In Defense of Facts and Expertise: On Ronald J. Daniels’s “What Universities Owe Democracy” https://t.co/FZYcryzj5H via @lareviewofbooks by the always thoughtful, @pbkauf

— Greg Britton (@gmbritton) March 7, 2022

The tweet links to another review of the book “What Universities Owe Democracy”, a must-read for anyone working in higher education.  In this age of fake news and misinformation, facts and expertise are more important than ever and colleges and universities need to proactively promote their experts.

It seems amazing to me that media and information literacy has never been a core part of the school curriculum.
However Estonia teaches it K-12 with a ‘media and influence’ course compulsory, treating it as a foundational skill.
Great piece in @BBC_Futurehttps://t.co/5S2A6hpDAO

— Ross Dawson (@rossdawson) January 31, 2022

We are in the age of disinformation and it is growing worse every year.  It is one of the most pressing issues of our time. IMHO, education on information literacy  is one of the best ways to address the issue.  Back in the late 1990’s I served on the first campus committee to develop resources on information literacy for our students. The material included training on how to use email, the web, and productivity software. But that was a generation ago. Now we need to provide training on how to evaluate the quality, credibility, and validity of information.  And this training is needed not just for college students, but for society at large.

I highly recommend you read the article from the BBC mentioned in the tweet: “The country inoculating against disinformation.” I commend Estonia on their efforts to combat disinformation. Can this be replicated in the United States? I have my doubts. I hope that higher education redoubles their efforts to provide this type of training.

Facebook amplifies the false information and polarizing content of cults because it’s what the systems have been trained to do! https://t.co/soQZbUFBOF

— David Meerman Scott (@dmscott) February 11, 2022

This tweet links to a blog post written by David in August, 2021 titled “When Fandom Turns Into a Cult“. In this post David reiterates his belief that the Facebook algorithm to be the most destructive technology ever invented.  He says “When the destructive nature of the Facebook algorithm meets the language of a cult, many people are sucked into the resulting vortex of misinformation.”  I have to agree.  Social media in general, and Facebook in particular, have taken a turn for the worse since the early years.

Here is a summary of the webinar:

As higher education shifts its digital presence and offerings, it has become increasingly important that your website meets accessibility standards. Digital accessibility standards change frequently, so you need to make sure you are staying in the know! We’ve gathered together four industry leaders to talk about WCAG 2.1 updates and how these changes may affect you and your website.

Join this webcast to:

• Learn why seeking software and tools that meet the latest standards is more than a nice to have
• Explore PDF remediation guidelines and the importance of staying in compliance with all of your digital documents
• Learn how to seek accessibility compliance assistance to audit and provide direction
• Learn how accessibility affects your institution, and what happens if you have poor accessibility

Here is the registration page.  I hope you can join us.

https://omniupdate.cc/301BtjV

The Web Accessibility in Higher Education podcast is available at the Helix Education website.

I was very impressed with everything I saw and everyone I met at The Nerdery. Their approach to their work resonated with me on many levels, especially the emphasis on digital transformation and the constant focus on their core values. They also have one of the best office spaces I have seen. Of course my opinion was swayed by the number of dogs I encountered!  They were recently named as one of America’s most pet-friendly companies and the honor is well deserved. My only regret about this trip is that I didn’t bring Kohl along!

My day included giving a company-wide talk on “The State of Web Accessibility Consulting – 2017”.  Key themes included:

• There is too much focus on compliance and not enough focus on the user experience. You can comply with standards and still have a site that is inaccessible.  Fueling this problem is an over-reliance on automated testing. Don’t get me wrong, automated tools are a must. But they can’t replace manual testing. Remember, it’s not about checking off the box for a particular standard, it’s about the user experience and the only way to reliably test this is by using a website the way someone with a disability would use it.
• My love/hate relationship with the legal aspect of web accessibility. My reasons for being an accessibility advocate are not because of the threat of litigation. My approach to my work as a web professional is to make the web a better place and to improve the user experience for everyone. Accessibility is a natural part of this. That being said, the recent Winn-Dixie case has brought web accessibility to the main stream media and created an increased awareness about the importance of accessibility and inclusive design. The more awareness about accessibility the better.
• The mistake of thinking about web accessibility as a project.  Projects by definition have an end. Too many companies focus on correcting problems with the current site and then give no thought to the long term. Websites constantly evolve.The best approach to accessibility isn’t just about fixing today’s problems, it’s about providing training that will minimize issues down the road.   The project mentality addresses only the symptoms. The long term approach addresses the underlying causes and provides a path to sustained accessibility.
• The importance of building a comprehensive web accessibility program. While identifying and remediating issues are central, this is not the only aspect of accessibility that an organization needs to address.  Creating and promulgating a web accessibility policy, identifying someone to be the web accessibility officer, creating a web accessibility statement that directs people to get help when needed, and ongoing training are all part of a true web accessibility program.
• The need to be pragmatic.  Addressing accessibility can be overwhelming, especially if it has been neglected. My advice is to take it one step at a time and ask yourself “Is our site more accessible today than it was yesterday?”

In addition to my talk, I participated in a series of meetings with a wide range of people including senior leadership, marketing, developers, and members of the UX and QA teams.  I was very impressed with the technical skills and passion about accessibility of everyone I met. They bring a level of sophistication and expertise that was very impressive. Many web designers and developers I have met over the years are naive about accessibility. This is not the case at The Nerdery where accessibility is a core principle. It was also refreshing to be around dedicated UX and QA professionals.  The lack of focus on user experience is something that continues to plague way too many websites.

This was a great group to talk with about the future of technology and accessibility. One of my favorite books to this day is Being Digital by Nicholas Negroponte which was written in 1995.  I have two main takeaways from this seminal work. First, the change from atoms to bits is irrevocable and unstoppable. Secondly, everything that can become digital will become digital. Follow these thoughts through to their logical conclusion and you will quickly see that in the future web and digital accessibility will become more important than ever.

At the end of my day, I found myself reenergized about web accessibility. Too often designers and developers look at accessibility and think that it stifles their creativity and just creates more work. At The Nerdery I found a group of dedicated professionals who have shifted the conversation from fear to motivation, a group who are thinking creatively about new solutions to accessibility challenges. This is the approach we need as we move from atoms to bits.

Here is additional coverage of the ruling:

• Big Win for Blind Shopper in First U.S. ADA Web Accessibility Trial
• First Federal Court Rules That Having an Inaccessible Website Violates Title III of the ADA
• First Federal Trial on Website Accessibility: Winn-Dixie Violates ADA

The good news is that my site is back up and running. While there are still a number of small issues that need to be address, I am able to publish again.  This is a good thing, especially since I have a couple of major announcements I will be posting in the next few weeks.

In the meantime, let me know if you have any recommended WordPress caching plugins. I am all about site speed and I’d like a stable caching solution that will optimize performance.