In this module, we will explore the digital accessibility features of PDFs.

Note: Whether you are using Mac OS or Windows OS, the tasks are the same; the software interface may vary a bit. In either case, IT Academic Technologies is here to assist. Reach out via IT Service Desk ticket, drop into the faculty commons, or send an email. mike.kozak@unmc.edu or julie.gregg@unmc.edu

Why should you go to the extent of making your audio and video accessible?

Improves student learning
Support the large and growing number of students with disabilities
Improves access and retention
Supports an inclusive environment
It's the law

What if you are using teaching materials you didn't create?

Your professional obligation is to check for accessibility anyway.

What to do if there are issues?

Go back to the source. Contact the author/publisher. Will they remediate?
Check with the McGoogan Library's AskUS to see if they can assist in finding an alternate version.
Search professional resources/organizations or create new content.

Audio and Video Accessibility Checklist

Unlike other applications, there is no accessibility checker for audio and video files, so you will need to manually look for all of the following:

Things that can be edited in ECHO (or YuJa)

Does all video content have subtitles?
Does all audio content (mp3 files, podcasts, etc.) include a transcript?
Are subtitles/transcripts accurate?
Do subtitles/transcripts include punctuation and capitalization?

Things that might require re-recording or finding a different video:

Is everything that is visually shown verbally described?
Does the video avoid using animated or blinking images or content?

For audio/video embedded in a web page:

If audio on a web page plays automatically for more than 3 seconds, is there either a mechanism to pause or stop the audio, or a mechanism to control audio volume independently from the overall system volume level?

ECHO360 Captions and Transcriptions

Echo360 uses automatic speech recognition (ASR) to generate transcripts and captions for recorded videos. These transcripts are interactive, allowing users to search and click on words to navigate to specific points in the video. While automatically generated, these transcripts can be edited and applied as closed captions.

Closed captions in EchoVideo work just like those in most other video players. The text of what is being spoken is shown on the screen, along with the video, in small chunks that correspond to the current video location.

Transcripts, like closed captions, provide the text of what is being spoken on the screen and are divided into small chunks that correspond to the video's location. The difference in transcripts is that the entire transcription is shown, with a highlight on the entry that corresponds to the current location. Transcripts are also searchable within the player, as the entire transcript is visible. Users can jump to a specific location in the transcript, which automatically navigates to that location in the video.

EchoVideo Captions vs. Transcriptions

Applying Updated Transcripts as Closed Captions

Adding or Deleting Closed Captioning Files

Adding Transcripts and CC to ECHOVideo

Adding Transcripts to older legacy videos

Echo 360: Create and share educational videos using a single, smart solution that’s easy to manage. Enjoy flexible video storage options and quick and easy access to content.

Lecture Capture: One-click, on-demand recording, in addition to fully scheduled recording.

Video Recording: Intuitive recording UI that is the same across both hardware and software.

Live Streaming: Stream any recording in high definition, using any recording device, without the need to schedule ahead.

Video Editing: Cut, trim and splice content to create compelling material for engagement.

Video Delivery: Videos can be directly inserted into any educational content. Directly embed videos into your LMS.

Video Search: Search across content types, including presentations, notes, and discussions.

Video Cloud: Integration with major cloud platforms makes it easy to ingest videos from services such as Dropbox or Google Drive.

Video Captioning: edit transcripts into fully-compliant closed captions or integrate directly with closed caption providers to ensure video accessibility.

Video Transcription: Automatically transcribe videos using Automatic Speech Recognition.

Video Analytics for Instructors: Instructors have access to analytic data at the video, class, learner and course level to show how engaged students are.

Video Quizzing: Embed response activities into videos to assess learning and provoke discussion.

Other features include: Video uploading, mobile device availability, remote recording, integration with Zoom.

YuJa Professional Captions

All videos created in YuJa are machine captioned at 90-95% accuracy. This video shows you how to add captions to your projects. To see how captions appear on a finished video, hover over the video below and look for the “CC” button at the bottom. Clicking that button will turn on the captions for this video and show you what students will be able to see when you use captions for your video content.

Need more information? Getting Started with YuJa in Canvas and Captioning with YuJa

This is who you can contact if you have questions: Video Operations: 402-559-8090 

Additional echo360 support: https://support.echo360.com/