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School inclusion and disability: how to design accessible digital activities from the start


Digital illustration of an inclusive classroom: a teacher leads an activity on a digital whiteboard with accessibility icons. Students of varying abilities and backgrounds work with tablets and computers; one student uses a wheelchair and another wears headphones. The environment is welcoming and exemplifies the use of technology for accessible learning.

Introduction

Talking about school inclusion today inevitably also means talking about digital . Online platforms, multimedia materials, electronic registers, and digital educational tools are now part of everyday life in schools and educational settings. Yet, these resources are not always designed for everyone.

Designing digital activities that are accessible from the start isn't just good practice: it's an educational, ethical, and inclusive choice that can make a difference for students with disabilities, special educational needs, and, indeed, for the entire class.


School inclusion doesn't mean "fixing it later"

One of the most common mistakes is to think of inclusion as something to be fixed later :

“First I prepare the lesson, then I'll see how to adapt it.”

This approach often leads to:

  • materials that are difficult to modify,

  • improvised solutions,

  • extra load for teachers and students.

Designing inclusively, however, means considering a variety of needs, abilities, and learning styles from the outset. Digital technology, if used wisely, can become a powerful ally.


Designing Accessible Digital Activities: Where to Start


1. Thinking about diversity as a starting point

Each class is heterogeneous: students with sensory, cognitive, or motor disabilities, students with DSA (Specific Learning Disabilities), ADHD, non-native speakers, or simply with different learning styles.

The key question is not:

“Is this material suitable for a student with a disability?”

but rather:

“Is this material accessible to as many people as possible, in different ways?”


2. Make content clear, flexible and customizable

Some practical principles:

  • Readable texts

    • use simple fonts and appropriate sizes;

    • avoid excessively long blocks of text;

    • structure content with headings, lists, and spaces.

  • Multimodal content

    • combine text, audio, images and video;

    • Don't entrust important information to just one channel.

  • Editable materials

    • prefer editable documents to “closed” PDFs;

    • allow students to adapt the format to their needs.


3. Be careful with images, videos and presentations

In digital, even what seems “secondary” matters a lot.

  • Images : Should have a short description explaining what they represent.

  • Video :

    • better if with subtitles;

    • Transcriptions or summaries are also useful.

  • Presentations :

    • avoid visual overload;

    • colors with good contrast;

    • slides not too dense.

These measures help students with visual or hearing impairments, as well as those who have attention or comprehension difficulties.


The role of digital tools in inclusive design


There are no "magic" tools, but the right tools if used in the right way . Some features to prioritize when choosing an educational platform or app:

  • ability to customize fonts and colors ;

  • compatibility with speech recognition ;

  • ease of navigation;

  • options for working collaboratively;

  • access from different devices.


Inclusive technology is not the most complex, but the one that adapts to people , not the other way around.



A concrete example: rethinking a digital lesson


First (not inclusive):

  • Non-editable scanned PDF;

  • long and dense text;

  • oral explanation only;

  • same delivery for everyone.


After (inclusive):

  • editable digital document;

  • text divided into parts with keywords highlighted;

  • written explanation + audio;

  • ability to choose how to return the work (text, audio, map, presentation).

The content doesn't change, but accessibility does .



Digital inclusion: a benefit for the entire class

An often overlooked aspect is that accessible design benefits not only students with disabilities . Clear, flexible, and well-structured materials:

  • improve understanding,

  • reduce frustration,

  • increase autonomy,

  • they encourage everyone's participation.

In this sense, inclusion is not an exception, but a quality of teaching .



Conclusion: design better, not harder

Designing digital activities that are accessible from the start doesn't mean working harder, but working better . It means shifting your focus:

  • from performance to participation,

  • from the “special case” to diversity as normality,

  • from technology as an obstacle to technology as an opportunity.

A truly inclusive school isn't one that asks students to adapt , but one that adapts to them. Especially digitally.


To learn more and get started immediately on designing more accessible digital activities, here are some useful resources for teachers and educators.


Accessibility Guidelines and References



Inclusive teaching and Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

Accessible digital tools for schools


Inclusion, disability and school

Reference portal for support teachers, families, and educators.

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