Types of Disabilities

• Visual

• From low vision to blindness

• Hearing

• From partial hearing loss to deafness

• Motor

• From partial to full loss of mobility or dexterity

• Cognitive

• From learning to developmental disabilities

• Other

• Other types of disabilities, such as seizure disorders

Slide Links:

Speaker Notes:

-People with visual disabilities are individuals who are blind, have low vision, or have color blindness. People in this category may need text equivalents for the images used on a Web page, because they and their assistive screen reader technology cannot obtain the information from the image.

-People who are deaf or hard of hearing require visual representations of auditory information that a Web site provides. Solutions for this category of disabilities may include closed captioning, blinking error messages, and transcripts of the spoken audio.

-People with mobility disabilities have physical impairments that substantially limit movement and fine motor controls, such as lifting, walking, and typing. Solutions for this category may include alternative input capabilities, such as alternative keyboards and mouses, voice input or the ability to enter information at the user's own pace.

-People with cognitive or learning disabilities, such as dyslexia and short-term memory deficit, may need more general solutions which include providing a consistent design, repetition, and using a language that is simple to understand.

-Other types of disabilities or disorders include individuals with epilepsy who may require a solution where screen flicker rates are maintained within a specific range.

Let’s now delve a bit deeper into the specific categories of disabilities and define them a little further…