Creating an accessible document
People with print disabilities often use screen reader software to access documents and webpages. These programs, such as JAWS for Windows and VoiceOver for Apple and iOS, read text out loud to their users. In order to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, writers should verify that their documents are compatible with screen readers, especially for resources such as handouts, forms, and reference materials. Tools within Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat can help convert existing documents or create new accessible documents from scratch.
Microsoft Word 2016
By default, screen reader technology can read plain text from Word documents. Thus, where practical, writers can opt to make their doc and docx files directly available. However, many writers prefer to convert their documents to PDFs, which help prevent users from modifying them. Word allows writers to export their files into accessible PDFs directly.
To export a Word document as an accessible PDF:
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Go to “File - Save As . . .”
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In the dialog box, choose where you want the document saved.
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In the “Save As” window, under “Save as type:”, choose PDF.
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Click on the “Options” button.
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Under the section labeled "Include non-printing information," make sure the box is checked for "Document structure tags for accessibility."
- Click OK, then Save.
Note: do not use the Print menu to create your PDFs. This will create an inaccessible document. Additionally, it is good to verify that the PDF is fully accessible by using Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader, as described below.
Adobe Acrobat
If you choose to convert your documents to PDFs, or if your original material is only available as a PDF, you will need to use Adobe Acrobat to make your document accessible. Note: you will need a full version of Adobe Acrobat in order to do so.
To use Acrobat’s Accessibility Tools:
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Go to “View – Tools – Action Wizard”.
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In the pane on the right side, under “Actions,” choose “Make Accessible.”
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Press the “Start” button to begin the process. Follow the prompts.
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After the wizard is complete, the accessibility report will appear on the left-hand side. There are two aspects that require manual checking: the logical reading order, and the color contrast. All other elements should receive a green check mark.
- Save the PDF.
Verifying Compatibility
Whether you have chosen Word or Adobe Acrobat to create your accessible PDF, it is important to verify that screen reader software will interpret your document correctly. Both Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Acrobat Reader have a built-in screen reader that you can use to check your document.
To use Acrobat or Acrobat Reader’s Screen Reader:
- Open your PDF in Acrobat or Acrobat Reader.
- Select “View – Read Out Loud – Activate Read Out Loud,” or press Shift-Ctrl-Y.
- Select “View – Read Out Loud – Read to End of Document,” or press Shift-Ctrl-B.
- The screen reader will begin to read the text of the document in the order that it thinks is appropriate.
If certain sections of the document are read out of order, or if image captions are not correct or helpful, you will need to edit the document further to make it accessible. If you have access to Adobe Acrobat, the Tag, Content, and Reading Order panes can help correct issues in the PDF directly. If you only have access to the original Word document, however, you will need to change the tags and structure in your Word document first, then re-export it afterward.
Modifying Captions for Images
One of the most common problems that screen readers face is interpreting what pictures and diagrams contain. Accessible documents are required to caption all images with alternative text captions, which include brief descriptions of the image’s content. Captions should contain, at a minimum, a helpful description of the image.
For example: “Clipart of a dog.” Ideally, captions should be more descriptive if the image contains relevant or important information.
For example: “Comic strip. Two stick figure people are talking. One says, ‘I used to think correlation implied causation. Then I took a statistics class. Now I don’t.’ The other says, ‘Sounds like the class helped.’ The first replies, ‘Well, maybe.’”
To edit captions in Word 2016:
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Right-click on an image and select, “Format Picture . . .”
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In the right-hand pane, click on the Layout & Properties icon.
- Enter the title and description of the image.
To edit captions in Adobe Acrobat:
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Go to View – Show/Hide – Navigation Panes – Tags. This will open the Tags pane.
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Drill down through the Tags pane to locate your images. They will usually be tagged as <Figure>.
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Note: if this is not already an accessible PDF, you may need to generate the initial tags. To do so, use the Make Accessible Action Wizard, described above.
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Right-click on the appropriate <Figure> tag and select “Properties . . .”
- Enter the desired alternative text and click Close.
Fixing the Reading Order
The other major issue that you may encounter is when the screen reader reads your document out of order. This usually happens when your document is not using standard heading levels.
Heading levels are particularly important for long or complex documents, as they allow screen- reader users to navigate through sections.
To change heading levels in Word:
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Use the Styles section, which is located on the Home ribbon.
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Select the text that you want to turn into a heading.
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Right-click on the heading level that you wish to use (e.g. “Heading 1” for your title).
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Choose “Update Heading to Match Selection.”
- From then on, when you start the same level of heading, just choose the Heading type that you want from the Styles section.
To change the heading levels in Adobe Acrobat:
- Go to View – Show/Hide – Navigation Panes – Tags. This will open the Tags pane.
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Drill down through the Tags pane to locate your heading. They will usually be tagged as <P>, <H1>, <H2>, etc.
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Note: if this is not already an accessible PDF, you may need to generate the initial tags. To do so, use the Make Accessible Action Wizard, described above.
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Right-click on the appropriate tag and select “Properties . . .”
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In the field labeled “Type:”, choose the heading level that you prefer.
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In the Tags pane, you can also move elements under your heading levels, which will help clarify what text and images belong where.
- Re-run the Accessibility wizard to verify that the structure of the document meets accessibility standards.
Alternately, you can use the Reading Order navigation pane in Adobe Acrobat. This allows you to select the order in which different sections of your document are read. This is an advanced method, however, and its description is beyond the scope of this document. For additional details, please see the official Adobe help file.
Other Considerations
Alternative text and logical reading order are the two biggest concerns, but writers should be aware of other issues that screen-reader users face with documents. Here are a number of points that writers should consider, in general, when crafting accessible documents:
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Try not to rely on highlighting or changes in fonts (such as color, size, bolding, capitalization, underlining, etc.) to convey vital information. Most screen readers do not recognize these distinctions by default.
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Use bullet points, not simple spacing, to offset items in an unordered list. Otherwise, screen readers will blend items together into one long sentence.
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For presentations or class materials, make accessible electronic versions available to your audience ahead of time, so that screen-reader users can follow along.
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It is neither necessary nor recommended to eliminate diagrams, pictures, or visual tools from your documents. Instead, consider how to include additional explanations for these items so that everyone can understand your information better.
Contributor: John Suzuki