Commitment to Accessible Content Authoring

SoftChalk products enable educators, instructional designers and curriculum specialists to create interactive and engaging digital curriculum that is typically delivered to students via the institution’s learning management system.

SoftChalk is committed to ensuring that the learning content that our product produces is usable and accessible by all students. In particular, we have focused our efforts on ensuring that SoftChalk produces content that is screen-readable, and can be navigated by students who may be limited to using a keyboard only when accessing the content. In addition, we provide integration with third-party tools, such as ReadSpeaker, to enable additional functionality for those students who may benefit from having their content spoken aloud, in addition to reading their content text.

SoftChalk has been recognized by specialists in the field as a leader among software companies in addressing accessibility issues in its products. We continually strive to make improvements so that educational institutions who use our products can meet regulatory requirements, so that educators can easily incorporate those requirements into their everyday work, and ultimately so that all students can have the best possible educational experience.

Guidelines/Standards/Roadmap

SoftChalk has designed and developed it’s authoring app, SoftChalk Create, to produce content in accordance with the internationally recognized Web Content Accessibility (WCAG) Guidelines 2.1 Level A and Level AA. The purpose of our VPAT is to assist buyers in making an assessment of our accessibility support.

Developing software, like developing digital learning content, is an on-going process. We regularly perform internal accessibility testing with screen reader technology to ensure that SoftChalk-produced content works as desired. Below you will find our Accessibility Roadmap which describes our current efforts to address accessibility shortcomings:

Feedback

At SoftChalk, we have worked with both individuals and organizations to develop and implement accessibility product improvements.

  • Beginning in 2006, SoftChalk hired a visually impaired graduate student who reviewed SoftChalk-produced content and provided suggestions for improvements;
  • In 2009, SoftChalk commissioned a formal review and recommendations from the American Foundation for the Blind, which we implemented in 2010;
  • Since then, SoftChalk has solicited input from accessibility specialists at educational institutions who use SoftChalk in everyday practice, which has resulted in major product enhancements in 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018.

SoftChalk continually seeks feedback and input from both individuals and organizations with suggestions for accessibility improvements.

For questions about accessibility, to report accessibility issues, or to provide input and feedback regarding accessibility features, please contact our Support Team by sending email to help@softchalk.com.

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