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Creating Accessible LibGuides

This guide presents information about how to create and format content in LibGuides to reach as many students as possible, including those using assistive technologies.

Checklist

The checklist should be used by librarians and library staff as they create LibGuides. The checklist identifies which items are Level A, Level AA, or Level AAA conformance. The goal is to reach Level A at a minimum, but whenever a Level AA or Level AAA criterion can be achieved it is highly recommended. 

The items on the checklist below are the same as those listed on each child page under WCAG 2.2.

Video and Audio Checklist

Level A

  • Include a text alternative for all non-text content (Success Criterion 1.1.1)
  • Audio-only and video-only content offer the same information in non-media form (e.g. transcript) (Success Criterion 1.2.1)
  • Provide synchronized captions (Success Criterion 1.2.2)
  • Provide an audio description or text alternative (Success Criterion 1.2.3)
  • Audio tracks that play automatically for more than 3 seconds must include a way to pause/stop the audio or allow for volume control (Success Criterion 1.4.2)

Level AA

  • All pre-recorded videos include an audio description (Success Criterion 1.2.5)

Level AAA

  • Provide a sign language alternative for prerecorded videos (Success Criterion 1.2.6)
  • For videos that do not have enough time in between pauses to add audio description, provide a version with extended pauses and audio description (Success Criterion 1.2.7)
  • Provide non-media options for all pre-recorded audio and video (Success Criterion 1.2.8)
  • Background sounds must be four times quieter than foreground content (Success Criterion 1.4.7)

Images Checklist

Level A

  • Provide alt-text for images using HTML or an image description, unless the image is decorative or a logo. See the criteria for full list of exceptions (Success Criterion 1.1.1)

Level AA

  • The contrast between images of text and the background should be minimum 4.5:1. For large text the contrast should be minimum 3:1 (Success Requirement 1.4.3)
  • Only use images of text if the user can alter the image (e.g. increase size or change colour) or if the image of text is essential. Note: images of text do not include graphs, screenshots, and diagrams which visually convey important information (Success Criterion 1.4.5)

AAA

  • Images of text should be only be used for pure decorative or when absolutely essential to the information (Success Criterion 1.4.9)

Text Checklist

Level A

  • Do not solely rely on sensory characteristics (i.e. shape, color, size, visual location, orientation, or sound) to convey meaning (Success Criterion 1.3.3)
  • Do not solely rely on colour to show importance or illicit a response (Success Criterion 1.4.1)
  • The purpose of a link is described in the link text or can be determined through assistive technology and link relationships (Success Criterion 2.4.4)

Level AA

  • The contrast between text or images of text and the background should be minimum 4.5:1. For large text the contrast should be minimum 3:1 (Success Requirement 1.4.3)
  • Text should be able to be resized up to 200% and still be functional and understandable. Exceptions are captions and images of text (Success Criterion 1.4.4)
  • Only use images of text if the user can alter the image (e.g. increase size or change colour) or if the image of text is essential. Note: images of text do not include graphs, screenshots, and diagrams which visually convey important information (Success Criterion 1.4.5)
  • Users should be able to alter content without changing the meaning (e.g. increase: line height, spacing after paragraphs, space between letters and words) (Success Criterion 1.4.12)
  • Headings and labels are clear and descriptive (Success Criterion 2.4.6)
  • Include HTML/ARIA cues when a section of text is in a different language than the primary language of the webpage (Success Criterion 3.1.2)

Level AAA

  • Text is either left, right or center-aligned and not justified  (Success Criterion 1.4.8)
  • Images of text should be only be used for pure decorative or when absolutely essential to the information (Success Criterion 1.4.9)
  • A mechanism is available so the purpose of each link can be identified from link text alone (Success Criterion 2.4.9)
  • Include definitions for unusual words and jargon (Success Criterion 3.1.3)
  • A mechanism for identifying the meaning of abbreviations is available (e.g. identified in text or in a glossary) (Success Criterion 3.1.4)
  • Text is written at a lower secondary education level or an alternative, simpler version is available (Success Criterion 3.1.5)
  • Include a mechanism for understanding the pronunciation of words where meaning of the words, in context, is ambiguous without knowing the pronunciation (i.e. a glossary) (Success Criterion 3.1.6)

Content Checklist

Level A

  • Information and visual relationships (e.g. headings) can be understood using assistive technologies (Success Criterion 1.3.1)
  • If the order of information is important to understanding the information, the order of information is important to understanding the information (Note: this primarily applies to adding boxes to the left-column under the menu. The left-column menu appears at the top of the column on mobile and when the screen is zoomed in far enough that the guide resizes to one column)  (Success Criterion 1.3.2) 
  • Do not solely rely on sensory characteristics (e.g. shape, color, size, visual location, orientation, or sound) to convey meaning (Success Criterion 1.3.3)
  • Do not solely rely on colour to show importance or illicit a response (Success Criterion 1.4.1)
  • Users can pause, stop or hide updates or moving media until needed (Success Criterion 2.2.2)
  • No element of a page should flash more than three times per second, unless below the threshold (Success Criterion 2.3.1)
  • Web page titles describe content accurately and are identifiable using assistive technology (2.4.2 Success Criterion)
  • The purpose of a link is described in the link text or can be determined through assistive technology and link relationships (Success Criterion 2.4.4)
  • Content with a label (e.g. form field labelled 'last name') use the same name for the visual text label and the accessible label used by assistive technology (Success Criterion 2.5.3)
  • When the user interacts with content it does not change the context unless the user is warned beforehand (e.g. a link is labeled as 'opens in new window')  (Success Criterion 3.2.2)
  • If including links to help, always offer options in the same relative order on every page (Success Criterion 3.2.6)

Level AA

  • The orientation of content is not restricted to either portrait or landscape, unless the display orientation is essential (Success Criterion 1.3.4)
  • If your guide uses dragging there is an alternative option for users to complete the same task (Success Criterion 2.5.7)
  • If navigation tools appear on multiple web pages, they always appear in the same place and order (Success Criterion 3.2.3)
  • Components that have the same functionality within a set of Web pages are identified consistently (Success Criterion 3.2.4)

Level AAA

  • No element of a page should flash more than three times per secondo (Success Criterion 2.3.2)
  • Animation that is triggered from user interaction can be turned off, unless essential (Success Criterion 2.3.3)
  • Content is organized through section headings (Success Criterion 2.4.10)
  • Changes of context are initiated only by user request or a mechanism is available to turn off such changes (Success Criterion 3.2.5)

Coding Checklist

Level A

  • Content can be operated through a keyboard or keyboard interface without requiring specific timings for individual keystrokes. If a function cannot be done with a keyboard (e.g. handwriting), an alternate option is provided (Success Criterion 2.1.1)
  • If the same information is found on several different pages within a website, it can be skipped through a programmed command (Success Criterion 2.4.1)
  • All code elements (ie. HTML) are accurate and complete (Success Criterion 4.1.1)

Level AA

  • Include HTML/ARIA cues when a section of text is in a different language than the primary language of the webpage (Success Criterion 3.1.2)

Level AAA

  • Use correct markup language to identify the purpose of buttons, links, fields, etc. so user can determine the purpose using assistive technology (Success Criterion 1.3.6)

Attribution

"Copyright © 2020 W3C® (MIT, ERCIM, Keio, Beihang). This software or document includes material copied from or derived from Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2."