Creating Accessible Documents

Accessibility is a huge issue for differently abled students. Educational designers must learn to create accessible Word documents, PDFs, PowerPoint presentations, and other files for learners who have vision loss, hearing loss, or other special needs. Here are a few things educational designers and document creators can do to help make documents more accessible.

1. Include alternate text with all visual media. This includes graphics, photos, screenshots, and videos among other media. Alternate text should add to the written text nearby rather than simply regurgitating what you have already said in writing.

2. Don't just use color to convey meaning. Vision-impaired and color blind learners will have trouble differentiating between different colors on the screen or page, so be sure to use bold or italicized text as well if you are trying to highlight a certain heading or piece of text. Contrast - dark text on light background or light text on dark background - should also be used to make the document easier to read.

3. Use simple data tables to convey complex information. Readers without vision problems can use these tables to gather data quickly, and, when formatted correctly, screen readers will read the text in the table in a way that is easily comprehended by learners with vision difficulties.

4. Use preset headings. Most programs such as Microsoft Word and PowerPoint come with headings tools or presets that allow for greater legibility in documents and presentations. It's important to use these settings so that documents are properly formatted to comply with accessibility best practices.

5. Use built-in accessibility tools. Both Microsoft 365 programs and Adobe Acrobat have built-in accessibility tools that help educational designers check their documents or presentations to make sure they are ADA accessible. It's important to run a check using these accessibility features prior to sending out documents to learners.

There are a number of internet resources that can help document creators design accessible documents. Here are a few that I found helpful.

Accessible Technology: Creating Accessible Documents. The University of Washington. https://www.washington.edu/accessibility/documents/

The University of Washington has a handy guide that offers links on how to create accessible documents in Microsoft and Adobe programs. The university also offers basic tips like those above on the Overview of Accessible Documents page (https://www.washington.edu/accessibility/documents/overview/).

Bucci-Muchmore, D. (2016, January 18). What is an accessible document and why is accessibility so important? Regional Government Services. https://www.rgsjpa.org/what-is-an-accessible-document-and-why-is-accessibility-so-important/

The Regional Government Services website and author Deborah Bucci-Muchmore offer some basic tips and tricks to creating accessible documents based on industry standards. Bucci-Muchmore, a human resources specialist, also describes why accessibility is important in terms of human resources.

Creating Accessible Documents. (2021, January.) Ability Net. https://abilitynet.org.uk/factsheets/creating-accessible-documents-0

Ability Net, a United Kingdom group, offers tips beyond the basics of creating an accessible document. This webpage offers tips on font choice, how to write in plain language, how to create accessible hyperlinks, and how to convert a Microsoft document to an accessible PDF.

Best Practices for Creating Accessible Microsoft Office Documents. California Polytechnic State University. Retrieved on September 12, 2021 from https://accessibility.calpoly.edu/content/instmaterials/document_creation/best_practices

California Polytechnic State University offers tips for creating accessible Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel files as well as links for converting Microsoft files into accessible HTML or PDFs. The site features tips on layout, structure, graphics and images, and charts and tables. There are also links to screen readers at the bottom of the article.