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Accessibility for Video Games and AR/VR

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Pennsylvania Convention Center, 118C

Participate and share: Interactive session

Recorded Session

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Presenters

Brady Licht

Learning Specialist

Compass: Partners in Learning
@BradyLicht

Brady Licht is a learning facilitator and designer. Before working as a Learning Specialist with TIE, Brady Licht taught at Bison High School and Rapid City High School, RCAS' alternative school, where he led two personalized, competency-based courses in a FLEX environment. He received his undergraduate degree in English Education from Black Hills State University, completed South Dakota's Rethinking Educational Models program in Spring 2022, and will receive his master's degree in Technology for Education and Training in Summer 2023.

Session description

Learn about the barriers and solutions to making accessible video game and AR/VR experiences. Drawing from the world of assistive technology and hardware development for video games, you'll discover how to create more equitable and accessible experiences. Plus, you'll have time to explore and test accessibility features.

Purpose & objective

As a result of the session, participants will be able to identify factors that can influence a learner's experience with video games and AR/VR in the classroom (vision, hearing, motor, dyslexia, ASD, ADHD) and identify solutions and strategies to make video games and AR/VR more accessible for learners with these factors. Participants will explore this through videos, discussion, and time to explore accessibility settings for a number of tools. Participants will provide their evidence of success by developing their own guide/reference to accessibility with video games and AR/VR experiences.

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Outline

5 minutes - Overview of the session
10 minutes - As a group, explore the current state of video game and AR/VR accessibility through four short clips from LauraKBuzz's Access-Ability series.
5 minutes - Participants will discuss with their neighbor about their reaction to these ideas.
30 minutes - Participants will be provided with a list of AR/VR tools and games to try to 1) evaluate if the tool is currently accessible and 2) brainstorm ways to make it more accessible. Participants will try these tools in random pairs. Participants will write down their reactions to each of these tools in an ongoing Padlet to be displayed during this time span.
10 minutes - Participants will partner up into groups of three. In these groups, they will review and develop a short guide to bring back to their staff on accessibiliity with video games and AR/VR.

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Supporting research

One expert on the topic of accessibility in video games and AR/VR is Laura K Dale. A primary source for the session will be her YouTube video series Access-Ability: https://www.youtube.com/c/LauraKBuzz

Primary academic sources:
- Accessibility in Video Games: A Systematic Review by Aguado-Delgado, Gutierrez-Martinez, Hilera, de-Marcos, & Oton.
- Game Not Over: Accessibility Issues in Video Games by Bierre, Chetwynd, Ellis, Hinn, Ludi, & Westin

Other sources that will be shared and discussed in the session include:
- Why VR/AR Developers Should Prioritize Accessibility in UX/UI Design https://medium.com/inborn-experience/why-ar-vr-developers-should-prioritize-accessibility-in-ui-ux-design-66b97e73a3ac
- The work of Jamie Donally on AR/VR will be noted.
- Related assistive technology will be discussed such as the Seeing AI from Microsoft https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/ai/seeing-ai and

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Session specifications

Topic:

Augmented, mixed & virtual reality

Grade level:

6-12

Skill level:

Intermediate

Audience:

Library media specialists, Teachers, Technology coordinators/facilitators

Attendee devices:

Devices required

Attendee device specification:

Smartphone: Android, iOS, Windows
Laptop: Mac, PC
Tablet: Android, iOS, Windows

Participant accounts, software and other materials:

Specific software & apps will be installed during the session to illustrate accessibility settings and ease of installation. Some of the applications explored include: Halo AR, Merge Object Viewer, Minecraft Education Edition, and Roblox.

Subject area:

STEM/STEAM

ISTE Standards:

For Coaches:
Learning Designer