Work

Designing TIBBL: A Tangible Inclusive Block-Based Language for Widening Access to Programming

Year: 2026

Type: conference-paper

Abstract: Access to early programming education is essential yet challenging for blind and low-vision (BLV) learners, especially in mainstream classrooms where introductory tools are often highly visual. Although tangible programming systems show promise for supporting early learning, less attention has been paid to how these systems should be designed for real-world contexts, such as mixed-ability classrooms and their social and practical constraints. Here we describe the design of TIBBL (Tangible Inclusive Block Based Language), a tangible programming toolkit combining physical programming tiles with a web based interface, designed to support early programming learning for BLV and sighted learners alike. Through a five-phase research-through-design process, involving key stakeholders, we surface insights around tangible representations, pedagogical scaffolding, and the social and infrastructural conditions that shape whether access is sustained. We reframe accessible tangible programming as a matter of inclusive classroom infrastructure rather than isolated assistive provision, informing future accessible programming pedagogy.

Source: International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

DOI: 10.1145/3797867.3829009