A partnership between Alchemie, a digital learning tools developer, and Wiley, a publishing company, is helping college students with vision-based disabilities to use visualization tools in online courses without outside help.
The initial rollout of the new tools is specifically targeting online chemistry courses, as it is such a visual subject. A press release explained that because of the reliance on visual aids during the courses, students who are blind or have low vision (BLV) can easily fall behind.
In the past, BLV students who wanted to use visualization tools within an online chemistry course typically worked with a designated tutor or scribe outside of the course. Alchemie and Wiley said this requirement restricted the students’ flexibility and added time constraints to when they could study.
Alchemie already had a suite of digital learning tools that were designed to increase student success in STEM courses, but it found that students with disabilities had difficulty benefiting from those tools. As a result, the company began working with learners with disabilities and their teachers to develop more accessible tools for BLV students.
“For blind and low-vision students, this system is about being included; it’s about independence,” said Julia Winter, Alchemie CEO and founder.
The accessible visualization tools include a patent-pending keyboard-only navigation system, compatibility with common screen readers, color contrast support, screen magnification support, and auto-generated alternative text descriptions. Alchemie said its tools could also support learners with hearing, mobility, and cognitive disabilities.
Currently, the new visualization tools are exclusively integrated into Wiley’s Knewton Alta Principles of General Chemistry course.
“Our ultimate goal is to expand the accessibility of chemistry courseware, which is used in required courses for so many different majors,” said Lyssa Vanderbeek, Wiley group vice president for Courseware. “The more we learned about Alchemie’s system, the more we wanted to incorporate it into our courseware and work with them on a long-term basis, as it helps us toward achieving that goal.”
The two companies said they hope to extend the new tools into additional courses in the future. Wiley hopes to extend the Alchemie tools to other courses in the future.
