Back
Announcements

Celebrating landmark accessibility legislation in Illinois

The Newsela Team
Aug 31, 2021

Students across the country are reentering school under difficult circumstances -- their third year of pandemic-disrupted learning. Studies reveal that by the end of this past school year, K-12 students were on average five months behind in math and four months behind in reading. And over the past year and a half, students' relationships to learning technologies have been evolving, especially as educators turn to new strategies to address learning loss.

A recent survey from the EdWeek Research Center found use of technology among teachers and students was increasing and online instruction was taking hold in some form in most places during the pandemic. This turn toward technology has the potential to benefit student learning - using tech in the classroom keeps students engaged, makes it easier to collaborate, and imparts 21st century skills that make students college and career ready. And while many of the digital education tools and platforms teachers and students have relied on during the pandemic are likely here to stay, it’s become increasingly clear that not all these technologies are accessible to everyone. Many students with disabilities – nearly 14% of K-12 learners – have learned this the hard way. 

That’s why we’re excited to see groundbreaking legislation out of Illinois: a bill requiring all online education tools used in Illinois classrooms to comply with World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). This is a critical step toward increasing equity and accessibility in learning for all students, especially those who are often left behind.

Following WCAG guidelines ensures significant support for students with disabilities such as blindness and low vision, deafness and hearing loss, and limited movement. At Newsela, we’re committed to meeting these accessibility and equity standards: our student experience is fully WCAG compliant, including such features as being fully navigable by keyboard, having alternate text on all images, using updated colors that meet color contrast standards, and containing screen reader-friendly labels.

While the realities of remote learning and increased reliance on technology are challenging in many ways, the increased awareness around accessibility in digital education tools is long overdue. Illinois’ new WCAG bill is blazing the trail for student inclusion and accessibility.

There’s still more to do to even the playing field for students with disabilities, but WCAG laws are tangible, achievable, and easily implemented changes that can have a real impact on students. We’re hopeful that other states will follow suit in order to serve all learners.

The Latest from @Newsela

#TeacherTwitter 🧑‍🏫 How do you trigger curiosity in your classroom? 🙋🙋‍♀️🙋🏽‍♂️🙋🏽🙋🏿‍♀️🙋🏻🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏻‍♂️🙋🏾‍♂️🙋🏿‍♀️🙋🏼‍♂️🙋🏻‍♀️🙋‍♂️
March 27, 2023, 3:16 PM
The free version of Newsela is no longer meeting the needs and expectations of what tech can really do in the classroom. But we've got you covered with #NewselaLite.
March 23, 2023, 5:39 PM
🔷Announcement🔷📣 On June 30th we will retire the current free version of our product and replace it with Newsela Lite, a new, freemium experience of our premium subject products. More on #NewselaLite from our CEO → https://t.co/TemKPnNQFE https://t.co/D0CTwRF6Yc
March 21, 2023, 4:56 PM
Time to adjust your clocks because #DaylightSavingTime is here ⏰👩‍🏫 Save an hour by checking out our classroom-ready lesson! 🔎 Search "daylight saving time" on the Newsela search bar https://t.co/V2VHMqNliW
March 12, 2023, 4:35 PM
Fake news is everywhere on the internet nowadays, which makes it so important for students to learn to investigate content they’re consuming 🕵️‍♀️ Here are 4 quick steps to teach media literacy in the classroom Learn more about media literacy here ➡️ https://t.co/SpC184cFFt https://t.co/dJOoZoA8ou
March 10, 2023, 8:34 PM

The best lessons start with the best content.

Ready to bring great instructional content to your students?

Contact Sales