In this paper we will use the term pedagogical tool to mean more than a tool that can be used in some way to teach or learn. Instead we
define pedagogical tools as any tool that mediates a teacher’s action, offering clear and detailed principles regarding learning that can be
easily and readily translated into teaching practice. Pedagogical tools therefore not only make links between theory and practice, they help
teachers move from the potentially abstract to the concrete. In the context of accessibility, pedagogical tools will therefore do any or all of
the following:
1. Raise awareness amongst teachers that there is an association between accessibility and pedagogy and scope the nature of that
association.
2. Provide teachers access to knowledge about effective e-learning, including facilitators and barriers to effective e-learning, thereby
addressing the ‘‘why?” aspects of accessibility.
3. Provide teachers with methods and approaches for applying knowledge about effective e-learning to the development of accessible elearning
materials and activities, thereby addressing the ‘‘how?” aspects of accessibility.
The guidelines produced within the ALERT project (Newland et al., 2005) are a good example of a specialised pedagogical tool that could
potentially meet the first two criteria as outlined above. Focusing specifically on VLES the ALERT project provides narrative evidence from
staff and students about access barriers and facilitators and links these narratives to research evidence and literature. This evidence is then
used to produce pedagogic, practical and strategic recommendations. The potential for the ALERT guidelines to meet the last criteria however,
is considered to be limited. This is because there is a lack of what Seale (2006a) calls ‘‘thick, rich descriptions” of how exactly the
guidelines have been used and applied in practice. Furthermore, for the purposes of this paper we are interested in identifying and exploring
pedagogical tools that are applicable to more than one kind of e-learning technology or application. Therefore, we will now go onto
review some generic pedagogical tools that might have the potential to be helpful in terms of helping teachers in further and higher education
develop accessible e-learning. We consider the extent to which they enable teachers to engage with pedagogy in a way that helps
them focus on accessibility and the development of their teaching practices. We will focus on two kinds of pedagogic tools: learning theories
and learning design tools. We will explore the extent to which learning theories might provide teachers access to knowledge about
effective e-learning and facilitators and barriers to effective e-learning. We will also explore the extent to which learning design tools provide
teachers with methods and approaches for applying knowledge about effective e-learning to the development of accessible e-learning
materials.