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What ethical concerns should be considered with the use of assistive technology in e-learning?

Colette Kilmary

As the use of assistive technology in e-learning continues to grow, it is important for users to consider the ethical concerns that come along with it. Assistive technology plays a vital role in supporting learners with disabilities, but it also raises issues around accessibility, privacy, bias, and security.

One of the primary ethical concerns of using assistive technology in e-learning is ensuring that it is accessible to all learners, regardless of their abilities. Institutions and instructors must ensure that their e-learning content and materials are optimized for assistive technologies such as screen readers, text-to-speech devices, and closed captioning. This requires minimizing the use of multimedia elements that may be inaccessible to some learners, and providing alternative formats for those who cannot access the main form of content.

Another concern is privacy, as the use of assistive technology may involve collecting sensitive data on learners and their specific needs. Institutions must ensure that they have appropriate measures in place to protect the privacy of their learners and their data, while also allowing for optimum learning experiences.

Additionally, bias is another ethical concern that arises from the use of assistive technology in e-learning. As these technologies can be designed by developers who may not fully understand the needs of all learners, they may reflect unconscious biases in their design and ultimately lead to unequal learning experiences for different groups of learners. Therefore, practitioners should acknowledge these risks and design assistive technologies in consultation with diverse groups of learners, to ensure that their needs are adequately represented.

Lastly, security concerns connected to assistive technology transactions must be considered. Personal information can be collected through assistive technology tools and services, which puts this information at risk of being accessed by unauthorized third parties. Hence, systems which keep user data encrypted and secure must be put in place and should be subject to different security integrity verification processes.

In conclusion, these ethical concerns cannot be ignored when it comes to assistive technology in e-learning. It is important for institutions, instructors, and developers alike to take an inclusive approach to the design and use of assistive technology, ensuring that all learners, regardless of their abilities, can access and benefit from e-learning. By doing so, we can promote more equitable and just learning experiences for all learners.