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Knowledge Domains and Roles for Professional Development

By Kathy Wahlbin posted 10-26-2014 06:15

  
The need for knowledge and expertise in accessibility crosses many domains and roles within those domains. In fact, accessibility impacts nearly every domain that involves products, technologies, processes, or people.  Here are some of the key areas identified by Individual Professional Development Committee (IPDC).  The IPDC current focus in on the Digital Technologies and we will be posting the work done in several competency knowledge domains over the next few months for your feedback.

There are two fundamental questions for which we need answers:
  1. Are these the right domains (i.e., did we leave any out)?
  2. Is this the right grouping of areas, with an eye toward each domain may have a separate certification component (e.g., competencies, exam, training, etc.)?

Knowledge Domains

  • Digital Technologies:
    • Web (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, ARIA, SVG, HTML5 Canvas etc.)
    • Graphic and Interaction Design
    • Personalized access / context aware (IndieUI, Access4All, schema.org, APIP)
    • Multimedia (video, audio, captions, transcripts, audio descriptions)
    • Gaming
    • Cloud computing
    • Instructional Design
    • Authoring Tools (CMS, LMS, Dreamweaver etc.)
    • Mobile (web/native apps on iOS, Android etc.)
    • Software (applications native to the operating system, desktop/mobile, including Windows, Mac OSX, Linux, iOS, Android, Java, etc.)
    • Platform (browser, operating system - mobile/desktop, Eclipse, Java etc.)
    • Hardware (computers, phones, PDAs, televisions, remote controls, printers, etc.)
    • Electronic documents (ebooks/ePub, MS Office, PDF, Google Docs, ODF etc.)
    • Telecommunications and voice systems/interfaces
    • Networking
    • Security (DRM, biometrics)
    • Privacy (controls, personalized access)
    • Marketing
  • Consumer and Industrial Design:
    • Household items (kitchen appliances/utensils/implements, furniture)
    • Medical equipment and prosthetics
    • Clothing
    • Industrial/consumer equipment and tools (smart wearable devices, NEST etc.)
    • Personal transportation (cars, motorcycles, bicycles, etc.)
    • Public/mass transportation (subways, airplanes, trains, etc.)
    • Packaging
  • Customer Service and Hospitality
  • Architecture and the Built Environment:
    • Physical Architecture
    • Landscape architecture
    • Urban planning
    • Interior design
  • Disability Accommodations and Assistive Technology:
    • Education
    • Workplace
    • Household

Roles

  • Manager (executive leadership, chief technology officer, program, project)
  • Procurement specialist
  • Communications specialist/marketer/public relations
  • Business/systems analyst
  • Data/information architect/user experience
  • Architect/planner
  • User researcher
  • Designer
  • Developer/engineer
  • Content creator/editor
  • Quality control/quality assurance (QA) specialist
  • Accessibility specialist / tester
  • Policy and standards specialist
  • Government policy/decision maker
  • Research & development (R&D) and design specialist
  • Legal/regulatory compliance specialist
  • Human resources
  • Customer service specialist
  • Instructor/trainer/professor/teacher
3 comments
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https://accessibilityassociation.connectedcommunity.org/blogs/kathy-wahlbin/2014/10/26/knowledge-domains-and-roles-for-professional-development

Comments

Elianna James
12-02-2014 17:01

I found this document to be full of good ideas to strengthen the Customer Service section. It's from Access Ontario, but could be adapted to like situations.
Guide animals, support people, scope of businesses, universities, etc effected, examples of what might or might not become issues.
http://www.mcss.gov.on.ca/documents/en/mcss/accessibility/Tools/AO_EmployerHandbook.pdf

Susan Mattson
11-11-2014 08:33

Under Hardware in Digital Technologies I would like to see refreshable braille devices and deafblind communication devices included.

Valorie Sundby
11-08-2014 17:58

Another role found in government and education is Disability Services Specialist.