Module 1. Main concepts and terminology related to accessibility

Introduction

The concept of accessibility has changed over the years. At the beginning, it referred to people in wheelchairs. Later it evolved to people with disabilities in general. Today the meaning is broader and includes all people to get the same opportunities for all.

To make a museum accessible means to meet the needs of their visitors. For example, to allow a deaf person to communicate through sign language. Also, to prepare a visit in easy language for children with Down syndrome.

To make a museum accessible is very important. It contributes to the inclusion and integration of all type of people.

In the same way, it is important for the professionals of culture to know the basic concepts of accessibility. In the same way, they have to know the resources that they can offer to the visitors.

What?

Here you can find examples of resources present in museums and in spaces of culture.

1) Images in relief:

The Prado museum in Madrid offers some of its best works in relief. This makes it possible that visual impaired people can create a mental image of the painting.

2) Magnetic loops in museums and monuments for people with hearing disabilities:

28 museums and monuments of the Catalan Government use magnetic loops. This permits people with hearing loss or deafness to visit all the spaces in a safe way. The spaces have the magnetic loop symbol.

3) Podotactile floor

People that use sticks can detect them. Depending on the floor shape, they guide, warn of dangers, changes or direction or level. Also they show when the accessible route starts or ends.

We can find them at the entrance of an elevator, at the start of stairs and ramps. It is important that the color contrasts with the ground.

4) Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

It has a tactile model of its building at the entrance with all the floors and walking routes. This facilitates the visit to visitors with visual deficits. This museum is also accessible to people who travel in a wheelchair.

The model contains a miniature of the exterior of the museum and all the floors. For example, you can see the location of the elevators.

How?

First, it is important to know there are 4 basic axes to achieve good accessibility:

• Physical space: Remove the barriers to allow safe and free mobility of all people;
• Content and information: Allow all people to feel, be aware and enjoy an experience;
• Communication: The way people use to interact in different ways with various media;
• Appropriate attention: To people with some diversity, that know their needs and that ease their visit.

It is also important to know the concept of the Accessibility Chain, which is defined as the set of elements and actions to think about to ease the experience in a museum. The chain starts when someone decides to visit a museum and ends at the moment of the visit.

It is important to be aware that to get adequate accessibility we must take all the chains.

Last, it is very important to know what the main resources are and the specific concepts. This way, we will offer the best service to the visitors.

To improve how accessible we are, we have to consider the next tips and resources.

Accessibility to facilities

We must ensure that everyone with low motor mobility can reach the place:

• Ramps are needed;
• Accessible routes to rooms, toilets, cafeteria;
• Parking spaces specific for people in wheelchairs;
• Guide dogs need to have access to people with vision problems;
• Have a fully accessible entrance, with reception at the height for a person in a wheelchair.

 Informative/communicative accessibility

• Offer tactile resources for people with visual problems: scale models, replicas, haptic location maps, orientation and evacuation;
• The museum’s written content has to be offered (posters, information brochures, website) in an accessible format: large or enlarged print, Braille system, easy reading;
• Use podotactile floors to mark the pavement to ease the movement of people with visual problems;
• Some other specific resources that we must know are: audio description, optical aids, magnetic loop, sign language;
• Offer an accessible web page: the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines recommends and gives guidelines to make pages more clear for all types of users.

Call to action

Exercise 1

You are working in a museum. You have to report what resources the museum should offer for visual impaired people. List 3 or 4 resources and explain what they are for.

Exercise 2

List 2 resources that a museum website should offer. Look for examples of these on real museum websites. If you think these examples improve the actual website, tell them.