It's the Law

We are required to meet the State and Federal requirements for ensuring accessibility of our materials for persons with disabilities. Locally, District Policy 3108 and District Policy 3108.1 reinforce our District's commitment to meeting ADA and Section 504/508 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Everyone Benefits

When we caption our videos for students, we're making it accessible to our hearing-impaired students, and we provide an extra benefit to all kinds of learners in all kinds of situations. "Students with and without disabilities are using closed captions and transcripts. When we looked just at the group of students who did not identify as having a hearing impairment or deafness, over 70% of that group were using closed captions at least some of the time. The study clearly shows that closed captions are not just being used by those who need them for disability accommodation purposes" (Linder, 2016).

Pause for a minute to reflect

Do you use captions? In my house we almost always have the captions turned while watching television. I've gotten used to them, and I miss them when they're turned off. What about our learners who are English language learners? Or our learners who are accessing videos from a location where there are no speakers/headphones available? There are several scenarios in which video captions enable access and learning. Reflect on when you've turned on captions and share with us in the Answer Garden below.

References

Linder, K. (2016, December 14). Do Closed Captions Help Students Learn? WCET Frontiers https://wcetfrontiers.org/2016/12/14/do-closed-captions-help-students-learn/