No abstract

Abstract. The inclusion of blind students in computer education programs involves several challenges. When considering virtual learning activities of UML -Unified Modeling Language, lecturers cannot use some of the solutions adopted in the traditional classroom. In this context, this paper presents the main challenges related to the inclusion of blind students in virtual learning activities of UML, establishes the requirements needed to make this inclusion possible and discusses whether existing tools can be used for this purpose.The results indicate a lack of solutions that enable the inclusion of blind students in these activities without affecting transactional distance.

The UML -Unified Modeling Language is a standard notation for software development, which has been widely adopted in academy and industry worldwide. However, the inclusion of blind people in UML-related activities is still a challenge, mostly due to the extensive use of its graphical notation. There are several actions that can promote the inclusion of blind people when considering the application of face-to-face UML classes, such as the use of physical devices to represent diagram elements( e.g. illustrative objects and pens for tactile drawings). Needless to say, these actions are not effective in e-learning activities because participants do not share the same physical space. In this context, this paper addresses the problem of including blind people in e-learning activities of UML. First, it establishes the requirements needed for such inclusion by combining the information gathered from a literature review (conducted to identify studies related to the accessibility of UML diagrams by blind people) with the experience from one of the authors in teaching UML for blind learners. Secondly, it analyzes tools that support the accessible representations of UML diagrams and evaluates them regarding the fulfillment of the proposed requirements. The results indicate a lack of solutions that enable the inclusion of blind people in such activities without being affected by the transactional distance, i.e. the learner perceptions concerning distance. Finally, the paper presents the strategies, design patterns and frameworks, considered to develop a web-based prototype of a learning tool that fulfills the established requirements. Directions for future research are presented at the end of the paper.

Background: Individuals with visual impairment face varied challenges when attending education programs in many fields and levels. In computing education programs, the frequent required use of charts, graphs, and diagrams poses additional challenges to their inclusion. In order to inform and to establish appropriate action plans for a more inclusive scenario, it is important to gather information from the parties involved. In this context, this work presents the practices of educators and the perceptions of visually impaired learners regarding such inclusion. Methods: The practice and perceptions were gathered from a survey with 56 computing educators and with 19 visually impaired learners who have attended computing education programs. Results and discussion:The results suggest educators have limited access to knowledge related to the inclusion of visually impaired learners in lectures and feel unprepared to this scenario. On the other hand, visually impaired learners do not feel included in computing education programs.