Innovations in Tertiary online for Students who are blind or vision impaired

The provision of accessible information is vital to the pursuit of education for people with a vision impairment. The improvements of disability-related policy in tertiary environments have resulted in measurable improvements in the adoption of Universal design concepts in the development of print and electronic curriculums. Yet despite this progress in policy, many tertiary institutions face a notable lack of practical policy implementation. People who are blind or vision impaired struggle in the Tertiary environments due to inadequate resources and technical expertise in the support structure. In order to take a proactive approach towards this issue, Curtin University of Technology recently completed pilot project to develop the necessary procedures, tools and training (staff and students) that addresses difficulties faced by this important group of students. The overall aim of the project was to identify the issues confronting students with a vision impairment at Curtin University, as well as the issues and factors that could contribute to their success at tertiary education. These include the provision of training to educators, the creation of alternative electronic information and the provision of accessible library and information resources