Assessing the Accessibility of Library Tools & Services When You Aren’t an Accessibility Expert: Part 2

Abstract

There are a few studies in library literature that explore accessibility issues from the perspective of students who use assistive technologies for accessibility. As we shared in part one of this two-part series in our column, librarians have extensively explored through usability studies with WAVE and other audit tools how accessible library websites and databases are when using assistive technologies like JAWS. In this column, we asked our blind student worker to journal his experiences navigating our library’s databases. We found this student navigated the databases better than we anticipated. While his experiences regarding the accessibility of the libraries’ electronic services varied, common issues he experienced included navigational issues from menus with expanding capabilities, documents that were not scanned with OCR, and images without alternative text.     

Public deliberation and social justice sensibilities in Greensboro Participatory Budgeting

ABSTRACT

Participatory budgeting (PB) has emerged as a tool for empowering marginalized communities and advancing social justice through public deliberation and advocacy. However, public deliberation scholars have contested the appropriate roles of social justice, activism, and equity. PB bridges deliberation, advocacy, and equity, as it strives to accomplish social change. We detail how the first cycle of Greensboro PB navigated tensions between residents who sought social change and government officials who wished to maintain the status quo. We argue PB is an example of public deliberation that fosters social justice sensibilities among participants and conclude with applied recommendations for design improvements.     

Students' perceptions of their information literacy skills: the confidence gap between male and female international graduate students

In the 2015 Summer Session I, the information literacy team combined two instruments, the Information Literacy Assessment (ILA) and the Students' Perceptions of Their Information Literacy Skills Questionnaire (SPIL-Q), into one survey and distributed it to the college's international graduate students through a Google Form. It was distributed to 932 international graduate students, and 172 valid respondents completed the survey. The purpose of this research was to compare the confidence gap in information literacy skills between men and women, particularly in international graduate students. Data collected illustrated that female international business students (n = 70) tended to be slightly more confident than their male counterparts (n = 102) regarding their perceived information literacy skills as evidenced by their SPIL-Q average score across all six IL topics, 3.78, vs. male student's average score of 3.58.     

The effectiveness of an expanded interrogative training technique for young deaf children

This study investigates the development of language interrogatives in deaf children through a program using expanded question structures. Ten young deaf children, (age range 6 to 8 years) were assigned to matched groups on the basis of chronological age and results of Raven's Progressive Matrices. One group was given six traditional question structures and the other was given six expanded question structures, on each of four consecutive days. On the fifth day, the traditional question structures were asked of all the subjects. The analysis of responses showed that even with a small sample the expanded question structures affected the number of accurate responses for the conceptual type of “wh” questions.     

Relative age effect: implications for effective practice

Physical and psychological differences related to birthdate amongst athletes of the same selection year have been characterised as the “relative age effects” (RAEs). RAEs have been identified in a variety of sports, both at youth and adult level, and are linked with dropout of athletes and a reduction of the talent pool. This study examined the existence, mechanisms and possible solutions to RAEs using qualitative methodology. Seven experts in the field of talent identification and development were interviewed. Inductive analysis of the data showed that, while there was mixed evidence for the existence of RAEs across sports, the eradication of RAEs was attributed to controllable features of the development environment. The factors reported included the structure of “categories” used to group athletes within the sport (e.g. age, weight, size, skills), recognition and prioritisation of long-term development over “short term win focus.” Education of relevant parties (e.g. coaches, scouts, clubs) about RAEs and the nature of “talent” within a long-term context was suggested, along with careful consideration of the structure of the development environment (e.g. delayed selection, provision for late developers, focus on skills not results, use of challenge). Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

The peer mentor experience in a physical activity intervention for mental health

Despite the effectiveness of peer-led health programs, few studies have been focused on the experiences of the peer mentors involved in such programs. The purpose of the current study was to explore the experiences of peer mentors involved in a peer-led physical activity program for students with mental health concerns, namely anxiety and depression. Participants were eight former peer mentors from a mid-size university who completed interviews regarding their motivation for serving as a peer mentor and the ways in which the program influenced them both during and after the program ended. Findings from an integrative analysis demonstrated that the mentors grew personally, professionally, and interpersonally from their participation. Further, mentors’ experiences could be explained by the self-determination theory.