Section #17: Producers of Educational or Training Material
(1) Every obligated organization that is a producer of educational or training textbooks for educational or training institutions shall upon request make accessible or conversion ready versions of the textbooks available to the institutions. O. Reg. 191/11, s. 17 (1).
(2) Every obligated organization that is a producer of print-based educational or training supplementary learning resources for educational or training institutions shall upon request make accessible or conversion ready versions of the printed materials available to the institutions. O. Reg. 191/11, s. 17 (2).
When acquiring educational or training materials, procurement language should include an institutional commitment to accessibility and alternative formats. Sample procurement policies and practices are listed below.
Institutions might have a number of offices that support academic accommodation for students. This support often includes accessible or conversion-ready textbooks. Administration should ensure that these offices are aware of the obligations outlined in Section #17 of the IASR.
In cases where institutions develop their own educational or training materials that are circulated to students, those responsible for creating these materials should be familiar with the best practices in creating accessible documents. This will allow the material to be converted readily to alternative formats upon request. Resources for creating accessible documents are listed below.
Repositories of Electronic Educational Materials:
- Ontario Council of University Libraries: Scholars Portal
- Ontario Government: Alternative Education Resources Ontario (AERO)
Procurement policies:
- George Brown College: Captioned Media and E-Text Policy
- Innisfil Public Library Board: Corporate Purchasing
- American Library Association: Think Accessible Before You Buy
Accessibility plans:
Evaluating accessibility resources:
- American Library Association: Electronic Database and Computer Software Evaluation
- American Library Association: Computer Software Accessibility Checklist
- Information Technology Industry Council: Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT)
Creating accessible documents:
- CNIB: Clear Print Guidelines
- Adobe: Accessibility Guidelines
- Guides to creating accessible digital documents and websites can be found in the Reference Library.
Obligated organizations to which this section applies shall meet the requirements of this section in accordance with the following schedule:
- 17 (3) 1 In respect of accessible or conversion ready versions of textbooks, January 1, 2015.
- 17 (3) 2 In respect of accessible or conversion ready versions of printed materials that are educational or training supplementary learning resources, January 1, 2020.
In Section 1 (2), the IASR states that, “the requirements in the standards set out in this Regulation are not a replacement or a substitution for the requirements established under the Human Rights Code nor do the standards limit any obligations owed to persons with disabilities under any other legislation.”