WEBVTT Kind: captions Language: en 00:00:01.600 --> 00:00:11.880 [ music ] 00:00:12.120 --> 00:00:17.480 How can we include students with disabilities in computing courses? 00:00:17.480 --> 00:00:22.090 We take our smartphones, computers and gadgets for granted. 00:00:22.090 --> 00:00:25.039 But behind all this technology is a skilled workforce of 00:00:25.039 --> 00:00:28.029 software developers, systems administrators, 00:00:28.029 --> 00:00:30.689 Web developers and programmers. 00:00:30.689 --> 00:00:34.329 There's an increasing demand for individuals who have technical skills. 00:00:34.329 --> 00:00:38.030 An understanding of computing is important for these opportunities. 00:00:38.030 --> 00:00:41.120 We often talk about broadening the participation of females 00:00:41.120 --> 00:00:44.890 as well as racial and ethnic minorities in computing courses, 00:00:44.890 --> 00:00:47.280 but what about including people with disabilities? 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:51.520 Worldwide there's one billion people, 00:00:51.530 --> 00:00:56.100 about 15% of the international population have a disability, 00:00:56.100 --> 00:00:58.340 according to the World Health Organization. 00:00:58.340 --> 00:01:03.219 So, if you like, that's a lot of customers that they would like to get 00:01:03.219 --> 00:01:07.729 and having a diverse workforce they're more likely to have the kinds of products 00:01:07.729 --> 00:01:11.540 that will satisfy more people's needs and interests. 00:01:11.540 --> 00:01:16.270 Individuals with disabilities, including autism spectrum disorders, 00:01:16.270 --> 00:01:20.380 attention deficits, learning disabilities, hearing impairments, 00:01:20.380 --> 00:01:23.180 visual impairments, and mobility impairments, 00:01:23.180 --> 00:01:26.440 can succeed in computing education and computing careers. 00:01:26.440 --> 00:01:32.660 It is important for people with disabilities to pursue careers in science 00:01:32.660 --> 00:01:38.270 because we have really unique life experiences and skills 00:01:38.270 --> 00:01:45.100 that we can offer and it's important that for us to be stakeholders 00:01:45.100 --> 00:01:48.560 in projects and for us to be represented on the market. 00:01:48.560 --> 00:01:51.790 Being a problem solver is definitely really important 00:01:51.790 --> 00:01:53.710 when you're a software developer. 00:01:53.710 --> 00:01:56.550 And if you're someone with a disability 00:01:56.550 --> 00:02:00.600 that's something that you have to do pretty regularly since, 00:02:00.600 --> 00:02:02.680 you know, we're faced with challenges all the time. 00:02:02.680 --> 00:02:06.810 We have to find solutions to them so that probably makes us better problem solvers. 00:02:06.810 --> 00:02:10.939 That's definitely a good trait to have when you're working in this field. 00:02:10.939 --> 00:02:12.659 It's very important 00:02:12.660 --> 00:02:16.140 to attract students with disabilities into computing. 00:02:16.140 --> 00:02:18.030 One reason is it's a matter of fairness. 00:02:18.030 --> 00:02:20.499 There are a lot of opportunities in those fields 00:02:20.499 --> 00:02:24.150 and they should have an equal opportunity to pursue those fields. 00:02:24.150 --> 00:02:28.019 But another important thing is that they can benefit, 00:02:28.019 --> 00:02:32.629 those fields can benefit from the perspectives of people with disabilities. 00:02:32.629 --> 00:02:36.429 With proper assistive technology and accommodations, 00:02:36.429 --> 00:02:41.780 individuals with disabilities can successfully pursue education and careers in computing. 00:02:41.790 --> 00:02:45.549 I am a software development engineer at Amazon. 00:02:45.549 --> 00:02:48.349 I work on the Trade-in Team, 00:02:48.349 --> 00:02:52.349 so that's the program that allows customers to trade in their old items 00:02:52.349 --> 00:02:58.079 such as textbooks, electronics like iPhones, DVDs, videogames. 00:02:58.079 --> 00:03:00.920 Here I am, working for Amazon as a software developer 00:03:00.920 --> 00:03:02.700 and now I've been here almost two years. 00:03:02.700 --> 00:03:06.239 There's been new challenges every day that I've had to face 00:03:06.239 --> 00:03:08.679 and had to find a solution for. 00:03:08.680 --> 00:03:10.919 My name's is Jessie Shulman and I'm an operations program manager 00:03:10.919 --> 00:03:14.790 in the web services field and a graduate of the University of Washington. 