5th June 2019
A Guide to making your Dojo more accessible
Accessibility is a founding principle of the CoderDojo movement: our vision is that all young people should have the opportunity to learn about technology and be creative in a safe and social environment.
Leading by example
Prior to releasing this guide, multiple Dojo organisers noted how they wanted to make their Dojo more accessible, but they weren’t sure where to begin. When CoderDojo champion Hannah approached us, with her experience and knowledge of accessibility resources, we jumped at the opportunity to support clubs to become more inclusive.
“I have been teaching kids coding since 2013. As an autistic adult, I have always tried to make the CoderDojo clubs I have been involved in inclusive for disabilities. I noticed there was a need for me to share my knowledge to give people more ideas on how to make their club more inclusive. I approached the CoderDojo Foundation with the idea of creating a guide, as previously I had developed something similar for my University Societies. I suggested the structure for the guide which they approved. This incorporated the concepts of inclusive language, reasonable adjustment, accessible information, the importance of dealing with disclosure and ideas that have worked in my experience as a mentor. Thankfully this inclusive organisation took my ideas on board and ran with it.
What started to be a two page leaflet has now grown into a thirty four page guide. At every stage, they have asked for my input and sent the drafts to disability charities for feedback. A lot of work has gone into this guide by many people and I am proud to be part of this inclusive community.”
– Hannah Bryson, UCD CoderDojo Champion.
What is discussed in the guide?
In this guide we discuss how you can make your Dojo more accessible. Listening to your participants, making reasonable adjustments, and deciding what works best in each particular situation means we can all have the best possible CoderDojo experience.
You can read the full guide in both a digital version with a larger font size and a print-ready version in booklet format. These PDF guides are screen-reader friendly.
Print-version Accessibility Guide
Is there any way you think you could make your Dojo more accessible? Let us know on Slack!
Thanks in particular to Hannah who’s experience and support has helped make this such a valuable resource.