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<p class="MsoNormal">I would agree with you that alt text on an image of an equation is not accessible. The equation cannot be navigated to read element by element as is sometimes needed in math.<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none">Robert Lee Beach<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none">Assistive Technology Specialist</span></i><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none"> – Student Accessibility & Support Services<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none">Kansas City Kansas Community College<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none">7250 State Ave. - Suite # 3384 - Kansas City, KS 66112
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none">O 913-288-7671 | F 913-288-7678
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Roboto;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="mailto:rbeach@kckcc.edu">rbeach@kckcc.edu</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="mso-ligatures:none">From:</span></b><span style="mso-ligatures:none"> athen-list <athen-list-bounces@mailman12.u.washington.edu>
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Romack, Justin<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Thursday, November 2, 2023 12:00 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> athen-list@u.washington.edu<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [EXT][Athen] Math accessibility question - need feedback<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<strong><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#FD542E;mso-ligatures:none">CAUTION:</span></strong><strong><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"> This email originated outside
KCKCC. Do not click links or open attachments unless you know the content is safe. Please forward all suspicious emails to
<a href="mailto:support@kckcc.edu"><span style="font-weight:normal">support@kckcc.edu</span></a>.</span></strong><span style="mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Howdy y’all!<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I’m totally blind, so I’m trying to be cautious in approaching my question here and the response I provide to others in similar discussions as to not inject my bias…<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">But when producing accessible STEM content (specifically materials with equations), is it widely agreed upon that equations as images with alt text are less preferrable or not acceptable as compared to the same equations provided in MathML?<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I’m seeing a trend where STEM content is shared as a PDF and, while equations are properly tagged with alt text that is a textual representation of the content being displayed, I find this far less navigable than would be a document with
equations in MathML.<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Is it technically accessible? Debatable. Is it functionally equivalent or equitable access… My opinion is no.<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Would love for you to chime in!<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Thanks,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">J<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none">- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none">Justin Romack | Assistant Director<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none">Disability Resources | Texas A&M University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none">1224 TAMU | College Station, TX 77843-1224<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none">ph: 979.845.1637 | <a href="mailto:justinr@disability.tamu.edu">justinr@disability.tamu.edu</a> | disability.tamu.edu<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-ligatures:none">DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS | One Division. One Mission.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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