Digital accessibility tools and training and the DA4You course: views and experiences of users with disabilities

Digital technologies are now ubiquitous in our lives and it is of critical importance that people with disabilities benefit from full and equitable access to the digital world. However, digital accessibility training for users with disabilities is lacking, and there is little research on developing such training focusing on ways to use the broad and growing range of digital accessibility tools available today. The current study investigates the practices, views and experiences of users with disabilities regarding digital devices, accessibility tools and training. Data were collected from 91 participants with a range of disabilities using a questionnaire and 14 participants took part in a semi-structured interview. The findings confirm that while users with disabilities are making use of a wide variety of technologies and accessibility tools, digital accessibility training for such users is inadequate, with participants experiencing gaps and shortcomings in the training and support provided from their early years onwards, including at school, university and in their adult lives. Such gaps and deficiencies reinforce the digital divide between users with disabilities and non-disabled users. Participants gave several recommendations to improve digital accessibility training. The research informed the design of the training created as part of the DA4You project, presented in this article, which was positively evaluated by participants overall. However, greater efforts are needed to improve digital accessibility training for all users with disabilities, who are keen to have access to more and better training opportunities. The onus is on educators, trainers, administrators and policymakers, etc. to make this a priority.