We're now in our 1015 session on digital literacy and inclusive Internet access. And I wanted to that's what we're in for. I wanted to just kind of set this stage a little bit with a couple of comments. So in 2008, we were fortunate enough to have come into existence, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the CRPD. This was the first human rights treaty of the 21st century, but it's also a development instrument. So it serves the purpose of both protecting the Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities outlining the range of rights that they should enjoy, as well as the development instrument thinking about how does the social and economic opportunities that many people have opportunities to pursue, can also be pursued by persons with disabilities. This also represented a shift away from what was called the medical model, which focused on persons with disabilities, that sort of objects of charity to a social justice human rights model, which focuses on the rights of persons with disabilities to access education and information and political participation. Coupled with that we have the technology based standards for access that come from the W three C, and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, WIC egg 2.0 Now, and so we have strategies for being able to ensure that the kind of technologies the kind of web based resources that we have, are as open as possible to persons with disabilities. And so this session will focus on information accessibility and digital literacy, and building an inclusive Internet. And this is critically important because we also had in 2012, the World Health Organization, World Bank study on Global Disability, which told us that there are more than a billion people in the world living with some form of disability. And so about 13% of every country's population is a person with a disability. And as we get older, many of us will have the same kinds of needs for information access and support that persons with disabilities have. And so we are fortunate today to be able to have Jose Manolo Alvarez professor of courses and assistive technology and special education at the University of Puerto Rico, and the foundation founder of Manolo dotnet. So without further ado, I'll turn it over to Professor Jose Manolo Elba is thank you very much.
Thank you very much, Can all of you can hear me? Okay, so, I will talk this morning of various initiatives that we are developing in our university related to digital accessibility. Here in Puerto Rico, our two main committees that deal with either accessibility, one of the government of Puerto Rico, and one of the University of Puerto Rico and all of their campus. And I am part and fortunate to be part of the initiative. But I, as soon as started and August committees, I noticed something that we need people with disability that have some technical knowledge. We have people with disabilities that can say this webpage is not accessible, but cannot resolve that situation or cannot explain that in a more technical way. That's a challenge because we have guidance that standards WCAG 2.2 Right now, and they are quite technical standards. But we need people with disability that can have that knowledge, and can then explain and resolve and serve as a leader enable to implement that initiative of the data accessibility. So I've have that project in my mind. I said, Well, let's do something. I'll then identified in our campus students, I start with blind student then target students with disabilities, learning disabilities, we have students with autism, different disabilities, but I started with a blind student since I have a blind person. And I said, Do you want to know how to call Good. And so what what is that? And said, do you use the Internet? Yes, I use the Internet and but you're consuming information? Do you want to create a webpage and and use coding? That's too hard. No, it is not hard. It is hard because you're not exposed to coding. I study, my BA was in programming. And later my graduate student was in special education, so I can combine it. But we need that here in Puerto Rico, that since elementary school, our kids start to learn coding, not all of them will be programmers, but they will teach a very neat skills, that today, so I decide that I have some challenges that we need to introduce coding related to web accessibility. But this process procedure must be not intimidating. And so I create a software that I will demonstrate right now. And I will show you how was the curriculum and how the students corner first html, all of the our web based content have HTML. And we need to know HTML enable to then read the guidelines and see what is under that web page. Later second phase is that they learn CSS CSS is the for the look and feel the presentation, also related to some principles of the data accessibility. And the third phase is that they will learn then a programming like JavaScript or Python. So that's the the main three fields that a webpage have today, a modern web page, their structure, HTML, the look and feel CSS, and the behavior of the dynamic content. On a programming language, HTML is not a programming language, per se, it is a markup language, but it's a great way to introduce people with disability that are not programmers to programming and they can apply then they guidance I can resolve a lot of problems. So, we have to my thinking is that we have to start with something and they will be on and