Creating Accessible Content
Where Do I Start?
UND recognizes that accessibility is a continuous journey that requires us to adapt to changing standards and technologies. While it can feel overwhelming, progress is built over time. It is important to remember that accessibility is a journey that we are all on together, and you don’t have to navigate it alone. There are numerous resources available to guide you along the way.
- Check your overall Blackboard Ally score in each of the courses you are currently teaching. Don’t worry about courses you you’ve taught in the past or courses that you will be teaching far in the future. Focus on the present needs that you can fix for the upcoming semester.
- Identify the types of resources that are in your course. Very few courses made use ALL resource types. You don't need to look at every single document and document type in a course. Instead, survey which document types you work with most.
- Identify and focus on a representative sample of these document types. We recommend that you identify documents that you can edit in their original software/programs - Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, etc.
- Check the Blackboard Ally guidance for each of the items you have chosen. What issues does Ally identify for your content? What terminology do you need to know? You don’t have to fix anything yet. Get acquainted with the terminology and issues; you can't hope to fix what you don't know the issue.
- Eliminating outdated or irrelevant content helps streamline the user experience by ensuring that only essential and accurate information is presented. This makes it easier for assistive technologies, such as screen readers, to navigate the document without distractions.
- Replace PDFs and Spreadsheets with more accessible file types like Word or PowerPoint. PDFs are incredibly difficult to make accessible; remediation requires considerable time, talent, and finances.
- Replace PDFs with Permalinks. If you've downloaded a PDF from the UND library system's database or another website, use a permalink. Permalinks offer an alternative to sharing inaccessible PDFs on your course page. Rather than uploading a copy of an inaccessible article, you can link learners directly to an article’s bibliographic record in a database.
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Enroll in TTaDA's 10-Step Accessibility Challenge. This self-paced Blackboard Ultra course is designed to introduce you to Blackboard Ally and some of the common accessibility issues it identifies. There is no set path through the 10-Step Accessibility Challenge – you can pick and choose whichever issue you are tackling, watch the video content, and apply the fix to your own document or resource. This is really a choose your own adventure. The course is free to use.
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Consult the Document Accessibility page. The Quick Guide to Improving Document Accessibility highlights ten simple, actionable steps you can take to improve accessibility. As you progress in your accessibility journey, consider adding more nuanced accessibility measures outlined in the document specific checklists .
- Explore Common Accessibility Issues. This page breaks down the common accessibility issues that affect various types of content, including websites, PDFs, and other document formats. Understanding these fundamental issues can help you make changes that ensure all users can access and engage with your content effectively.
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Participate in accessibility trainings and workshops. Not only does TTaDA offer the 10-Step Accessibility Challenge, TTaDA staff also routinely offers a range of workshops designed to support your accessibility journey.
- Seek help from your department’s Instructional Designer if you don’t know where to start or run into issues. Each college at UND has a designated Instructional Designer. These staff members are well-versed in accessible pedagogies and practices that you can use to build accessibility into your courses as you create them.
- Reserve a time in the Accessibility Lab. TTaDA has created an Accessibility Lab to assist faculty and staff with creating accessible content.
- Submit an Accessibility Assistance Ticket. TTaDA has created a ticketed request form faculty can submit to receive help with accessibility issues in their course documents.
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Accessibility is a marathon, not a sprint. Apply yourself, but don’t be afraid to stop, catch your breath, and walk. Learn one or two easier fixes, then stop. Come back later and learn another one or two slightly harder fixes, then stop. Give yourself plenty of time to redesign, rework, or completely replace inaccessible course resources, if needed.
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Don’t be afraid to make "fixes" multiple times. Any skill worth learning takes practice. For example, you might find making your syllabus accessible to be daunting at first. By your second, third, or fourth syllabus, though, you’ll be a pro. AND you’ll be able to apply the same fixes to other Word documents. Once you’ve done it a few times and learned what works for you and what doesn’t, it will become more second nature.
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Accessibility is never easy, but it is habit forming. We don’t expect any of this accessibility journey to be “easy.” But we do know that it can become a good habit and closer to second nature to think about adding alt-text to an image, check your headings, or embed a hyperlink in some meaningful text.
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Plan out your accessibility journey before you take it.
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For all the perfectionists out there: We are aiming for improvement, not perfection. There is no such thing as the “perfect” accessibility journey, and waiting for perfection will just stall your progress before it gets started. Instead, aim for small gains that build into larger, more visible signs of progress. Mistakes are OK – they show that you are trying to improve and that you are moving forward.
Campus Resources
Accessibility Assistance Ticket
TTaDA has created a ticketed request form faculty can submit to receive help with accessibility issues in their course documents.
Equal Opportunity and Title IX Office
The Equal Opportunity & Title IX Office helps to resolve disability-related issues, conducts accessibility-related training, and serves as UND's primary resource for questions and concerns about services and accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
Instructional Design Consultations
TTaDA has a team of Instructional Designers available to provide assistance to instructors, administrators and staff. They provide assistance for fully online, flipped, hybrid, blended and traditional face-to-face courses. Register for a one-on-one consultation for your course.
Student Disability Resources Office
The Student Disability Resources office helps qualified students with disabilities receive equal opportunities to participate in all UND programs and activities.