Reflection

Through creating and designing my project it is crucial to keep all types of users in mind. The Microsoft Inclusive Design ToolKit makes an important note that when we design with only ourselves in mind we create something for only one specific user. This user will speak the same language as us, have the same abilities as us (i.e. ability to see, ability to hear) and therefore our final product and/or services has a set of limitations for those that fall underneath “other”

Addressing Exclusivity

When thinking of my capstone project and what it is I will be creating in a means of achieving the final look, there are modes I have to get through that naturally have limitations. One of my primary deliverables are my interviews that will be taking place where I am connecting with other people and recording the audio to later transcribe. A limitation with this deliverable is that it only allows me to interview those that have full functional hearing. If a person is deaf they will not be able to hear me and therefore will not be able to answer my questions. In order to solve this exclusivity I can create written interviews where I can connect with the individual and interview them with a written format. This allows the interviewee who is able bodied just in a different way to still fully participate in my project and allows them to bring their story to life. Another limitation is my final deliverable, my e-book, and printable copy. This has limitations because it is only designed for people who have full visibility and are not blind or vision impaired. With this limitation in mind I can begin designing for other users who may not have the same ability as I (i.e. ability to see). In order to design mindfully I can create an audio book where I audibly tell these stories and those who are vision impaired can tune in and listen and still fully participate and enjoy the means of the project. 

Links to Help

It is important to provide access to links that better address these situations that I am mindfully designing for. This link looks at how to interview a deaf person.

This link looks at how to create audio books for those that are visually impaired. 

Inclusivity Transcending in a Means to Help us All

While incorporating written interview formats as well as an audiobook I am not only helping those who are visually and audibly impaired I am also helping those who may be facing other limitations. For example if someone has a busy schedule and doesn’t have the 30 minutes to sit down and have a face to face interview with me they can personally take the written interview on their own time. Another example would be someone who has a busy schedule and doesn’t have time to sit down and read my book. They can listen to the audio version on their way to work, taking the time to listen to other stories and reflect on their own mindfully. You don’t need to personally be hard of hearing or visually impaired to enjoy the benefits of inclusive design. 

Audience Reach

As the due date for my project quickly approaches it is important to start considering how I will spread the word about my project while thinking of who I want as my audience reach. I plan on spreading the word about my project on my personal instagram account @Lifeewithjenn where I am already including lots of my writings and inner thoughts. I also plan on utilizing my main instagram, @JennGillern which has a much larger sum of followers than my personal creative account. I also plan on having my friends and family help spread the word. While thinking of the limitations of social media and the accessibility to it I can also create flyers to hang around campus in a means to promote my project and get other people to learn about it that may not have given if the project was only advertised through a digital stance.