Make STEM Accessible

EquatIO Canvas plug-in license expiring

Canvas has a built-in equation editor which supports direct LateX input. The MSU Denver EquatIO plug-in for Canvas might stop working after the 2023-2024 year; discussions are ongoing regarding the status. This only applies to the institutional license MSU Denver held for Canvas; this does not apply to personal licenses.

Accessible documents from LaTeX

The IAG is currently testing software that can convert the inaccessible PDFs that result from LaTeX documents into accessible Word files.

If professors are unable or unprepared to recognize and address the needs of students with disabilities, the result is “if students cannot access opportunities that feed into a STEM pipeline, they are essentially invisible.”

Formulas and images are a large part of instruction for a variety of fields such as chemistry and statistics. Using tools such as Microsoft Equation Editor or EquatIO can help in making students with disabilities visible in fields such as science and math.

The following list consists of the most common issues that make STEM content inaccessible as well as quick steps for avoiding them:

• Using plain text to write formulas or equations; a screen reader will attempt to read plain text equations as plain text
  • Instead: use tools like MathJax and EquatIO to include equations that will render in an accessible format
• Inserting equations or formulas in a PDF document; equations and formulas in PDFs cannot be rendered to an accessible format.
  • Instead: present the equations in Microsoft Word or Canvas
• Providing digital tools and resources with no alternative; STEM disciplines often utilize complex visual tools, but these tools need additional support to be made accessible in digital contexts
  • Instead: add data tables for charts and tactile resources for more complex visual tools
• Using color as the sole indicator; colors are not perceived in the same way by all and should be supported
  • Instead: use patterns and other visual cues to indicate meaning

From MSU Denver

• STEM Education for Students with Blindness/Low-Vision – Hill Research Lab (hill-lab.com) : Facilitating accessible chemistry labs for blind or low-vision students with Dr. April Hill (Chemistry).
• Use MathJax and LaTeX to Display Equations in Canvas – CTLD Ready (msudenver.edu)
• Why Are Students With Disabilities So Invisible in STEM Education? This EdWeek article is written by Janelle Johnson as associate professor in STEM here at MSU Denver.

External Resources

• How do I use the Math Editor in the Rich Content Editor – Instructure Community (canvaslms.com)
• Effective Practices for Description of Science Content within Digital Talking Books | GBH (wgbh.org): Guidelines for describing STEM images, charts, graphs, etc.
• Visit STEM Resources from DO-IT for more resources on creating accessible STEM content.
• Visit ADCET: Making Stem Accessible for more information on making STEM accessible.
• Accommodating Students with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) This article explores findings from research and practice for middle grades through university education.
• Accessible Periodic Table Options – Perkins School for the Blind A short list of some accessible periodic tables. Remember that computation results might be slightly different if the accessible table has different significant digits.
• Make your Excel documents accessible – Microsoft Support
• Microsoft Excel Accessibility Reference – Dept. of Health & Human Services