Ask TLT Accessibility

Learn about the foundations of digital accessibility and how it applies to our community at CWRU! 

Learn about EquatIO, an equation and text editor designed to make STEM content accessible. In this session, we will explain what EquatIO is, explore its features, and discuss how it can be used to help you create accessible digital STEM materials.

We will be exploring Anthology Ally, typically referred to as just Ally or Ally for Canvas. Ally is an accessibility tool that is integrated into Canvas and provides an accessibility score for your course. Learn how you can use Ally to make your course more accessible. 

Resources:

Ally for Canvas Resource Site
Curated Ally training guides and videos for CWRU faculty and staff
Ally at CWRU 
Public-facing website for Ally at CWRU

We will demonstrate how to apply the best accessibility practices to your Canvas course. This includes adding alternative text (alt text) to images and formatting headings, lists, and tables properly using the Rich Content Editor. Learn how to create an accessible Canvas course for your students or team.

Resources:

Canvas Accessible Headings, Lists, and Tables Resource Guide
A step-by-step guide on how to create accessible headings, lists, and tables in Canvas.

We will discuss how to incorporate accessibility best practices when formatting your Google Docs. We will cover the importance of heading structure, accessible color combinations, and how to check for any accessibility issues with Grackle. Learn how to create accessible documents for yourself and your team.

Resources:

Implementing Accessible Headings

A resource guide that describes the importance of headings and how to implement heading in your document. 

We'll showcase best practices for accessibility in Google Slides. Our focus will be on the importance of adding alternative text, creating unique headings, and using Grackle to check your slides. Learn how to make your upcoming presentations and materials more accessible.

Resources:

Creating links in Google Slides
A resource guide that explains how to create links and bookmarks in Google Slides 
Formatting lists in Google Workspace
A look into how to create and format lists in the Google Workspace
 

We will showcase the significance of using strong color contrast in your documents and presentations. We will present examples of both accessible and inaccessible color combinations and their effects on users. Learn how to select accessible colors for your educational materials.

Resources:

Choosing Accessible Color Combinations Resource Guide
An explanation of color contrast with free resources on how to check accessible color combinations
 

We will be discussing alternative text and its application in an academic setting. We will provide examples of academic graphics, including photos, diagrams, and graphs, along with explanations on how to write alt text for each type. Learn how to write alt text for any academic graphic you encounter.

Resources:

Writing Effective Alt Text
A showcase of examples of different images and graphs with alt text examples accompanying each one
Adding Alternative Text in Google Workspace
An introduction to what alt text is and how to add it in Google Workspace. 
 

We will show you how to use the Microsoft Office Accessibility Checker for Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. We'll address common issues in each program and explain how to resolve them. Learn how to improve accessibility in your Microsoft Office documents with the Microsoft Office Accessibility Checker. 

Resources:

Using the Microsoft Office Accessibility Checker 
 A look into the accessibility checkers in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
 

We will be discussing how you can create accessible Microsoft Word documents. We will cover the importance of heading structure, accessible color combinations, and how to check your document’s accessibility with Microsoft Office’s Accessibility Checker. Learn how to create accessible documents for yourself and your team.

Resources:

Formatting Accessible Headings, Lists, and Tables Resource Guide
A reference guide that lists out the steps of how to create accessible materials in Microsoft Office. 

We will be showing you how to create accessible headings and tables in Excel. We will identify important labels for tables needed for assistive technology and accessibility best practices. Learn how you can start creating accessible tables for your team. 

Resources: 

Formatting Accessible Headings, Lists, and Tables Resource Guide
A reference guide that lists out the steps of how to create accessible materials in Microsoft Office. 

We will walk you through how to design accessible PowerPoints with the best accessibility practices in mind. We will discuss unique slide titles, descriptive hyperlink text, and more. Learn how you can start designing accessible PowerPoints for your team. 

Resources:

Creating Accessible PowerPoints
An introduction to PowerPoint accessibility best practices along with best practices of how creating an accessible PowerPoint. 

We will be discussing how to create accessible audio files. We will give an overview of what audio descriptions are and the different types of audio descriptions. Learn how to create descriptions for your audio files. 

Resources:

Creating Accessible Audio Files
A look into what audio descriptions are, their different types, and how to create accessible audio descriptions

We will be talking about how to create accessible videos. We will discuss how users must be able to operate the content and give an introduction to transcripts and captions. Learn the basics of how to create accessible videos to apply to your multimedia content. 

Resources:

Creating Accessible Videos
An introduction to captions and best practices in video creation. 

We will show how to create captions and accessible videos using Echo360. We will demonstrate what Echo360 can do and how you can upload or record content to create accessible videos. Learn how to use Echo360 to add accessible multimedia content to your materials. 

Resources:

Using Echo360
An explanation of transcripts and captions as well as steps on how to upload videos to use Echo360 to create transcripts and captions. 

We will demonstrate how to create captions and transcripts using YouTube and Zoom. We will walk you through how to upload content to each program and edit the transcript and caption for your video. Learn more programs where you can create accessible videos. 

Resources:

Editing Captions on YouTube
A guide to show how to edit captions for uploaded content in YouTube
Editing Zoom Audio Transcriptions
A look into how to view and edit audio transcripts in Zoom.