Focusing on these seven steps will increase the accessibility of your LibGuides. Each step outlines why it is important and how to quickly implement it in new or existing guides to improve their accessibility.
Avoid library jargon, tailor your content to your audience, and use white space to increase the accessibility of your text.
Test your page and content layout in various sizes and on your mobile device. The editor screen is not how your guide will appear "live."
All images *must* have alternative text to ensure all users can understand the content on your page. This is an easy, but important step for accessibility.
Linking users to and from your guides involves friendly URLs for pages and descriptions for how the link fits into your content.
Avoid color to decorate or describe something important; not all users experience color in the same way.
Tables should have a descriptive title and clear headings to show the relationship between the aspects of your data.
Media added to LibGuides or created for use online should have closed captions so all users can understand the information presented.
As the university shifts to online instruction, it is important to ensure our content is accessible to all students. This aligns with the strategic mission and vision of UWM and it’s the law. This guide shares basic tips to assist your accessibility checks of LibGuides. These tips are also handy for creating new content with accessibility in mind.
Accessibility: addresses discriminatory aspects related to equivalent user experience for people with disabilities. Web accessibility means that people with disabilities can equally perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with websites and tools. It also means that they can contribute equally without barriers. For more information, see the Accessibility introduction.
Usability: is about designing products to be effective, efficient, and satisfying. Usability includes user experience design. This may include general aspects that impact everyone and do not disproportionately impact people with disabilities. Usability practice and research often does not sufficiently address the needs of people with disabilities.
Inclusion: is about diversity and ensuring involvement of everyone to the greatest extent possible. In some regions this is also referred to as universal design and design for all.
Henry, S. L., Abou-Zahra, S., and White, K. (2016). Accessibility, Inclusion, and Usability. Retrieved from https://www.w3.org/WAI/fundamentals/accessibility-usability-inclusion/
The contents of the Accessibility Tutorial may be reused with attribution. Please copy the following into new works based on the Accessibility Tutorial
Accessibility Tutorial by Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.