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Media Accessibility for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students

Instructors who have students with documented hearing losses in their classes need to be concerned with the accessibility of the media they plan to use. Instructors who intend to use DVD, VHS, or web-based videos and/or podcasts in their courses, should be be aware that they are responsible for offering accessible versions of this course material. (For more information, please see the memo from Vice Chancellor Darrell Bazzell which outlines expectations regarding departmental responsibilities for funding these accommodations and the campus web accessibility policy.)

Videos are accessible when they are captioned. Podcasts are accessible when a written transcript accompanies the audio file. If a video is not captioned or a podcast does not have a transcript, instructors will need to arrange for an accessible version to be produced. Instructors should plan ahead by allowing anywhere from two days to several weeks for transcription and captioning services, depending on the service and resources available to them.

Is Your Video Already Accessible?

• Check to see if your video is already closed captioned or has subtitles. If it does, please be sure to turn this feature on at the beginning of the program. Captioning can be activated through controls on the television/video projector. Check the TV control menu under "Languages". Select "CC1" to activate.
• If you are using an older video or a video that is not captioned, check with the vendor to see if there is a version of the video with closed captioning available for purchase. More recent versions of older videos typically include this accessibility feature. Check also with the campus or local libraries to see if a copy is available for loan.

Creating a Transcript

If the videos or podcasts are not accessible, the first step is to create a written transcript of the audio file or video. To create a transcript:

1. Consider hiring a student worker to create a transcript. A rule of thumb for professional transcribing services is to allow 2-3 hours to transcribe 1 hour of audio. Students may take up to twice as long depending on the complexity of information, subject familiarity and speaker's speech rate.
2. Investigate whether your department offers in-house transcription and/or captioning services. For example, the Instructional Media Development Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison offers captioning and subtitling for School of Education video projects. Confirm that the format of your media material is supported through the departmental service.
3. If you don't have access to student or departmental assistance, contact a professional transcription vendor. Please refer to Transcribing Podcosts on DoIt's web site for contact information, quality assurance and rates.
4. Finally, you may consider hiring a professional stenographer, real-time captioner who provides transcription services. The Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing offers a CART provider listing.

Accessible Podcasts

Once a transcript is prepared, create a link from the podcast to the transcript. The podcast is now in an accessible format.

Captioning a Video

A video requires the transcript to be synched to the images. MAGPie and World Captioning Tool for QuickTime (Macintosh platform only) are two applications that allow you to add the captioning yourself. For more information on these products, see Accessibility - Captioning Multimedia and Obtaining Transcripts. There are private vendors available to provide captioning for your media material. Automatic Sync Technologies offers a quick-turnaround time for a variety of media file formats including: .WMV, .WMA, .MOV, .RM, .RA, .WAV, .MP3, .M4A, or .M4B. See Automatic Sync Technologies web site for contact information and rates. A Wisconsin-based company that provides captioning services is Riverside Captioning.

Campus Resources

Campus resources to assist in the delivery of accessible course materials include:

• Robert Kim Todd
  Space Management Office
  608-262-4414
  ktodd@fpm.wisc.edu
  Kim can provide the name of the classroom access specialist if you are in a classroom that uses an overhead projection system and have questions about turning on the caption feature or other questions pertaining captioning equipment.




• Academic Technology
  Division of Information Technology, (Do-IT)
  608-262-5667
  academictech@doit.wisc.edu
  Consultants are available to assist instructors with issues pertaining to web access and media resources.


The McBurney Disability Resource Center is also available to assist you with other questions or concerns about how to include students with disabilities in your class. Please feel free to contact Sarah Falsy if you have additional questions or concerns about accessible media for students who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing.


• Sarah Falsey, Lead Captioning Coordinator
  falsey@odos.wisc.edu
  Phone: (608)265-5298
  www.mcburney.wisc.edu


Thank you for your assistance in creating an accessible learning experience for all of your students.

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File last updated: June 30, 2009. 14:00:19 pm
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