00:03:14.790 --> 00:03:18.219 And I have a learning disability so I struggle with language to begin with, 00:03:18.219 --> 00:03:21.790 so learning a computer syntax like Java, 00:03:21.790 --> 00:03:23.579 all the problems that I had, 00:03:23.579 --> 00:03:26.139 the struggles that I had with English, came up again with Java. 00:03:26.139 --> 00:03:29.019 I am a first year PhD student 00:03:29.019 --> 00:03:32.109 in the Human Centered Design and Engineering Department 00:03:32.109 --> 00:03:34.249 at the University of Washington. 00:03:35.109 --> 00:03:40.140 I became interested in a career in Human Centered Design and Engineering 00:03:40.150 --> 00:03:42.559 because I worked as a research assistant 00:03:42.559 --> 00:03:48.010 in the Computer Science Department at the University of Washington for two years. 00:03:48.010 --> 00:03:54.319 I was hired because I have a psychology background and experience managing research projects. 00:03:54.319 --> 00:04:00.090 I'm dyslexic which means I have difficulty reading and pretty bad handwriting. 00:04:00.090 --> 00:04:04.059 The accommodations that I used in school included books on tape. 00:04:04.059 --> 00:04:06.540 I used a note taker for certain classes 00:04:06.540 --> 00:04:11.329 and I used dictation software for my writing tasks. 00:04:11.329 --> 00:04:14.809 I had all my textbooks in either electronic format or Braille 00:04:14.809 --> 00:04:18.109 depending on the situation. Like for the math courses, 00:04:18.109 --> 00:04:21.320 I had them in Braille so I could see the diagrams and everything. 00:04:21.320 --> 00:04:25.730 They bought a, an embosser that was capable of Brailling diagrams 00:04:25.730 --> 00:04:27.680 so I had note takers in my classes 00:04:27.680 --> 00:04:31.380 and they would copy down the notes and the diagrams 00:04:31.380 --> 00:04:34.070 and transcribe them into Braille which was great. 00:04:34.070 --> 00:04:35.680 I had access to everything I needed. 00:04:35.680 --> 00:04:40.640 My main accommodations would be extended time on tests, 00:04:40.640 --> 00:04:45.730 having my books available as e-text format 00:04:45.730 --> 00:04:49.320 which means I can use a screen reader 00:04:49.320 --> 00:04:51.310 to read out the books to me 00:04:51.310 --> 00:04:55.660 so even though when I'm reading it myself and I may not be able to understand it, 00:04:55.660 --> 00:04:58.630 the computer is telling me exactly what those words are. 00:04:58.630 --> 00:05:00.600 [ People talking in the room ] 00:05:00.600 --> 00:05:04.360 I use a typical computer like everyone else. 00:05:04.360 --> 00:05:10.690 But it has an additional piece of software called a screen reader loaded onto it. 00:05:10.690 --> 00:05:13.440 The screen reader tells me what is on the screen. 00:05:13.440 --> 00:05:15.690 Don't feel too pressured if. . . 00:05:15.690 --> 00:05:19.280 Teachers can play an important role in encouraging students with disabilities 00:05:19.280 --> 00:05:23.820 to study computing by giving this underrepresented group access to classes. 00:05:23.820 --> 00:05:26.540 If you don't start doing this at a young age, 00:05:26.540 --> 00:05:29.260 you won't even know what's going on later even if you're not a computing major. 00:05:29.260 --> 00:05:32.620 You need to understand how computing works 00:05:32.620 --> 00:05:35.700 because everything you have has a computer in it, 00:05:35.700 --> 00:05:38.780 your watch, your phone, your car has 25 different processors in it. 00:05:38.780 --> 00:05:43.840 For the most part, the K-12 system were very accommodating, 00:05:43.840 --> 00:05:49.530 getting an IEP and different accommodations through them 00:05:49.530 --> 00:05:54.940 and specific classes to assist in teaching reading and writing. 00:05:54.940 --> 00:05:56.800 [Teacher talking] 00:05:56.800 --> 00:06:00.270 Teachers can make their classes accessible to all students 00:06:00.270 --> 00:06:02.780 by applying universal design, 00:06:02.780 --> 00:06:05.020 designing their classes and lessons so all students 00:06:05.020 --> 00:06:08.030 have equal access to the information. 00:06:08.030 --> 00:06:12.390 Taking these steps proactively has the potential to benefit all students in a classroom, 00:06:12.390 --> 00:06:13.980 not just the students with disabilities. 00:06:13.980 --> 00:06:18.150 Teachers can use multi-modes of instruction. 00:06:18.150 --> 00:06:21.220 And so they can speak the content to the class, 00:06:21.220 --> 00:06:24.140 they can have students discuss it in small groups, 00:06:24.140 --> 00:06:26.890 they can write things on the overhead projector, 00:06:26.890 --> 00:06:29.610 they might show a concept using a video. 