Terms and Definitions

Terms and Definitions

• Section 503: prohibits employment discrimination based on disability by federal contractors or subcontractors.
• Section 504: prohibits federal agencies, programs, or activities from discriminating and requires reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with disabilities
• Section 508: In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to require Federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to people with disabilities. The law (29 U.S.C. § 794 (d)) applies to all Federal agencies when they develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology. Under Section 508, agencies must give disabled employees and members of the public access to information that is comparable to access available to others. https://www.section508.gov/
• Accessibility: refers to the design of products, devices, services, or environments for people who experience disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i.e. unassisted) and "indirect access" meaning compatibility with a person's assistive technology (for example, computer screen readers). Accessibility can be viewed as the "ability to access" and benefit from some system or entity. The concept focuses on enabling access for people with disabilities, or special needs, or enabling access through the use of assistive technology; however, research and development in accessibility brings benefits to everyone. Accessibility is not to be confused with usability, which is the extent to which a product (such as a device, service, or environment) can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use. Accessibility is strongly related to universal design which is the process of creating products that are usable by people with the widest possible range of abilities, operating within the widest possible range of situations. This is about making things accessible to all people (whether they have a disability or not). [Source = Wikipedia.org, 3/1/2017, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accessibility]
• Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA): The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) is a statute enacted in 2005 by the government of Ontario, Canada for the purpose of improving accessibility standards for Ontarians with physical and mental disabilities to all public establishments by 2025. http://www.aoda.ca/ (note: provided only as information for additional reference/resource).
• Accommodation: Accommodations is what is needed for a student to achieve. Assistive Technology can sometimes be considered an accommodation.
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H.W. Bush. The ADA is one of America's most comprehensive pieces of civil rights legislation that prohibits discrimination and guarantees that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in the mainstream of American life -- to enjoy employment opportunities, to purchase goods and services, and to participate in State and local government programs and services. Modeled after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin – and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 -- the ADA is an "equal opportunity" law for people with disabilities. https://www.ada.gov/
• ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications, WAI-ARIA): Accessibility of web content requires semantic information about widgets, structures, and behaviors, in order to allow assistive technologies to convey appropriate information to persons with disabilities. This specification provides an ontology of roles, states, and properties that define accessible user interface elements and can be used to improve the accessibility and interoperability of web content and applications. These semantics are designed to allow an author to properly convey user interface behaviors and structural information to assistive technologies in document-level markup. https://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria/
• Assistive Technology: Assistive Technology though will not always be helpful in providing the full accommodation if the interface of whatever software or web application/hardware is not designed to the standards to be accessible.
• Assistive Technology Act of 1998: establishes a grant program to provide Federal funds to support State programs that address the assistive technology needs of individuals with disabilities.
• 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA): On October 8, 2010, President Obama signed the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) into law. The CVAA updates federal communications law to increase the access of persons with disabilities to modern communications. The CVAA makes sure that accessibility laws enacted in the 1980s and 1990s are brought up to date with 21st century technologies, including new digital, broadband, and mobile innovations. The following are highlights of the new law. https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/21st-century-communications-and-video-accessibility-act-cvaa
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC): additional guidance on laws related to the provision of reasonable accommodations.
• European Commission Mandate M/376: [Standard – EN 301 549] Accessibility requirements suitable for public procurement of ICT products and services in Europe. http://mandate376.standards.eu/standard (note: provided only as information for additional reference/resource).
• HCC Procurement Language: Procurement works with CTS to identify the RFP’s that need to include the Nonvisual access clause required by COMAR. Per 11/30/2015 meeting notes: The following clause will be included in orders and solicitations: “The contractor shall ensure that technology and services are consistent with standards set forth in Maryland State Finance and Procurement Code Ann. 3A-311(2015). If there is an additional cost to modify equipment for non-visual access, the supplier shall advise the Procurement Officer of the costs for modification.”
• Inclusion: The term inclusion captures, in one word, an all-embracing societal ideology. Regarding individuals with disabilities and special education, inclusion secures opportunities for students with disabilities to learn alongside their non-disabled peers in general education classrooms. Honestly establishing a successful inclusive classroom varies in complexity, based upon the challenges created by the disability at hand. However a knowledgeable approach and positive attitudes on the parts of parents and teachers proves vital to triumphing over any obstacles which may emerge. Inclusion should also encompass the idea that people with disabilities are part of the process and management.
• HEOA: The Higher Education Opportunity Act (Public Law 110-315) (HEOA) was enacted on August 14, 2008, and reauthorizes the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). This page provides information on the Department's implementation of the HEOA. http://www2.ed.gov/policy/highered/leg/hea08/index.html
• Voluntary Product Accessibility Statement (VPAT): A Voluntary Product Accessibility Template is a table describing how a proposed computer hardware product, software, or online service enables usability by people with limited capacities to see, hear, or exercise muscular control. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voluntary_Product_Accessibility_Template
• WCAG: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) is developed through the W3C process in cooperation with individuals and organizations around the world, with a goal of proving a single shared standard for web content accessibility that meets the needs of individuals, organizations, and governments internationally. https://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/wcag
  • Level A (Beginner)
  • Level AA (Intermediate)
  • Level AAA (Advanced)