UX Research · Accessibility · Web · 2016—2018

Accessibility for low-vision users

Following an accessibility mandate, I initiated field research with low-vision users myself — interviews, observation of how they work, and rolling out a toolkit on the sites.

TL;DR

Self-initiated field research with low-vision users → an accessibility toolkit on the sites

  • 01Proposed and organised the research myself: with the PM, reached a centre that teaches low-vision people computer literacy
  • 02Ran interviews and observed how people actually work with interfaces and where they struggle
  • 03Built an accessibility toolkit and rolled it out on the sites of concert and theatre organisations

Context

A mandate came down to make sites accessible for visually impaired people. We could have closed the task formally — plug in a standard widget. I proposed doing it for real: understanding how low-vision people actually use sites.

What I did

Initiated the research myself. With the project manager, I arranged a visit and travelled to an institution where low-vision people are taught computer literacy. Ran a series of surveys and meetings, observed how people work with interfaces, which tools they use, and where difficulties arise.

Result

Based on the observations, I built an accessibility toolkit and rolled it out on the sites of concert and theatre organisations. It was my first full experience of field UX research and inclusive design — long before it became mainstream.