Accessible Instructional Materials (AIM)
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school districts to provide accessible versions of instructional materials to students who are blind or otherwise unable to use printed materials. Students with disabilities should receive materials in accessible formats at the same time as their peers receive their textbooks.
Instructional materials
Instructional materials include textbooks and related core materials such as workbooks.
Accessible formats
Accessible formats include Braille, large print, audio and digital text. Accessible instructional materials afford the flexibility to meet the needs of a broad range of students, even those without disabilities. Fully accessible format means that:
- All text is digital and can be read with text-to-speech, modified with regard to font size, and navigated by unit, chapter, section and page number (or other appropriate segments).
- Images include alternative text and long descriptions when appropriate (alternative text is a replacement for an image that serves the same purpose as the image itself. It is read by a screen reader in place of the image).
- Math equations are provided as images with alternative text or in the content file using MathML.
- Content reading order, levels and headings are determined by publisher tagging.
- Text can be converted to Braille.
School districts should note that just because a document is digital or online, it is not inherently accessible. File types to consider, from most to least flexible are:
- Digital Accessible Information System (DAISY)/ National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) with cascading style sheet;
- HyperText Markup Language (HTML);
- Portable Document Format (PDF), (unlocked, embedded fonts, single page); and
- Rich Text Format (RTF)/Word document.
NIMAS
The acronym NIMAS stands for the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard. It is a technical specification, endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education that publishers must use in preparing files. NIMAS files are then sent to the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC), as requested by a school district. Please note that a NIMAS file is not student ready; it requires conversion to the desired specialized format.
For more information, visit National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS).
NIMAC
NIMAC is the National Instructional Materials Access Center, and is the repository where all the NIMAS files are stored. It is funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and was created through amendments adopted to IDEA. The purpose of NIMAC is to make it easier for districts to obtain materials for students with disabilities, and to do so in a more timely manner. Once a NIMAS file is downloaded from NIMAC by an authorized user, it must be transformed into the required accessible format for the student. NIMAC houses files for printed textbooks and related core instructional materials published primarily for use in elementary and secondary school instruction.
School districts should note that there is no obligation on the part of a publisher to create NIMAS files or upload them to NIMAC unless specific language is included in the contract/purchase agreement with publishers. To search the NIMAC go to http://www.nimac.us/
Accessing NIMAC
Only authorized users (AUs) of NIMAC can download NIMAS files. New York’s AUs are Sophie McDermott at the New York State Education Department (NYSED), Office of Special Education, Lisa DeSantis at the Resource Center for the Visually Impaired, Bookshare, Learning Ally and the New York City Department of Education.
Students eligible to use materials from NIMAC
NIMAC relies on an exemption to copyright law, and as such materials are only available to elementary and secondary students who are blind, visually impaired, have a physical disability, or have a reading disability resulting from an organic dysfunction. In addition, these students must have an individualized education program (IEP).
Students with a 504 plan and NIMAC
Students who have a 504 plan are not allowed to use materials from NIMAC. Only students with a qualifying disability and an IEP can use these materials.
Students who are not eligible to use materials from NIMAC
School districts are responsible for providing accessible instructional materials to students with disabilities who need them, regardless of whether the students are eligible for materials from NIMAC. Schools can purchase accessible materials directly from the publisher, make their own or use materials in the public domain.
School districts should note that all students can access materials purchased directly from publishers or through other commercial options.
Obtaining accessible instructional materials in New York State
There are four basic steps in regards to AIM. First, a school district must determine if there is a need for AIM. Second, the district must decide on the format necessary to meet the individual student’s needs. It is possible that an individual student may need different types of formats based on the environment in which he will be using the material. Third, the district must determine the appropriate route for acquiring the specialized format(s). Fourth, the school district must determine what, if any, additional assistive technologies are needed and develop a plan to implement these technologies.
NYSED has developed two flowcharts that demonstrate the acquisition process. There is one flowchart for obtaining Braille and large print, and another flowchart for obtaining audio and digital text. Each flowchart has links to resources embedded within the document; it is recommended that districts use these materials together to provide a full understanding of the process.
