Educational Technology Director/Digital Learning Leader

Job Summary

Educational Technology Directors and Digital Learning Leaders guide the evaluation, selection, procurement, implementation, and use of technology that supports teaching and learning. They integrate digital accessibility requirements and considerations throughout the educational technology lifecycle to support access by students, staff, and families with disabilities. They collaborate across roles and with individuals with disabilities to identify and address accessibility barriers, build organizational capacity, and inform technology decisions, implementation, and instructional use.

Job Essential Accessibility Duties and Responsibilities

Responsibilities related to accessibility.

• Translate school or district accessibility policies and expectations into actionable requirements for educational technology evaluation, procurement, implementation, and ongoing use.
• Establish and maintain accessibility requirements and criteria for digital educational materials and technology.
• Lead and support the implementation and instructional use of educational technologies in ways that maintain accessibility for students, staff, and families with disabilities.
• Provide guidance, professional learning, and technical assistance to educators and other relevant personnel on selecting, implementing, and using accessible digital educational materials and technology.
• Integrate accessibility into the evaluation, selection, procurement, approval, renewal, and continued use of digital educational materials and technology, including reviewing vendor-provided accessibility information.
• Communicate significant accessibility risks, unresolved barriers, and vendor limitations to appropriate school or district leadership to support informed decision-making.
• Collaborate with teachers, special education personnel, assistive technology specialists, students, and families to support the effective use of educational technology with individualized accessibility-related supports and accommodations.
• Collaborate with IT and other relevant personnel to address accessibility considerations related to the technical implementation, configuration, integration, and support of educational technologies.
• Incorporate feedback from students, educators, staff, and families with disabilities into educational technology evaluation, implementation, and improvement.

Required Qualifications

Minimum requirements to perform the job:

• Understanding of digital accessibility principles and their application to digital educational materials, educational technologies, and digital learning environments.
• Knowledge of federal requirements related to digital accessibility in K–12 education, including ADA Title II and IDEA requirements relevant to accessible educational materials and technologies.
• Working knowledge of WCAG and its application to the evaluation and selection of digital educational materials and technology.
• Knowledge of common types of assistive technology and accessibility features and how they interact with digital educational materials and technology.
• Knowledge of digital accessibility evaluation methods, including automated, manual, and assistive technology-based approaches, their strengths and limitations, and when specialized evaluation is needed.
• Demonstrated experience integrating accessibility considerations into educational technology evaluation, selection, procurement, implementation, and ongoing use.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate across curriculum and instruction, special education, assistive technology, IT, procurement, and other relevant functions to address digital accessibility.

Preferred Qualifications

Nice-to-have skills or experience:

• Advanced training, certification, or demonstrated expertise in digital accessibility or accessible educational technology.
• Experience conducting accessibility evaluations of digital educational materials and technology.
• Experience reviewing and interpreting vendor-provided accessibility documentation, including Accessibility Conformance Reports (ACRs).
• Experience providing professional learning, guidance, or technical assistance to educators on accessible digital educational materials and technologies.

Success Signals

In this role, success looks like:

• Consistently integrates accessibility requirements and criteria into educational technology planning, evaluation, procurement, implementation, ongoing use, and routine decision-making.
• Prioritizes accessible digital educational materials, platforms, and tools in selection, approval, and implementation decisions.
• Collaborates across roles and with individuals with disabilities to identify and address accessibility barriers and support the effective use of educational technologies, accommodations, and individualized accessibility supports.
• Uses accessibility evidence and evaluation results to inform vendor conversations, purchasing decisions, contract renewals, and product improvement.
• Builds the capacity of educators and other personnel to make accessibility-informed decisions when selecting, implementing, and using digital educational materials and technologies.
• Identifies accessibility barriers early and coordinates timely actions with appropriate personnel to address or escalate them.
• Communicates significant accessibility risks and unresolved barriers to leadership and recommends appropriate next steps.
• Uses feedback from students, educators, staff, and families with disabilities to improve educational technology selection, implementation, and ongoing use.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Accessibility Knowledge (WHAT / WHY)

• Understanding of how people with disabilities access and interact with digital content and technologies.
• Understanding of how accessibility barriers may affect access and participation for people with disabilities.
• Knowledge of common types of assistive technology and accessibility features and how they interact with digital content and technologies used for instruction.
• Knowledge of digital accessibility requirements, standards, and guidelines relevant to educational technology, including WCAG.
• Knowledge of accessibility considerations throughout the educational technology lifecycle, including evaluation, procurement, implementation, maintenance, and renewal.
• Knowledge of methods and evidence used to evaluate technology accessibility, including automated and manual testing, assistive technology testing, user feedback, and vendor-provided accessibility documentation, and the strengths and limitations of each.
• Understanding of the distinction between proactively accessible digital educational materials and technologies and individualized supports, such as accessible formats, assistive technology, and accommodations.
• Understanding of organizational roles and responsibilities for educational technology accessibility, including when additional expertise is needed to address barriers.

