American Disabilities Act

Haila Al-Ariemy
Outline

• What is the ADA?

• Title II and Disabilities Covered by It
• Assistive Technology
• Captioning/Alt Tag
• Blinking/Flashing
• Read&Write/crxmouse extensions
• Sip-and-puf/Ghotit technology
• Questions?
What is the ADA?

• The American Disabilities Act

• A law that stops discrimination against the
disabled
• i.e. Schools, jobs, and any public/private
places open for general people
• Ensures equal opportunities for people with
disabilities
People with Disabilities

Number of People with Disabilities in the U.S.

(According to 2011 American Community Survey)

18.9 million

37.3 million

Non-institutionalized People of All ages Non-institutionalized Working people (Ages 21-64)

Title II

• Prohibits discrimination against disabled by public entities

• Applies to local and state public housing
• i.e. wheelchair parking, ramps
• Also applies to public transportation
• Provides needed space to secure wheelchairs
Disabilities Covered by ADA and Title II

• Some Disabilities that are covered include:

• Deafness
• Blindness
• Cancer
• Bipolar Disorder
• Diabetes
• Autism
Assistive Technology

• A product that can be used to improve

the lives of people with disabilities
• Improves daily tasks like walking, eating,
and reading
• Examples include: prosthetics,
wheelchairs, and screen readers
• Gives people with disabilities a more
positive life
Assistive Technology Cont.

Assistive Technology Disability Targeted Benefits

Helps people walk, grab

Prosthetic limb Amputated body part
stuff, eat, etc.

Physically disabled Helps them move around and

Wheelchair
movement increases mobility

Allows user to know what’s

Screen reader Blindness and deafness
on screen
Captioning YouTube Videos

• Captions/descriptions that include

everything said
• Includes: dialogues, cues, description
of video
• Allows the deaf and hard-of-hearing
to watch videos
• Can read the captions to understand
the content
Alt Tag

• Also known as Alt Text

• Provides a title and description for an image
• Can be included in:
• Web pages
• Microsoft Office Documents (i.e. word)
• Gives the blind alternative to seeing images
• Allows them to understand what the image is
Blinking/Flashing

• Blinking and flashing in documents should be avoided.

• Can trigger seizures in sensitive people
• i.e. people with photo-sensitive epilepsy
Read&Write Extension

• Extension that makes documents/web more accessible

• Greatly helps people with disabilities
• Text to speech option for the blind
• Picture dictionaries for the mentally challenged
• Premium software is free for all teachers!
• Download a free trial here
crxMouse Extension

• Personalizes the way you navigate web pages

• Uses “mouse-gestures”
• Helps people with motor functions
• Solution for those having difficulty aiming cursor
• Close tabs with movements rather than clicks
• Perform functions using keyboard instead of mouse
• Blind- open tab using keyboard instead of mouse
Sip-and-Puff Technology

• Helps those who are paralyzed

• Control cursor movement using
joystick
• Move joystick using jaw
• Use “sips and puffs” to control
cursor
• Puff performs regular click action
• Sip performs right-click action
Ghotit Technology

• Aimed at helping those with dyslexia/dysgraphia

• Writing and reading assistant for dyslexia
• Useful tools includes:
• Spell checker
• Grammar checker
• Word prediction
• Speech feedback
References

• ADA Data
• ADA Department of Labor
• ADA Wikipedia
• Assistive Technology
• ADA Statistics
Questions?