Warrenville, IL (USA), January 2009 - Section 508 was enacted by the US government to eliminate barriers in information technology and to make new opportunities for people with disabilities available. CourseAvenue now announces the availability of their Accessibility Player, a new technology that builds Section 508 compliance into the core of eLearning content.
While many eLearning tools support some accessibility standards, they do so largely by relying on individual developers to interpret and apply the complexities of Section 508 compliance requirements. The likelihood and cost of producing non- 508-compliant eLearning is high when inexperienced developers make their first attempts at accessibility.
With the Accessibility Player, Section 508 standards are built in. It therefore provides the foundation for developers to adhere to Section 508 standards, allowing course authors and subject-matter experts to focus on course content, not government requirements.
"Having seen the failures of organizations using what they think are 'Section-508- compliant tools' has motivated our development efforts" explains Joe Gorup, CourseAvenue CEO. "By melding sound instructional design, Section 508 accessibility standards, and screen-reader functionality into our player technology, the cost and lead time for producing eLearning for everyone, including people with disabilities, is dramatically reduced."
For validation of the Accessibility Player, CourseAvenue worked closely with Criterion 508 Solutions, Inc. Criterion is the nation's leading auditors of Section 508 compliance and acts and an "independent third party" auditor to its clients. Criterion utilizes an extensive array of assistive software and hardware, eLearning courses, disabled developers/auditors, and the most rigorous testing methodologies in the industry.
"We were very impressed with the way CourseAvenue's technical team pushed past the limits encountered during the development of their Accessibility Player", stated Anna Bradley, CEO of Criterion 508 Solutions, Inc. "They found unique and creative ways to ensure that accessible eLearning courses developed on their platform adheres to Section 508 requirements."
Moving forward, a teaming arrangement between CourseAvenue and Criterion 508 Solutions provides government and corporate clients readily available Section 508 experts for any 508-related questions or issues that may arise during the course- development process.
CourseAvenue has developed programs to assist clients with developing new courses as well as repurposing existing courses into Section-508-compliant eLearning content.