Applied Skills (HOW)

• Skill in applying accessibility requirements and criteria to technology evaluation, selection, procurement, implementation, and ongoing use.
• Skill in providing role-appropriate guidance, professional learning, and technical assistance on selecting, implementing, and using accessible digital educational materials and technologies.
• Skill in analyzing accessibility evaluation findings and user feedback to inform educational technology recommendations and decisions.
• Skill in identifying potential accessibility barriers and determining when additional evaluation or specialized accessibility expertise is needed.
• Skill in identifying appropriate strategies for addressing accessibility barriers, including changes in implementation or use, vendor remediation, alternative technologies, or coordination with IT, assistive technology, or other appropriate personnel.
• Skill in reviewing and interpreting vendor-provided accessibility documentation and other evidence and communicating relevant findings, limitations, and risks.
• Skill in supporting the implementation of educational technologies in ways that work effectively with individualized accessibility-related supports, including accessible formats, assistive technology, and accommodations.
• Skill in monitoring the accessibility of educational technologies during implementation and ongoing use and using findings and feedback to inform improvement, renewal, or replacement decisions.

Collaboration & Communication

• Competence in translating technical accessibility information into clear, actionable guidance for educators, administrators, procurement personnel, and other non-technical audiences.
• Competence in communicating digital accessibility requirements, responsibilities, and practical implications to educators, administrators, procurement personnel, vendors, and other relevant audiences.
• Competence in collaborating across curriculum and instruction, IT, special education, assistive technology, procurement, administration, and other relevant functions to address digital accessibility barriers and support accessible educational technology implementation.
• Competence in communicating accessibility requirements, barriers, questions, and remediation expectations to technology vendors and using their responses to inform organizational decisions.
• Competence in communicating significant accessibility risks, unresolved barriers, and vendor limitations to appropriate organizational leadership and recommending actionable next steps.
• Competence in collaborating with special education and assistive technology personnel to support the effective use of educational technologies with individualized accessibility-related supports, including accessible formats, assistive technology, and accommodations.
• Competence in engaging students, educators, staff, and families with disabilities to understand their experiences using educational technologies and incorporate their feedback into accessibility decisions and improvement efforts.

Interview Questions

Behavioral Questions

• Describe a technology decision you influenced to improve accessibility. What was your role, what factors did you consider, and what was the outcome?
• Tell us about a time you helped educators adopt accessible digital learning practices. What support did you provide, and how did you determine whether it was effective?
• Describe a situation in which accessibility competed with other technology priorities, such as cost, functionality, timeline, or ease of implementation. How did you approach the decision?
• Tell us about a situation in which you encountered an accessibility issue that exceeded your expertise. How did you determine what additional expertise was needed, and what did you do next?

Technical Questions

• How would you use WCAG when evaluating, selecting, and implementing digital educational materials and technologies? When would you seek specialized accessibility expertise?
• What is an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR) and how does it relate to the VPAT? How would you use an ACR and other accessibility evidence when evaluating an educational technology product?
• You are asked to evaluate a new digital learning platform for possible districtwide adoption. How would you assess its accessibility, what evidence would you consider, and how would you address gaps or uncertainty in the available evidence?
• A district has implemented an educational technology that met its accessibility criteria during evaluation, but students and educators with disabilities begin reporting barriers during use. How would you approach the situation?
• How would you distinguish between an accessibility barrier that affects users generally and a situation where an individual student needs accessibility-related support, such as assistive technology or an accommodation? When might both approaches be needed?

Learning and Development

To prepare for this role, individuals should:

• Practice applying accessibility considerations to educational technology evaluation, selection, procurement, implementation, and ongoing use. Refer to NCADEMI’s Accessible EdTech page for information.
• Develop working knowledge of how accessibility requirements and standards, including WCAG, are applied to educational technology decisions. Explore Teach Access’ self-paced course on Instructional Technology.
• Gain practical experience using common accessibility evaluation methods and interpreting their results.
• Learn how students and professionals with different disabilities use and experience educational technologies, including the role of assistive technology and accessibility features.
• Build competency in interpreting accessibility evaluation findings, assessing vendor accessibility information, incorporating accessibility into procurement, and identifying appropriate responses to accessibility barriers. Refer to NCADEMI’s resources for requiring accessibility in edtech procurement.
• Develop the ability to recognize when accessibility concerns require specialized evaluation or expertise and identify appropriate sources of support.

Reminder

Use this toolkit to incorporate accessibility-focused knowledge, skills, and sample pre-screening and interview questions into your job descriptions and hiring process.