Abstract:

Digital accessibility has become a critical dimension of digital sustainability in higher education, as universities increasingly depend on online platforms, digital learning materials and virtual services to guarantee inclusive and equitable participation for all students and staff. In this context, digital sustainability is understood as the long-term ability of digital systems and practices to remain inclusive, usable and socially responsible over time, ensuring that no groups are excluded as technologies evolve. Digital accessibility, in turn, refers to the design and use of digital content, tools and services so that they can be perceived, understood and used by people with diverse abilities and needs.

Ensuring accessible digital environments is not only a pedagogical and ethical imperative, but also a legal requirement under the EU Web Accessibility Directive (Directive (EU) 2016/2102) and the European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882), which oblige public sector bodies, including universities, as well as essential services providers (e.g., education) to provide accessible information, websites, mobile applications and digital services. This legislation was already transposed to national one in all EU’s Member States.

This study presents preliminary findings from a survey on digital accessibility administered to teaching and research staff at the University of Alcalá (UAH). The survey was conducted by course instructors as part of the institutional training programme “Digital Skills for Staff”, and covered multiple departments including Architecture, Economics, Biology, Computer Science, Nursing, Geology/Environment and Humanities. A total of 79 respondents completed the online questionnaire, which explored self-assessed digital skills, awareness of digital accessibility and knowledge of relevant regulatory frameworks.

Respondents report mostly intermediate to advanced levels of digital competence across common academic tasks such as internet navigation, text editing, presentation tools, PDF management and multimedia handling. However, awareness of digital accessibility is uneven: approximately one third of participants report that they understand the concept and have worked with it, another third is familiar with the term but have no practical experience, while the remaining respondents have only heard of it or have never encountered it. Knowledge of regulation is even more limited, with around half of respondents unsure whether accessibility regulations exist at national, European or institutional level, and only a small minority reporting familiarity with their content.

These findings reveal a significant gap between strengthened EU accessibility obligations and current levels of awareness and preparation among teaching staff at UAH, with direct implications for the social dimension of digital sustainability. The results will be used to inform the design of targeted training modules on digital accessibility within the EUGLOH Alliance, of which UAH is a member, contributing to the development of shared, sustainable and inclusive digital education practices across partner universities.

Keywords:

Digital accessibility, digital sustainability, social sustainability, digital skills, university staff.