Open Response Question
Law and Policy

English language dictionaries define accessible as easy to approach, enter, speak with, or use. For the forty million Americans with disabilities, and those who will develop disabilities as they age, access takes on a special meaning. It is the key to an independent and “normal” lifestyle. Since 1973, laws have been enacted in the United States to facilitate accessibility for persons with disabilities. In the United States, therefore, people with disabilities can now be hired for jobs for which they are qualified, travel by public transportation, and enter buildings to work. Because we are in the information age, however, a person’s livelihood often depends on familiarity with and ability to use a computer.

“What are the new issues concerning social morality posed by Information Technology?” One of those issues is that of equal access to computing systems. Although we have lowered street curbs, put in ramps, and made public transportation accessible to people with disabilities, we have lagged behind in adaptive accommodations for computer systems. Why? I think that the swiftness of the computer revolution and the impact that it has had on society were unanticipated. Designers of computer systems were so eager to move into the mainstream, where the return on investment was obvious, that they ignored a segment of prospective users: those with disabilities. For example, at a recent Association for Computing Machinery exhibition, only two of approximately one hundred exhibits presented devices for persons with disabilities. When questioned about the lack of adaptive interfaces for certain software products, the vendors usually replied that no one had even considered this group of users.

Because universities receive federal funding, they are obligated by law not to discriminate against people with disabilities. “Reasonable accommodation” in computer training that occurs at the university, unfortunately, often is interpreted to mean assisted learning, not adaptive technology. I would argue that, at present, students who are physically challenged and those with learning disabilities are not being afforded an equal education if they are not given access to computers which meet their needs, namely, those that use the latest adaptive technology. Such technology, which permits equity of access, has helped to reassure people with disabilities that they can attempt a university education with minimal accommodation in most major courses of study. It can empower such students and improve their self-image and quality of life by preparing them to take their place in the work force in the age of information technology.

SOURCE: The Research Center on Computing & Society at Southern Connecticut State University

RUBRIC

Scoring is based on DEVELOPMENT of content (use and explanation of evidence from the reading) as the real “right answer.” Having the right idea but not supporting the assertions will mean that the score can be no more than fifty percent of the possible ‘topic development’ portion of the score.

Standard English conventions, based on a 1-4 score point scale
NOTE: This means that 40% of the score for any open response question is based on mechanics of language regardless of the ‘correctness’ of the answer.