DESIGNING INTERFACE FOR DISABILITIES

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DESIGNING INTERFACE FOR DISABILITIES

• Ebuba Udoh 0313957
• Idris Kargbo 0317960
• Linda Mensah 0508699

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VARIOUS TYPES OF DISABILITIES

• Cognitive
• Long/Short Sighted
• Dyslexia
• Hearing
• Physical
• Language Disorder stroke, Alzheimers, Brain
  damage etc.
• Speech, Visual etc.

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Cognitive Disability cognitive disabilities
  accompanied by physical disabilities Users with
  cognitive disabilities include users with
  learning disabilities with or without deficit,
  they interact with technology in various ways.
• (1) Designers need to understand the deficits
  of these users when designing interface that need
  to be access by this users.
• (2) Most learning disorders are often elderly.
  Victim with learning disabilities go hand-hand
  with Attention Deficit Disorder and Hyperactivity
  (ADD or ADHD).

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• (3) Victim with language disabilities may lose
  their ability to communicate effectively and
  short and long term memory loss, word finding and
  syntax difficulties.
• In designing interface for cognitive disabilities
  these three in which technology has been
  historically used are
• Compensation (assistive technologies)
• Diagnostics and assessment

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• (1) Computer Assisted Instruction CAI This
  software is design to provide remediation in
  specific area through repeated drills.
• (2) Multi-media based, open-ended package
  software also designed to encourage the user with
  the development of written skill.
• Compensation and/ or assistive technologies for
  cognitive difficulties is a significant area.
  This is particularly true because the law
  mandates these accommodations. The

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Americans with disabilities Act (ADA)1990 stated
  that accommodations need to be made for
  disabilities at workplace.
• Education Disabilities Act (EDA) 1997, provided
  that assistive technology devices and services
  are required to be made available
• to students and youth ensuring a free,
  appropriate public education.

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Identify problems with cluttered interfaces
  causing distraction to learning disabled users.
  It is important also when matching the
  remediation method chosen for in class education,
  creating modifiable programs that can be
  tailored to a students needs and providing
  frequent informative feedback. Some software are
  more effective than other, Larsen, Steen. 1995
  identifies difficulties with distracting
  interface and animation in remediation software.

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Factors to be consider when designing for users

• Designers should include cognitive disabilities
  in the design, research, and development of new
  technologies, and they should be sure to create
  that inclusive across cultures.
• (2) Designers should remember the 8 shneidermans
  golden rules of interface design. In particular
  users with disabilities benefit from design that
  stress consistency, informative feedback, error
  prevention with friendly error handling, and
  reduce short term memory load.
• The 8 Schneiderman rules of interface
  design are
• . Strive for consistency
• . Offer error prevention and simple error
  handling
• . Design dialogs to yield closure

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Factors to be consider when designing for users

• . Enable frequent users to use shortcuts
• . Support internal locus of control
• . Reduce short-term memory load
• . Permit easy reversal of actions.

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Long/Short Sighted- Designers for the web
  specifically, designers need to balance the
  demand for different types of users. It might be
  efficacious to provide different access methods,
  they should be remember to provide
• (1) Avoid clutter
• (2) Create modifiable software
• (3) Provide software with useful, informative,
  and frequent feedback
• (4) Provide multiple methods for access

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• (5) Support for text browsers on the WWW
• (6) Alternative method for on line form.
• (7) Information layouts and easy to understand,
  e.g. Display important information in a
  prominent area to catch the users eye.

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Speech
• - use of predictive algorithm to anticipate the
  words used and fill them in.
• - Speech synthesis and text based tools to aid
  communication

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Dyslexia
• - Speech input/output to alleviate the need to
  read and write
• - Spelling correction facilities can help users
• - Consistent navigation structure and clear
  signposting cues

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Factors to be consider when designing an
interface for disabilities

• Hearing impaired
• Captioning audio content if not already in
  graphical or textual version e.g. in the use of
  multimedia presentations
• Gesture recognition to translate signing to
  speech or text to aid non-signers.

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REFERENCES

• 1 Schneiderman's, Ben.1998. Designing the user
  interface strategies for effective
  Human-Computer Interaction 3rd ed.
• 2 Larsen, Steen.1995 Technology for learning
  disabilities.
• 3 Lewis, Rena B. 1998 Assistive technology and
• Learning disabilities.

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REFERENCES

• 4 Lundberg,I. 1995. The computer as a tool of
  remediation in the education for reading
  disabilities.
• 5 Hill, Janette R. and Michael J. Hannafin.
  1997. Cognitive strategies and learning from the
  World Wide Web, ETRD Educational Technology
  Development
• 6 Alan Dix, Janet Finlay, Gregory D. Abowd,
  Russell Brale, 2004,Human Computer Interaction
  Third Edition.