Strategies for Evaluating Accessibility

Creating equitable learning environments with AI requires ensuring that all students, including those with disabilities, can access and interact with digital tools and content. The following strategies support faculty and institutions in evaluating and improving accessibility in AI-enhanced teaching.

Conduct Comprehensive Accessibility Audits

Conducting regular accessibility audits ensures that AI tools and digital content meet the needs of all learners, including those with disabilities. These audits should evaluate key features such as screen reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, and closed captioning. Involving users with disabilities in the testing process helps surface barriers that automated tools may miss. This participatory approach ensures that accessibility efforts are grounded in real user experience.

Implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Principles

UDL offers a proactive framework for designing learning environments that accommodate variability in how students perceive, engage with, and express learning. By offering multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression, educators can make AI-integrated learning more inclusive from the start. UDL supports not just accessibility compliance, but also pedagogical flexibility that benefits all learners.

Generative AI tools can be used to support UDL by allowing students to convert content into different modalities, for example, transforming a written lecture into a podcast, infographic, or summary. AI can also help learners explore material at varied complexity levels or generate personalized practice questions to reinforce concepts. For instructors, AI can support the creation of alternative assignments that align with the same learning objectives but offer choice in how students demonstrate mastery. These tools can also assist in generating accurate alt text for images, improving screen reader compatibility, and converting documents into accessible formats (e.g., tagged PDFs or accessible HTML). By using generative AI intentionally, educators can increase learner autonomy while removing traditional barriers to access and engagement.

Leverage Assistive Technologies

Integrating assistive technologies such as screen readers, speech-to-text tools, and alternative input devices into digital learning environments is essential for equitable participation. These tools enable students with sensory, physical, or cognitive impairments to engage fully with academic content. Importantly, the benefits of these technologies often extend to all learners—a principle known as the curb-cut effect. For example, captions support not only deaf and hard-of-hearing students but also multilingual learners and those in noisy or quiet environments. Assistive tools can also support varied learning preferences and offer multiple means of action and expression, allowing students to interact with content, demonstrate knowledge, and navigate platforms in ways that align with their strengths. When evaluating AI tools, it is important to ensure they are compatible with commonly used assistive technologies.

Faculty and staff can seek support through their institution’s disability services office, instructional technology team, or digital accessibility coordinator. Additionally, most learning management systems (LMS), such as Brightspace, Canvas, or Blackboard, include built-in accessibility checkers that can help identify barriers in course content. Free web-based tools like the WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool (wave.webaim.org), Microsoft Accessibility Checker, and Grackle for Google Workspace also offer quick ways to assess and improve digital materials. These resources can help ensure AI-enhanced learning environments are inclusive and aligned with accessibility standards.