis video
Closed Caption or CC would suffice ADA compliance for a video. Audio must include a transcript.
Additional Resources:
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/07/26/settlements-put-colleges-duty-ensure-blind-students-access-materials-under-new#sthash.PV72eLQe.dpbs
References
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). (n.d.). The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. Retrieved April 15, 2014 from http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/history/35th/1990s/ada.html
US Department of Education (2013, December 19). Protecting Students With Disabilities. Retrieved April 16, 2014 from http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/504faq.html
US Department of Labor. (n.d.). Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Retrieved April 15, 2014 from http://www.dol.gov/oasam/regs/statutes/sec504.htm
University System of Georgia. (2014, February 14). Higher Education, the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 508. Retrieved April 16, 2014 from http://www.usg.edu/siteinfo/higher_education_the_americans_with_disabilities_act_and_section_508
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