Resources for More Inclusive Teaching

UMass Amherst is committed to offering a range of resources that support our faculty as they create an accessible learning environment for all students.

A group of young adult men laugh while looking at a laptop together; a large bookcase filled with reports is behind them

Why Teach Accessibly?

Even though students with diagnosed disabilities comprise nearly 20 percent of postsecondary enrollments in the U.S., they are statistically less likely to attend college and more likely to have negative experiences than their peers without disabilities.

Making your course materials, websites, and media more usable by people with different abilities—such as vision, hearing, learning abilities, cognitive needs, mobility, or speech—ensures that everyone has equal access to the educational opportunities at UMass Amherst.

In addition, legal precedents such as Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act are in place to ensure that colleges and universities provide students with disabilities with equal and integrated access to higher education.
 

Accessible Teaching Resources

  • Assistive Technology Center (ATC) : offers instruction, training, and support for assistive technology tools, such as converting documents to accessible formats and using voice recognition software 
  • Center for Teaching and Learning: helps faculty and other instructors better understand and develop their teaching effectiveness, including improving teaching inclusively. Also offers customized consultations to enable individual instructors and departments, schools, and colleges to move toward more inclusive teaching practices.
  • Clockwork for Instructors: access the names and accommodations for every student in your classes who is registered with Disability Services.
  • Digital Media Lab - 3D Printing: 3D models can be helpful teaching tools for students with blindness or low vision
  • Disability Services: works with instructors to provide appropriate and reasonable accommodations for their students with disabilities
  • Inclusive Classroom Practices: learn more about UMass Amherst’s long-standing commitment to enhancing students’ learning experiences and academic success across cultural, social, linguistic, and learning differences.
  • Instructional Design, Engagement, and Support (IDEAS): helps faculty present the best and most flexible versions of their educational programs to reach students of all kinds
  • Instructional Media Lab: helps faculty explore instructional technology and offer more accessible classroom materials
Professor wearing a suit, in the front of a classroom near a white board, talking to a class of 6 students who are listening, taking notes, and asking questions.

One-Stop-Shop for Faculty

This guide covers how to:

  • Create accessible documents in the classroom

  • Improve accessibility of digital content

  • Manage academic accommodations requests

Faculty Resources Faculty Resources

Need Help or Have a Question?

If you need help locating an accessibility resource at UMass Amherst or have a question or comment about our services, please fill out this form.

Form to Contact Accessibility Team