[nabs] publisher website inaccessible

Sun Jan 15 20:05:38 EST 2012

Hi,
Well, I’d go up the chain with the publisher; seems like if we paid for their overpriced textbook we should be able to read supplemental material they produce. My disability office is not usually that helpful either; only time she was  helpful was when the professor did not give me electronic handouts; the disability counselor backed me up.

Sadly, this time I’m on my own since she discouraged me from taking the course in the first place.
I’ll handle it.
But yeah, next time I have an unaccomodating professor, I think I’ll file a complaint as you did. Maybe I’ll even write my senator about this textbook issue. Seems real unfair and something they should know about. Pearson and Paradigm should not get away with this. Not when the solution is quite simple.

From: Jordan Gallacher 
Sent: Sunday, January 15, 2012 7:17 PM
To: 'Discussion list for NABS,National Alliance of Blind Students.' 
Subject: Re: [nabs] publisher website inaccessible

I am a business major, about a month left before I graduate with my BA, with a concentration in management and entrepreneurship at Louisiana Tech University.  I am probably going to try to go after a Master degree next at the University of Memphis since they have a really good program.  I went up the chain with the publisher, and then decided that since my other classes were being affected to drop the class.  Then filed a complaint against the university since the professor was not going to accomodate.  The ODS, as usual, did not get involved even though they said they would.  So, that is basically what happened, and I am at least not having the same issue this quarter with the same professor.

Jordan

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From: nabs-bounces at acb.org [mailto:nabs-bounces at acb.org] On Behalf Of Ashley Bramlett
Sent: Sunday, January 15, 2012 5:56 PM
To: Discussion list for NABS,National Alliance of Blind Students.
Subject: Re: [nabs] publisher website inaccessible

Jordan,

Yikes. I remember a pearson website; I do not remember what class,  after all I’ve been a student forever, but our professor suggested we look at the summaries and take some quizzes. It was not required, as yours was, but since the prof hinted at it, I believe she took some questions from the practice quizzes and put them on our real tests.

I’ll call them this week and then follow up with a letter. Whom did you speak to? I wonder if they have an accessibility department or anything. It seems unfair to us not to have access to this. We want to be good students and take the extra steps to learn, but barriers exist.

What major are you? I am a continuing ed student while I look for work in this down economy; but my degree was at marymount university where I was a liberal studies major; well actually, I never made up my mind for a major so this liberal studies program allowed you to combine two concentrations you liked and take a liberal studies seminar at the end and graduate; that seminar class required us to write a huge paper with the topic of our choice but it had to combine the two concentrations we studied; mine was communication and social sciences.

Anyway, that is too bad pearson did not listen. Did you go up the chain with them?

I think I will. I’m tired of inaccessible websites. And of all classes a book on computer and their applications should be accessible because they’re writing about how computers work.

My professor is helpful. She made a summary document of the e-text material for our html assignment.

And while I’m ranting, we have to read an e-text, or it was suggested to read it for background info, for the assignments coming up.

The text was not accessible either! I really really want to read it. Maybe I’ll just print the pages and ask a reader.

Jaws only read the chapter titles. When I clicked on them, I heard little text.

I’d like this information and I think it would help me understand websites.

Ashley

From: Jordan Gallacher 

Sent: Sunday, January 15, 2012 6:15 PM

To: 'Discussion list for NABS,National Alliance of Blind Students.' 

Subject: Re: [nabs] publisher website inaccessible

Pearson was the same way.  Unfortunately, they never got it figured out even after all the phone calls and e-mails.  Since I had to use part of it for class, and the professor also refused to help, I really do not think publishers care much about accessibility since your situation is not the first.  Flash is a huge problem

Sorry I can't be of much help.

Jordan

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From: nabs-bounces at acb.org [mailto:nabs-bounces at acb.org] On Behalf Of Ashley Bramlett
Sent: Sunday, January 15, 2012 5:07 PM
To: National Alliance of Blind Students. Discussion list for NABS
Subject: [nabs] publisher website inaccessible

Hi all,

I do not think publishers have to make their cds and websites accessible. Sometimes a text comes with a companion cd.

But it seems right to do so. Well, I’m trying to take an intro to computers class.

You’d think they would know accessibility if anyone did.

Know what? The site uses flash and is not accessible! At least not on the first page. I might be able to get someone to click on something and get in that way. The CD is the same way!

The publisher is Paradigm. Has anyone else used their books and run into this?

I like to access the cd and/or textbook website because you get other benefits such as chapter summaries, definition of terms, other study tools, and practice quizzes. I don’t do this for every class; I do have a life. But some classes, I do take a few practice quizzes and I find it helps me prepare and study for the real quiz or test.

I might report this if I can find a point of contact; I’m hoping they have a diversity or accessibility department. We will see.

If anyone had success in reporting publisher website or cd-rom issues and got them fixed, that would be nice to know. Maybe the publisher will send me stuff directly; we’ll see.

Ashley

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