Creating Accessible Materials
When we design materials with accessibility in mind, we save time in the long run and create more equitable experiences for our users. Read on below for best practices when creating accessible digital materials.
Digital Accessibility Guidelines
When we’re creating digital media—whether writing an email, designing a Moodle course, publishing a podcast, or posting to social media—it’s important to make sure our audience can access our content. Authoring accessible digital materials is vital to creating an inclusive, thriving campus community.
This page offers foundational guidelines for creating accessible digital content. These guidelines are based on the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C’s) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA, and they’re the baseline we’re aiming for across campus. Use the links below each topic to find information and resources that can help you start putting these guidelines into practice.
There’s a lot here, but don’t feel like you have to start doing everything at once. If it’s feeling overwhelming, try adding one accessible practice to your routine this week (or month). At the end of that period, see if you can add one more practice. And if you’d like extra support, reach out to your academic technologist. We’re here to help!
Digital Accessibility in Three Parts
Remediating Inaccessible Materials
We can modify inaccessible materials to make them more accessible, using their native software or tools like Panorama or Adobe Acrobat Pro.
Providing Assistive Technology
Assistive technology can improve user experience of digital materials. Mac offers a variety of assistive technology—some reserved for folks with accommodations, and some available to everyone.
Digital Accessibility Best Practices
Organizing Content
Headings
Headings separate paragraphs of content. True headings use the heading text style, rather than merely being large text or bold.
Lists
Lists present strings of related content. True lists have special formatting that communicates with screen readers. Using ordered or unordered lists matters, too.
Tables
Tables are only for displaying data—not for arranging content. Tables need formatting to help both screen reader users and sighted readers navigate them smoothly.
Creating Clarity
Readability & Legibility
Not just what you write, but paragraph structure, word choice, and how you style your text can all impact readers’ ability to perceive and understand your content.
Descriptive Links
Descriptive text for hyperlinks helps readers understand where each link leads. They’re both clearer and more efficient than “naked” hyperlinks (http://…).
Color
WCAG 2.1 AA has standards for color contrast. This, plus how and when you use color (and with what) can all impact accessibility.
Media Considerations
Alt Text
Some images convey content, while others are purely decorative. If an image conveys content, alternative text (“alt text”) is added, so users who can’t see the image can still access its content.
Text Alternatives
For audio and video media, text alternatives help ensure users can perceive content. This includes transcripts for podcasts, captions and descriptive audio for videos, etc.
Guidelines by Media Type
Some accessibility considerations apply to all digital media, while others are media-type specific. Review the accessibility guidelines for each type of digital media before beginning a project.
Want Help?
For personalized support in implementing these guidelines, set up a 1:1 session with an academic technologist.