Justice Department Reaches Settlement Agreement with edX Inc. provider of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a settlement agreement with edX Inc., to remedy alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Agreement resolves the Department’s allegations that edX’s website, www.edx.org, and its Platform were not fully accessible to individuals with disabilities, including individuals who are blind or have low vision, individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing and individuals who have physical disabilities affecting manual dexterity.

Under the Agreement edX will significantly modify its website, Platform, and Mobile Applications to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 AA, the industry guidelines for making web content accessible. EdX will also provide guidance and authoring tools to the approximately 60 universities and institutions that create and offer over 450 courses to more than 3,000,000 learners on its website. The courses are offered largely for free in subject matters as varied as business, computer sciences, hard sciences, food and nutrition, and social sciences. Because edX makes its software code freely available, any modifications to that code under this Agreement will enable other MOOC providers to enhance the accessibility of their online offerings. The Agreement also requires EdX to appoint a Web Accessibility Coordinator; adopt a Web Accessibility Policy; solicit feedback from learners on the accessibility of the courses; conduct Web Accessibility Training for employees responsible for the website, Platform, and Mobile Applications, and retain a consultant to evaluate conformance of the website, Platform, and Mobile Applications.

To find out more about this settlement agreement or the ADA, 
access the ADA website at www.ada.gov
or call the Justice Department's toll-free ADA Information Line
at 800-514-0301 or 800-514--0383 (TDD).

 Article Credit: U.S. Department of Justice