there will be impro improve. So I will then give you a demonstration of how the software works. But you will hear my screen reader so it is not that the audio is bad. So you will hear my screen reader and I also have a Braille display here. So I will use in both or I am using Windows, I developed this software for window because in our university and our schools in Puerto Rico 95% of the computers that they use are windows, so I have to code it in the technology that they use, but learning HTML then they can use it later with any operating system and they order software that B sharp code studio or notepad plus plus a lot of IDE software that are much better my software is just to learn and use a curriculum when they learn they move to another most powerful software. So I am on the desktop. The software is called inclusion code. So I will press the letter I
so I am now on their day inclusion code. This is my screen reader. I will put it slower later so during demonstrations, I press enter and they will amend their software right now with this in Spanish I will do very fast my demonstration in Spanish but the software also has Spanish and English version. Don't worry at the end I will give you the address of the webpage where you can download it for free. So there they have that menu have a sequential menu so with my screen reader is very accessible. So the blind students just move the arrow keys and say well I would like to start learning HTML or markdown. Well, we will focus in HTML for my example. So I was press Enter, it is an inclusion software because it has visual, you can use it with your mouse or touching your tablet. But I also can use it using the keyboard. So I will press enter. There, ML editorial Blanca. So you will hear sounds, it is that the sounds just reinforce it is like, remember, we are starting from scratch from zero persons that want to learn to code but does not have to code. And they feel that this is hard. So we must do it in a easy a sequential way. So you have the sounds. So yours, you're in a new document, you're ready to write coding. And the boys say, this is your new HTML document. I said say if you put it in English, all the feedback will be in English. Oh, wait, it is in Spanish and English. So there is a blank document. So I can start to write my code. But there's one little thing that I learned, if I start to teach tags, HTML, just where we tax less than greater than you have to open your tag, you have to close it. But sometimes the person say looks it is it is quite hard, I cannot do it. So I do another thing. I make a menu. So you can I say let's make a very basic web page. So a web page must have a heading a heading number one heading. So that's the first thing that we will do what I will paste. So the student just can go to the menu, Insert menu, I press the Alt key, that is insert menu, I then press down arrow. And he said General text HTML text, I press enter immediately. So what do you want to insert, and I said, Well, I would press number one, because I will like to insert an h1 heading number one. And I press enter and then appears a box and you say enter your texts, okay, but I will enter my text. Let's say that I will do something related to a cookie that cookie it is a little frog from Puerto Rico. So it's gonna be I am writing. And I just hit enter. And the system say make a sounds and I say these, this is the tag for the h one for the herring. So the student can learn the tags, if I if if h one H two, it is just a link. It is a list or ordered not ordered released. And they can play and they can then go and review. And the curriculum we have a curriculum say if you want to make an h1, you have to write the chart less than h1 grader one, HTML is very basic, but his body straight. So it's it's a great tool to introduce a person to coding. Other things that the software do always put the text in a new line. HTML I use can write, keep writing to the right that text but it's more confused. The first it is more clear that h1 is starting that stack, then the text. And then I used to go down and he'd say, a close with that slash the attack. So at the beginning, they can play with that. What I really want is that they mastered that skill. When they start to learn that the learned attacks, then we do more complex things. Let's do some more. Let's say that I want a heading two, so
press two, so I go to h2. So the idea is that to follow the WCAG guidelines, you have to have a sequential every time And you use headings on our webpage as the that accessibility. So I will right from Puerto Rico to the word
and I, and they just write it again. So, and I guess, keep doing as integrated a lot of elements, I can put the graphics I can put, let's put out a graphic, let's do one more thing that's real graphic. If you want to put a graphic you use go to insert and then go to email. And I And now on the in the Image menu, I hit ENTER host, karuna table, they will now imagine. So I can move to the directory
I have a cookie picture over there. So just hit enter. What the software does say, Oh, you want that picture, you must do a text description, the alt text. And then I teach them. There's all of your pictures that you put on a web page, you must enter a text description. That's the guidelines 1.1. That very important guideline that you have to follow. If you don't write, the software will not meet you put the picture. So let's say that is a picture of a cookie. So I will read inspect.
