Learning Path: Accessible Procurement and Collections

The accessible library procurement and collections learning path empowers library professionals to create welcoming spaces for all patrons. It offers practical guidance on selecting accessible resources and representative content. By fostering inclusivity in the e-resources and content provided to patrons, libraries can become hubs of learning and community engagement, ensuring everyone has equal access to the knowledge they provide.

Overview

The total time to complete this section is approximately 6 hours and 15 minutes.

By the end of this learning path, you will understand how to incorporate accessibility in your procurement process, licensing and when working with vendors. We have also provided resources to help you select content that is inclusive and represents all of your patrons.

Learning Path

Procuring Accessible Digital Resources

Public libraries must consider accessibility when procuring licensed digital resources (including ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, newspapers, learning platforms, and more). Prioritizing accessibility considerations from the beginning of the procurement process results in licensed digital resources that are accessible to everyone.

The approximate time to complete this section is 4 hours and 45 minutes.

Licensing and Procurement

• Considering Accessibility when Procuring Licensed Digital Resources: This guide recommends accessibility considerations to include in the procurement process of accessible licensed digital resources in general, as well as some particular considerations for accessible digital books (40 minutes).
• Accessible Procurement Webinar: Join Kerry Anderson and Kim Johnson from the Public Library Services Branch (PLSB) of the Alberta Government and Laetitia Mfamobani from the National Network for Equitable Library Service testing team as they talk about accessible procurement (1 hour 10 minutes).
• Accessibility Considerations for E-Resources Procurement in Libraries: The procurement process is complex, and accessibility should be one of the significant components of this process. As with any other aspect of procurement, all stages must incorporate accessibility (40 minutes).

Licensing and Procurement Checklists

• Checklist: Evaluating the Accessibility of E-Resources: Use this when procuring e-resource platforms (websites, apps, or reading platforms) to help you determine if the platforms are accessible. Investing in accessible e-resources at the procurement stage will ensure that they are easier to maintain and upgrade and are more likely to be compatible with assistive technologies (10 minutes).
• Checklist: Evaluating Vendor’s Accessibility: Evaluating the vendors and companies that libraries purchase from will provide a better idea of how accessible their products will be (10 minutes).

Questions for Vendors

• Questions for Vendors: Procuring Accessible E-Resources Platforms: Asking vendors about the accessibility of their e-resource platforms (websites, apps, and reading platforms) ensure that you provide the most inclusive reading experience for library patrons. This is important because not all online services and reading systems have accessibility built into them by design (15 minutes).
• Questions for Vendors: Company Accessibility Policies: Asking your vendors about their company’s accessibility policies and the accessibility of their products reveals how accessible the products they provide will be (10 minutes).

Other Licensing and Procurement Resources

• Accessible Procurement Webinar Slides: The slides describe the PLSB accessible procurement and Request for Proposals (RFP) processes. Learning more about accessibility in procurement will help library staff understand the accessibility of their e-resources and let them recommend the right resource for their patrons. (1 hour)

Selecting Content

Representation in your library is important. We have compiled a list of resources that bring together content by and featuring persons with disabilities. We have summarized the resources and linked to the collections.

The total time to complete this section is 45 minutes.

• Collections of Representative Content: Library content should represent the community, which, of course, includes persons with disabilities. As noted in the Is Your Public Library Accessible? Study, participants want their library to promote authors with disabilities and highlight that library content. We have brought together lists of #OwnVoices (OV) content to help you create representative collections (45 minutes).

Going Further

Now that you have learned about procuring accessible digital resources, building accessibility into your procurement licenses, and reading about selecting representative content, let’s build on that information. We have discussed accessibility metadata and assistive technologies in the reports above, and now you can read more about them.

The total time to complete this section is 50 minutes.

• Creating and editing accessibility metadata MARC tags for library staff: In a library, the descriptive metadata in bibliographic records allows patrons to find a resource in the online catalogue by searching by author, title, keyword, or subject and to narrow their search by type of material, accessibility feature, or other criteria (15 minutes).
• Assistive Technology Demonstrations: Assistive technology refers to products, equipment, and systems that enhance reading, learning, working, and daily living for people with disabilities. In this resource, we provide assistive technology demonstrations (35 minutes).

Explore Supporting Resources

Now that you have learned about creating accessible documents, you can build on that knowledge and explore supporting resources!

How much time you spend in this section is up to you – we hope you enjoy exploring the supporting resources!

Collections

Interested in browsing collections of content by and featuring persons with disabilities? Check out the resources below.

• Accessible Books Consortium
• Best Dyslexia-Friendly Books for Kids
• Authors with Disabilities: Read Harder 2022
• A Novel Mind
• YA Disability Database

Accessible Formats

Not all digital content is created accessibly! Here are some resources on accessible formats and what makes them accessible.

• Accessible Formats
• What is an accessible book?
• Audiobook Recommendations for Publishers
• Ebook Accessibility Features Checklist
• What is printbraille?
• Accessibility Information Toolkit for Libraries

E-Resource Platforms

Just like digital content, not all e-resources or reading platforms are accessible. The accessibility testers at NNELS have tested reading systems and created a list of recommendations. You can use this information to help your patrons choose the best readying system for them!

• Reading System Features, Testing, and Recommendations
• Reading Systems/Apps Tutorials for Screen Reader Users
• PressReader Testing Report
• PrêtNumérique Testing Report
• RBDigital Testing Report