Kind by Design by Terry Julian

From Panicked to Overwhelmed

When I first heard about the Department of Justice rule establishing accessibility requirements for digital content provided by state and local governments—and the deadlines for compliance—I kind of panicked a little.

As I found more information, I went from panicked to overwhelmed.

Then I took a step back.

What if, instead of seeing accessibility as a requirement we have to meet, we saw it as a kindness we have the opportunity to give? While the deadlines and requirements can seem overwhelming, the more important issue here is that there are people we care about – students, parents, grandparents, or community members – who do not have full access to the information we send out. 

Looking through the lens of kindness was a little more helpful. However, I still didn’t know where to start until I looked at this like the proverbial elephant. 

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

One Bite at a Time

What does one bite at a time look like when it comes to accessibility?

It is helpful to first understand what we are trying to accomplish. Our digital content needs to be able to be navigated using only a keyboard or by using a screen reader. A screen reader is assistive technology that reads digital content aloud or converts it to Braille, allowing people to navigate websites, apps, and documents without relying on a visual display or mouse. In order for a screen reader to give the information to the user without confusing or frustrating them, there are things your content must include. These elements are easiest to include from the beginning of our content creation. This ensures that we will not only have accessible content, we will become more comfortable with the tools available to us and with what accessibility really looks like.

Start with the new things you are creating.

Establishing good habits for creating new content will make remediating old documents much simpler. 

You don’t have to go back and fix everything today. Start with the content you are creating now. As those practices become habits, you’ll become more comfortable recognizing accessibility issues—and you’ll be better prepared to tackle your older content.

There are many pieces to accessibility, but we don’t have to tackle all of them at once.

Think about your content:

• Images need alt text
• Videos need captions
• Text requires clear writing and headings
• Links need descriptive link text
• Color – proper contrast and don’t rely on color alone
• Structure – lists and properly formatted tables

These are not nine more things to add to your list. Think of them as simple habits to build into the things you’re already creating.

Images

Alt Text

There are several reasons we might add pictures to digital content. Maybe it is just to draw the eye or make the content more engaging. In this case, the image can be marked decorative. This tells a screen reader to ignore the picture when reading the page.

If the picture is relevant to what we want the user to get from the content, adding alt text to the image makes it more inclusive.

Text embedded in images can create accessibility and translation challenges, so important information should also be included as text in the content itself. For instance, a social media post about your school’s book fair with dates and times will mean nothing to someone utilizing a screen reader, unless that information is included in the text of the post.

Another thing to consider through the lens of kindness is that text included in an image is not translatable. This includes an even wider range of our community who is unable to engage with the content.

Videos

Captions

Captions are another tool for accessible content, namely videos. Captions need to be added and then edited to ensure they are correct. When you think about captions, you might think about when you are watching a video on your device in a crowded room or somewhere where you need or want to be quiet. Captions are not only for those who are deaf or hard of hearing, but also for anyone who wants to watch content without including the sound. If we start this with videos we are creating now, we will become proficient and much more efficient in remediating older content.

Text

Clear Writing

Clear writing is about simplifying information so it can be understood by all. Through the lens of kindness, realize that keeping content simple helps people with cognitive disabilities, language barriers, or even busy schedules engage with your content and understand what you’re trying to share. Chunking the text instead of having long paragraphs makes the content easier to scan – by a machine or the human eye.

Headings

Headings help everyone understand how information is organized. A screen reader can use them to navigate a document, but they also make it easier for anyone to scan and find what they need.

Use heading levels in a logical order. A Heading 2 should fall under a Heading 1, a Heading 3 under a Heading 2, and so on.

And here’s an important distinction: don’t choose a heading because you like the way it looks. If you want text to be bigger or smaller, change the text size. Use the built-in heading styles to tell your document—and your reader—how the information is organized.

Color

Contrast

Text must stand out from the background in order to be readable. Not only for individuals with visual impairments but also for those trying to see in low lights or even in brightly lit rooms.

Don’t rely on color alone

Use words along with color to convey meaning, For instance you have a list of foods. The foods in green font are best to eat while the foods in red font are the ones to eat in moderation. What if someone is colorblind and cannot differentiate the colors? Your content may become difficult or impossible for them to interpret.

Links

Descriptive text

When creating links within a document, be sure to describe the link in the text. If you link to a school’s website, for example, your text could be, “Visit our school’s website,” instead of, “Click here.” Again, giving your users a clearer idea of what they are trying to navigate and making even users with visual challenges feel more connected.

Structure

Lists and properly formatted tables

When creating lists and tables, use document tools to format them properly. Lists should be bulleted or numbered instead of using tabs and returns. Tables are another area where accessibility can become more complicated. Use tables for data—not simply to make a document look a certain way. When you’re just getting started, focus on learning how to structure the basics correctly.

I share these things as a place to start. I am going to be very open by telling you it is challenging to get them all correct. However, tools to check accessibility are being developed and improved to make things easier for us. I love challenges and I am constantly learning with this one.

Ultimately, when we create accessible content, we are making things more inclusive. This isn’t only kind for individuals who rely on accessibility tools. It can also help many of us as we access content in different ways.

Don’t allow yourself to become panicked or overwhelmed.

Eat the elephant one bite at a time.

Feel better knowing you’re learning. You’re not expected to know everything today.

As we know better, we do better.

Kind by design.

Your first bite

The next time you create a document, use the built-in heading styles instead of simply making text bold and bigger.

That’s it.

One step at a time.

 

AI Acknowledgment: AI was used as a collaborative tool during the writing process. I used it to brainstorm, ask questions, refine wording, evaluate readability, and consider accessibility. The ideas, experiences, perspective, and final content reflect my own work and judgment.