And they ride the attack. And then we go there and explain it. The first thing that happened is the tag. So it's less than I N G space. S C earth that is the direction the path, it is important. Yeah, so we explain it. When we do upload it through FTP, we have to use folders, that's important that you have a folder of image and then you go to the alt AE L T equals and there's a description and then you can put the size. So but you we will go then part by part of that tag. So let's do one morpheme and then preview the page. Let's say that we're more advanced, we want to include a sound. So we go to people with Monster introduction. Anybody who's karuna, Chico and they'll do the same sound will then is an mp3 or a hit enter. And a create an accessible code. This is more advanced. But there is important that you start with the basic. But they really want to add more features, including other visuals including videos, including tables, but we start from the basic and then we are building up. They are motivated, because they are learning and they are creating. Let's do a preview. So we go to
and they say preview in the browser and it will preview in your default Windows browse. So I will hit enter
and this is the webpage I will reveal with my screen reader. You say hey anyone else go key we'll put then download open. Head into the Puerto Rico mando from Puerto Rico to the world, Down Arrow graphic picture of a cookie so it is accessible. A screen reader can read and your spoon a description based on the content of my web page. And if I download it is a badass but you see that the burdens can have Have play. Because in the code that the software generates, it is already accessible. When we are in that part of the curriculum is plenty there is important that you have a text label, and we can use it. Let's press B, we'll go to the playbook. And I will say the spacebar.
So what is what is the what what we're really be able to accomplish teaching code in a not intimidated word local, how easy is if you have the right tool, if you are motivated, if you really have a goal, I really want to implement web accessibility. And we need in these communities, people with disability with technical knowledge. So, we have to do an initiative and at the end, we have to present results enable then to have more people with disability engage involve so in the data accessibility, so this is an example. So, I will tell you the direction is very easy inclusion, koat.com, inclusion, calm and you can visit the webpage. Of course, this is a very basic, then you have you have some templates have the global HTML. So you have the have the head, so you have the body. But you have to start from a very basic from scratch. And then you are it be people that learn HTML can use WordPress, WordPress, almost 40% of all web pages in the world as bars, or WordPress, you have to build from scratch or work base. But with HTML, you can add content and more important there. So accessibility issue that you need to go to the code enable to resolve. So I'll finish my demonstration. And I'll be more than happy to answer any question that that you may have for me. Thank you so much.
Please join me in thanking again, Professor Alvarez for this wonderful demonstration. Thank you.
So what are your questions regarding the demonstration back there in the right?
Yes, my name is Chanel McPherson. And I can say that I've came to Nasik to witness a phenomenal event. You are extraordinary, sir. I must say. Thank you know, I was advising Professor Derek as well that I operate an East initiative back in Jamaica, where he served the disability community. I also hold a diploma in PHP web development. And one of the things that I focus on is to provide coordinate systems for the disability community, not only in Jamaica, but for the Caribbean region. We have students in St. Kitts and Nevis, we have students in Grenada, etc. However, I've never seen anything quite like this. So my question is, do you offer Train the Trainer sessions? Are you open for any collaborations? And, of course, is this an open source program in which you know, we can modify it to our existence? I mean, you provided us with the with the with the website information, but this is something that I'm invested in. And I'm just looking for answers, really. So let me know, please. And I'll also want to have a one on one with you after this session to discuss further. Thank you.
Definitely come with me, that is a great initiative, great idea. We can coordinate do the training via zoom or teams or whatever platform and of course, you can use this software, it is for free. And it is more I'd be more than happy to support that great initiative.
Okay. That's a great, great question. And I had sort of a follow up question as well is can it be modified to go beyond HTML and markup to also other languages?
Well, yes, at right now it is HTML or markdown. I am working in the new in the new version that is Python. But that does an N ssed that then the blind students that master HTML so I will do more And I said, Oh, yes, I really want to get over there. But this is step by step. Excellent. And the next version will be raised in Python.
Outstanding. We have a question in the back, and then one in the front here.