Flowchart for Braille and Large Print
Flowchart for Audio and Digital Files
Building the resources housed in NIMAC
In order to build the resources available in NIMAC, districts should include contract language when ordering textbooks that ensures publishers will be asked to create a NIMAS file of any textbook and related core materials and submit those files to NIMAC. As NIMAC grows, students will receive their instructional materials in a more timely manner. Resources embedded within the flowcharts offer school districts guidance on potential contract language.
Section 200.2(b)(10)(i) of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education indicates that school districts must ensure that preference in the purchase of instructional materials is given to those publishers who agree to provide such instructional materials in alternative formats.
This important step of consistently ordering textbooks and related core materials in NIMAS format will help to inform publishers that there is a market for accessible materials. By demonstrating demand, school districts will ultimately assist not only those individuals who cannot access materials from NIMAC, but also those individuals who may prefer accessible files aligned with such initiatives as Response to Intervention (RtI), Differentiated Instruction, and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). It is the goal that school districts will eventually be able to purchase these files directly from the publisher.
School district resources
- The National Center on Accessible Educational Materials
: A resource for state- and district-level educators, parents, publishers, conversion houses, accessible media producers, and others interested in learning more about and implementing AIM and NIMAS.
- The National Center on Accessible Educational Materials has created the AIM NAVIGATOR
. It is an interactive online tool that facilitates the process of decision-making about accessible instructional materials for an individual student. The AIM Navigator guides teams through a step-by-step process and provides just-in-time support with Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), resources, and links to other helpful tools at each of four major decision-points: determining the need for accessible instructional materials; selecting format(s) that address student needs; acquiring needed formats; and, selecting supports for use (technology, training, instructional strategies, support services, and other accommodations and modifications).
- The National Center on Accessible Instructional Materials has also created the AIM Explorer
. This is a free simulation that combines grade-leveled digital text with access features common to most text readers and other supported reading software. It is designed to assist teams to understand reader preferences.
- The National Center on Accessible Educational Materials has created the AIM NAVIGATOR
District resources from the flowcharts are as follows:
Reference During the Identification Period
Large Print Questions and Answers
Federal Guidance
- National Center on Accessible Educational Materials
- NIMAS/NIMAC Questions and Answers
- Training Resources
- Policy Guidance
- Dear Colleague Letter
(6/22/12) encouraging SEAs and LEAs to ask publishers to use the MathML3 Structure Guidelines
- Dear Colleague Letter
(5/26/11)and accompanying Frequently Asked Questions
- Letter to College or University President (6/29/10)
and Accompanying Q & A
- Letter to [redacted information] (5/6/08)
- Letter to New Mexico State Director of Special Education (1/30/08)
- Letter to American Printing House for the Blind (5/7/07)
- Letter to Recordings for the Blind and Dyslexic (3/16/07)
New York State Regulations and Guidance
Relevant Part 200 Regulations of the Commissioner of Education
See:
Section 200.2(b)(10) regarding alternative formats, NIMAS, and preference to publishers.
Section 200.2(c)(2)(vi) regarding district plans for ensuring materials provided at same time as peers
Guidance
- New Vendor for the Production of Braille and Large-Print Materials - April 2012
- Accessible Instructional Materials - December 2009
- National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) and National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) [Additional Assurance Required for IDEA Part B Grant] - November 2006
- Implementing Chapter 219 of the Laws of 2003: In relation to publishers or manufacturers of instructional materials for college students with disabilities to also make the materials available, at a comparable price to the printed version, in alternate format (Revised 10/04)
- Amendment to Section 200.2 of the Regulations of the Commissioner Implementing Chapter 377 of the Laws of 2001: Plans to Provide Instructional Materials in Alternative Formats for Students with Disabilities - (5/02)
Copyright considerations
- United States Copyright Office
- National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS)
NLS Fact Sheets
- Fair Use
- Reproduction of Copyrighted Works by Educators and Librarians
- Copyright
- Reading Disabilities
Other Resources
- National Center on Accessible Educational Materials
- Advisory Commission on AIM in Postsecondary Education for Students with Disabilities
- American Foundation for the Blind
- information on NIMAS
- Universal Design for Learning
- Article on Accessible Textbooks
- New York State School for the Blind/Resource Center for the Visually Impaired
- RCVI Training Brochure
- National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS)
- Technology resources for students with special needs
- Publisher Look Up Service