Barriers to Accessibility

Barriers to accessibility can be found throughout our community. In order to create inclusion, we need to find solutions to these barriers. There are a variety of barriers to accessibility that affect those with disabilities in everyday life. The main types of barriers are physical, attitudinal, communication, programmatic, social, policy, and transportation. Additionally, in 2010 the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) established new regulations to help make buildings and public spaces inclusive to those with disabilities. Discussions with teachers, peers and other members of the community can help to find solutions to these barriers. Finding solutions to these barriers helps ensure that everyone has an opportunity to participate.

Universal design is important because these elements help to make our world more accessible and inclusive to everyone, not just those with disabilities. There are 7 principles of universal design; equitable use, flexibility in use, simple and intuitive use, perceptible information, tolerance for error, low physical effort and size and space for approach and use. Each principle covers a different component in the design process so each part is carefully crafted to be as accessible as possible. These are areas that can be easily overlooked but impact everyone on a daily basis. These were created to make buildings, communication and products more accessible to everyone and easy to use. Universal design benefits not only those with disabilities but everyone in the community.

Things to think about:

• In your everyday life, what are barriers you see to accessibility?

• In your school what changes could be made to be more adaptable and fit within universal design?