Okay. All right, thank you. My name is sabe. I'm very, I don't know what to say. But this is so amazing, because I have been also teaching HTML, CSS, JavaScript and coding for case with Scratch. And that and this one is like a whole modal together, like how we are prompting AI. And it's very surprising. But I have a consent, in terms of this project that you are doing, how do you get funding? Because I know it is not just easy to come up with this? Or do you have the skill, but you need the resources and infrastructure to also to this 10? Out there? How are you getting support. And two, I liked the idea that you were saying that you you are even advocating for kids to start learning, coding from classroom and other stuff that is also in this year, because I've been teaching kids from six years coding of up to 1000 case in Ghana, we back from about six years ago. And we still pushing that agenda. Also in terms of making the disability community to also equip themselves with the skills is there any partnership that government in other areas are also trying to partner you to make sure that they also have that inclusion and digital assets in their life so that they can also come up with something that would be very influential to their life. So this is what I want to know. But very good job, and well done. And we are ready to also push the advocacy forward. Thank you very much.
Thank you very much for your comment, sir. Well, first of all, when I started when I started, and I present the idea, most of people does not understand my idea, not that they don't believe it, they don't understand that. So I started by myself, I don't have any funding. I started with my center. And they I started I say, Well, I know a lot of programmers, they started with me with volunteers, then I presented the results do assessment is very important. And I'm presented to the university and then the university start to give me some funds. And right now we are in the phase that we are going to present it to the government. So student with disability, k 12. And also the borough for rehabilitation, that they have some funding also can consider coding as an employment opportunity. So you have been by five phases, but at the beginning and have any fun. And a lot of the people does not even understand me the is more hard when people don't understand that people say no, because I don't believe in your idea. But when they understand, well, the best way the best way that I can do it if I make up a viable project and gain results.
Great. We have a question here from Professor Milton.
Hello, Manolo. Again, thank you for your excellent work. I'm wondering if you have been able to experiment with or push forward into text to speech and speech to text so that that would make it even easier for blind people to code?
Yes, I have tried and I love that I love speech synthesizer and I love Braille Braille display. And yes, I am have been working in self initiative, this software has a text to speech where they that you can I will I will present in the code reads, so have a text to speech. So, you can say read it and they will read it as as the webpage will present it they will not read the code they will read as the webpage will press enter. So that's very important. So the not even a blind person any person can have an idea of if the coding that are making are accessible to screen readers due to this text to speech integration But I have more ideas. And I will like to do more fiends. And any ideas that you believe people can provide that definitely will be integrated in the software.
All right, we'll probably have time for one more question and one or two. Jonathan.
Hi, Jonathan Zurich, thanks, again, for your demonstration. How accessible are the tools for developers when you're talking about this potentially being a pathway to software development or tools like Visual Studio and others, accessible enough that they could be used by folks with visibility disability in out in the real world kind of really still need generative tools like this? Well,
that's their main goal that they go to mainstream. There's, there's some data more accessible than others, I feel that all of them need to be more accessible. But visuals, code studio is quite accessible. If you use NVDA have plugin or just have some scripts, I have also used Xcode, Xcode to the Mac, to code, for example, using Swift. And they are, they also have some accessible their fields that are not accessible, and you have to do all their fields enable to make it accessible, but you have a great point of the results. We want to have blind coders, we need that the IDE s and that tools must be accessible. Because if one, if one of the updates of that software, it is not accessible, then you will live in in trouble a person that already is on employment or stalling, and that accessibility can get calluses problem. So definitely the main goal if that the person can use that that mainstream alternative,
I would think a good way to move forward might be to look at Jupyter notebooks and Google colab. Both are web based. And so maybe the accessibility of those IDs is either currently more accessible or could be made accessible. Do you know that? Professor Manila?
Yeah, that's a very good approach. I am thinking also to make this software web base. That's one of the things that I am thinking in a future versions, because you can use it from any technology, any operating system, and the accessibility will then always have a higher level of accessibility.
Great, thank you so much. Any final questions? Any questions online? We just have a lot of things and an amazing job.
Thank you very much. Let's
join our online colleagues in thanking Professor Manolo. Thank you
