[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17210]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTION OF THE TECHNOLOGY, EQUALITY, AND ACCESSIBILITY IN COLLEGE 
                    AND HIGHER EDUCATION (TEACH) ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. THOMAS E. PETRI

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, November 15, 2013

  Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, today I introduced the Technology, Equality, 
and Accessibility in College and Higher Education (TEACH) Act to ensure 
that students with disabilities have equal access to the benefits of 
electronic instructional materials used in today's colleges and 
universities.
  Colleges and universities across the country are using a wide array 
of new technologies and instructional materials in the classroom. While 
the use of these new technologies is a positive development, it can 
also pose a challenge for accessibility. We have an obligation to 
ensure that students with disabilities have an equal opportunity to 
obtain a quality education.
  The bill would require that any instructional technology, such as 
digital content, tablets, online platforms, interactive computer 
software, etc., used by a postsecondary school either be accessible to 
students with disabilities or that the school provide accommodations or 
modifications so that the ease-of-use and benefits of the technology 
for students with disabilities is on par with other students.
  These requirements are consistent with joint guidance issued in 2010 
by the Departments of Education and Justice regarding the use of new 
technologies in the classroom and the accessibility requirements of the 
Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The 
guidance was issued in response to the use of electronic book readers 
by some colleges and universities that were not fully accessible to 
visually impaired students.
  To help schools meet these requirements, the TEACH Act directs the 
Access Board, an independent federal agency, to develop guidelines for 
electronic instructional materials used by institutions of higher 
education. Schools would not be limited to using materials or 
technologies that are consistent with the guidelines, but those 
materials that do conform to the guidelines would automatically be 
considered to be accessible under the law.
  In 2008, the Higher Education Opportunity Act created the Advisory 
Commission on Accessible Instructional Materials in Postsecondary 
Education for Students with Disabilities, otherwise known as the AIM 
Commission. One of the commission's recommendations was that the Access 
Board be directed by Congress to develop guidelines to help guide the 
development of accessible instructional materials in the marketplace. 
This bill would implement that recommendation.
  For decades, schools have been required to provide equal access to 
all students. What this bill would do is ensure that students with 
disabilities are given equal treatment now and in the future as new, 
innovative technologies are developed and used more often in the 
classroom.
  I hope that my colleagues will join me in support of this 
legislation.

                          ____________________