Receiving textbooks or course materials in an alternative format may be a reasonable accommodation for students who have vision, learning, or other disabilities which make accessing traditional printed materials difficult. Textbooks, class handouts and other materials may not be usable in their original form and thus need to be provided in alternative formats (ex., Braille, large print, electronic, etc.) as an academic accommodation. Students seeking alternative format materials should present documentation that clearly supports the need for the request. The same format is not right for everyone and some formats require the use of specialized hardware or software in order to access the materials.
Students with disabilities that impact access to printed material have a right to alternative formats of the materials that are not accessible. This includes not only textbooks, but also content and documents that are loaded into RVC’s Learning Management System – “Eagle” or made available within class sessions. Students must make timely requests and understand that it may take time to convert material for their accessibility needs; however, in general, after receiving specific requests made by qualified students, DSS will try to find the most usable format in the shortest amount of time.
The most frequently requested format is electronic files (or E-Text) that can be converted into alternative formats, such as MS Word documents, DSS, all are electronic formats and as such, they can be accessed with adaptive software. It is possible to magnify diagrams and small print, search documents and embed notes, have material printed out in large format, sent out for conversion to Braille, or have words read out loud. (See types of software in Chapter 7).
At PDF&#’;s, when materials are not available in an accessible format, we use an in-house production process. Students who are using digital materials that have been created in-house are required to sign an agreement form with the webpages office indicating they understand their rights and responsibilities as related to copyright law. (Please note that accessible materials are intended to be used by the eligible student only and are not to be duplicated and/or redistributed).
Students requesting textbooks in alternative format are encouraged to do the following to ensure that materials are processed as quickly as possible:
The DSS office will make every reasonable effort to ensure that students receive alternative format materials in a timely manner. To that end, students should understand that: