Quick start guide: Accessible course materials
When creating new course materials, keep these core concepts of digital accessibility in mind.
Be aware of the limitations of PDFs
- Scanned PDFs often do not meet accessibility requirements. Request your course materials through the e-reserves system to improve accessibility.
- Moodle text, Google Docs, and Word documents are more accessible alternatives to PDF documents.
Learn more about creating accessible text.
Use your text editor to create headings and lists
- Always use your text editor styles options to create headings and lists in your document. Never use text formatting (such as bold or larger text) alone.
- The text editor defaults for font, text size, and spacing are generally accessible.
Learn more about creating accessible headings and lists.
Use color carefully
- Do not use color alone to communicate meaning.
- Choose high contrast colors, especially for text or graphics that communicate information.
Learn more about using color carefully.
Make sure videos have captions
- Use Panopto for videos you create. Videos stored and shared using Panopto, our media server, are automatically captioned.
- If you link to videos from other sources, check to see if captions are available.
Learn more about video captions.
Write meaningful link text
- Add links to short, meaningful text that describes where the link leads.
Learn more about writing meaningful link text.
Add alternative text to images
- If an image communicates information or serves a purpose other than decoration, it must have alternative text, which allows people who use screen readers to understand it.
- Alternative text should be concise and focus on the purpose of the image.
Learn more about adding alternative text.
Create accessible tables
- Use tables to present data. Using tables for layout creates accessibility challenges.
- Make sure tables have designated header rows and columns.
Learn more about creating accessible tables.