ALT-C Timetable announced

The Association for Learning Technology has just released its draft timetable for speakers for this year’s conference at http://www.alt.ac.uk/altc2008/timetable.html. My paper has been listed in a 4 paper session early on Wednesday 10th September, covered by the Access or Exclusion theme, subtitled Disabilities / Community Access.  This is one of ten (yes, ten!) parallel sessions.

Short papers to be presented in this session:

• Nothing about me, without me: The use of participatory research methods to give voice to disabled learners experiences of e-learning.
• Hear my voice: Disabled E-Learners Narratives of Exclusion and Inclusion
• Beyond access: social experiences of disability online, in and around higher education.
• Values and identity in community IT centres

A second notable session cited under Access or Exclusion: Flexibility and Access / Disabilities runs from 4pm on the same afternoon, featuring two papers:

• Flexibility and Access – implications of blended learning for higher education
• How the Web Continues to Fail People with Disabilities

These look like interesting agendas, with some overlaps – but I’ll also be interested to see how these themes are conceptualised in the wider terms of the conference.  Will this be seen as a mainstream user experience consideration for education? Or a minority interest? In a conference considering the potential and actual divisive nature of ICTs, I’m hoping for the former.