00:06:29.610 --> 00:06:34.470 And so that's the first thing is just to recognize that the students in their class 00:06:34.470 --> 00:06:35.960 have many different learning styles 00:06:35.960 --> 00:06:38.880 and some of them actually have disabilities that affect their learning. 00:06:38.880 --> 00:06:42.140 You might provide alternative ways 00:06:42.140 --> 00:06:44.870 to look at a single concept in a science class, 00:06:44.870 --> 00:06:47.090 not just one way of looking at it. 00:06:47.090 --> 00:06:51.300 So there might be a visual way, a more auditory way, 00:06:51.300 --> 00:06:57.030 perhaps, examples from different walks of life of a concept. 00:06:57.030 --> 00:06:58.250 So you're already doing that. 00:06:58.250 --> 00:07:01.800 And so you just want to continue doing that and maybe add a little bit more. 00:07:01.800 --> 00:07:06.310 I would say they should be willing to work with the student 00:07:06.310 --> 00:07:09.940 because every student has different needs. 00:07:09.940 --> 00:07:14.770 They should be willing to provide their materials in accessible formats. 00:07:14.770 --> 00:07:19.560 It's important for students with disabilities to feel welcome in the classes. 00:07:19.560 --> 00:07:21.910 In the high school setting, 00:07:21.910 --> 00:07:23.340 one good way to get the word out 00:07:23.340 --> 00:07:25.300 about classes that students might take, 00:07:25.300 --> 00:07:27.930 particularly in computer science, 00:07:27.930 --> 00:07:30.740 is to let the counselors know how open they are 00:07:30.740 --> 00:07:33.090 to having students with disabilities in their classes. 00:07:33.090 --> 00:07:36.440 I've had a lot of mentors and teachers 00:07:36.440 --> 00:07:42.300 who have helped me be more encouraged to go into computing. 00:07:42.300 --> 00:07:47.280 One of the professors, a well-known professor, Richard Ladner, 00:07:47.280 --> 00:07:49.610 has really helped me go towards computing. 00:07:49.610 --> 00:07:58.680 You can think of beginning computer science courses as gates. 00:07:58.680 --> 00:08:01.090 Gates to get into a field, 00:08:01.090 --> 00:08:04.360 and if those gates are impenetrable 00:08:04.360 --> 00:08:11.080 or really difficult or kind of don't meet the needs of a lot of students then, 00:08:11.080 --> 00:08:16.680 if you like, that gate is already closed and they're not getting in. 00:08:16.680 --> 00:08:21.780 So why not have a course that is so inviting, so much fun, 00:08:21.780 --> 00:08:26.120 so interesting and is an inviting course. 00:08:26.120 --> 00:08:29.810 An example of universal design is Quorum. 00:08:29.810 --> 00:08:33.709 It's a programming language that's easy for everyone to use and understand, 00:08:33.709 --> 00:08:35.979 while also being accessible to students who are blind. 00:08:35.979 --> 00:08:38.909 Quorum isn't just a language for blind kids. 00:08:38.909 --> 00:08:41.630 It's a language for everyone 00:08:41.630 --> 00:08:44.940 and it just happens to work really well with blind kids as well 00:08:44.940 --> 00:08:47.380 so if you like it's universally designed. 00:08:47.380 --> 00:08:52.580 It's designed for easy learning by everyone, including blind kids. 00:08:52.580 --> 00:08:55.200 Although applying universal design 00:08:55.200 --> 00:08:57.880 minimizes the need for accommodations for students, 00:08:57.880 --> 00:08:59.800 it's also important to have a plan in place 00:08:59.800 --> 00:09:02.300 to respond to additional accommodation requests. 00:09:02.300 --> 00:09:05.940 There are a lot of people who 00:09:05.940 --> 00:09:10.390 take the time to leave the world a better place than it was 00:09:10.390 --> 00:09:12.180 when they entered it. 00:09:12.180 --> 00:09:15.550 And I feel that it's my responsibility to do the same, 00:09:15.550 --> 00:09:18.920 to thank all the people who helped me 00:09:18.920 --> 00:09:22.170 and to ensure that more people with disabilities 00:09:22.170 --> 00:09:26.270 can pursue the career that I have, and pursue it a little bit more easily. 00:09:26.270 --> 00:09:29.490 To learn more about how you can encourage and support 00:09:29.490 --> 00:09:32.320 students with disabilities in computing courses, 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:35.510 engage with the AccessCS10K project hosted by the 00:09:35.510 --> 00:09:41.010 University of Washington and the University of Nevada Las Vegas.