Accessibility Terms: Understanding the Difference

Author: Tiffany Wilson

When it comes to creating an inclusive world for disabled individuals, the terms accessibility, assistive technology, and accommodations often come up. You might have also noticed the popular hashtag #a11y, which is a numeronym for the word accessibility.

Here's how it works:

Take the first letter: a
Then the number of letters in between: 11
And the last letter: y

While accessibility, assistive technology, and accommodations are interconnected, each has a distinct meaning. This article explains these concepts and highlights how understanding them can promote practices that support disability inclusion.

Defining Accessibility

In essence, accessibility means designing environments, products, and services to be usable by everyone, regardless of their abilities.1 This term encompasses the physical environment, including buildings and sidewalks, as well as the digital space, such as websites, apps, and software.

Accessibility is necessary because it directly affects how people interact with their environment and the world around them. It is fundamental to creating inclusive communities and has extensive real world applications that benefit everyone. Consider these points:

Websites with straightforward navigation and readable content are more accessible to everyone.
Curb cuts designed for wheelchairs also help people using rolling carts or pushing strollers.
Captions on videos benefit not only those with hearing loss or deafness but also anyone in a noisy environment.

What is Assistive Technology?

Assistive Technology (AT) can play a critical role in increasing access for disabled persons. In the United States, AT is defined as any tool, device, or software that assists someone in overcoming a challenge and increases their functional independence.2

AT solutions range from low to high tech, with varying functions and complexity. It is categorized as follows:

Low Tech: Simple tools like magnifying glasses, colored overlays, and pencil grips.
Mid Tech: Moderately complex solutions like portable video magnifiers, audiobooks, and ergonomic keyboards.
High Tech: Advanced devices like screen readers, power wheelchairs, and speech generating devices.

The relationship between accessibility and AT is in how both support access for disabled people, enabling them to navigate and engage with various environments or products effectively. While closely related, the terms are not synonymous; accessibility is about design, while AT refers to specific tools.

Defining Accommodations

Accommodations refer to adjustments or modifications that ensure disabled people can access environments and activities effectively.2 These changes might include flexible work hours, adaptive equipment, or additional support services that complement assistive technologies.

For example, a deaf individual might use AT, such as a captioned phone, as a workplace accommodation to make phone calls. Hiring a sign language interpreter for in person communication is also an accommodation. However, it is not considered assistive technology, as it is a human service rather than a technological intervention.

Accessibility: The Bigger Picture

Accessibility is the overarching goal, with AT and accommodations being two key approaches to achieving full access. While they often work in tandem, they are different in their roles.

Here’s how they fit together:

Accessibility lays the foundation: Designing environments, products, and services to be accessible from the start makes them usable by more people without needing extra adaptations.
Accommodations bridge the gaps: When environments or products are not fully accessible, accommodations provide tailored modifications to meet individual needs.
Assistive Technology empowers individuals: Through tools, devices, or software, AT enables people to overcome specific challenges.

Differentiation Matters

A clear understanding of how these three terms intersect yet differ is vital for creating solutions that are both effective and truly inclusive.

Advocacy for inclusive change: Emphasizing accessibility as a core principle allows us to advocate for inclusive design across all sectors, cultivating environments where everyone can thrive.
Empowering informed choices: An understanding of assistive technology enables better decision making regarding the equipment or software that best supports disabled people.
Supporting customization and flexibility: Acknowledging the nuances between these three concepts encourages a flexible approach to meeting diverse user needs, ensuring that solutions are customized to individual situations.

Building An Inclusive Future

Ultimately, accessibility, AT, and accommodations are all fundamental to creating a world where everyone has access and thrives. By embracing and championing these principles, we empower disabled individuals (including ourselves) to seize equal opportunities in education, work, and society.

Curious about assistive technology?

Check out our Assistive Technology Guide

Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 USC §12101 et seq.
AT Act of 1998 as amended, 29 USC §300