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Accessibility Checklist for VLE materials
Nottingham Trent University, version 1.
This 10-point checklist is aimed at providing some information for staff when
uploading content into the VLE (Virtual Learning Environment). It has both
accessibility and usability in mind with the aim being to “provide for diversity through
design rather than accommodation” (Horton, 2006, p xvi).
Point
Brief Description
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Ensure your materials are clear, concise and consistent
Use appropriate font and font styles in all documents
Use colour appropriately
Describe all images and tables clearly
Provide text alternatives for any non-text content
Use large clearly labelled symbols
Always use descriptive text for hyperlinks
Check PowerPoint slides can be read by a screen-reader
Provide materials in multiple / alternative formats
Consider the format of printed materials
1. Ensure your materials are clear, concise and consistent


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Use short sentences; this gets the message across much better from a
general usability point of view.
Break text into paragraphs as large blocks of text are difficult to read – use
white spaces where possible.
Check the readability of your documents (see Appendix).
When using navigational and instructional aids these should always
appear in the same place, and towards the top. For instance, have
instructions always in the same place in the document, tasks at each stage
clearly labelled using the same headings etc.
2. Use appropriate font and font styles in all documents
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Avoid italics, underlined text and small fonts
Use sentence case. Text written in all capital letters is difficult to read and
may be considered rude in an electronic environment.
Choose a sans serif font which is clearly readable and has clear spacing
between the letters. Fonts such as Verdana and Arial allow for maximum
readability if selected in point size 12 and above.
Consider using Styles and Formatting when designing Word documents.
Choose a good contrast between font colour and background. For
preference, black on an off-white / pale yellow background or dark blue on
a pale blue background (see Appendix) work well.
Ensure text is left aligned and NOT justified.
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3. Use colour appropriately
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Try not to use colour alone to convey information. Describing a ‘blue
arrow’ will have no meaning for a screen-reader user.
Avoid blue/yellow and red/green combinations as they limit users with
colour blindness.
Check for adequate colour contrast (see Appendix).
4. Describe all images and tables clearly
Images
 Don’t include images that convey no information – this just adds clutter.
 Make sure that the images you’ve used have a text description /
explanation associated with them, and use appropriate alt-text where
possible. This is essential as an alternative for screen-reader users and
as an additional aid for all users.
 When saving images used in Office applications, change the setting in
Word to compress images. This can reduce the size of the files (see
Appendix).
 Avoid the use of colour to convey the meaning of the image.
 Don’t wrap text around images.
Tables
 If using tables for layout purposes, bear in mind that these are read rowby-row when rendered by a speaking or line mode browser. In order to
make data tables in HTML web pages fully accessible, they must use the
standard table HTML markup (i.e. <table>, <tr>, <th> and <td>). When
this is in place, users of screen-readers can navigate through data tables
one cell at a time, and they will hear the column and row headers spoken
to them. Check that the layout makes sense when it is read in this way.
 For HTML web pages, use table ‘summaries’ to describe points made by
the information in the table.
 If not using HTML, ensure your table makes sense when read from left to
right, line by line, and that it behaves sensibly when font size changes.
5. Provide text alternatives for any non-text content

As for images and tables in point 4, any non-text content (such as controls
or inputs, CAPTCHA or sensory experience) should have a text
alternative. This allows the content to be changed into other forms people
need, such as large print, Braille, speech, symbols or simpler language
(see guideline 1.1, WCAG 2.0)
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6. Use large, clearly labelled symbols

If using mathematical symbols and equations, include large, clear symbols
and equations which can be resized by the reader using an equation
editor, such as the one available within Microsoft Word, or use MathType
to produce MathML equation code when possible, as this can be read by
screen reader software.
7. Always use descriptive text for hyperlinks

Avoid using “Click here” for hyperlinks at all costs. The text must inform
the reader of the function of the link (see Appendix).
8. Check PowerPoint slides can be read by a screen-reader
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Only content that is visible in the ‘Outline’ view can be read by a screenreader (used by people with a visual impairment). To ensure that all
content is visible in the Outline view, use the slide layouts provided and
DO NOT use text boxes and embedded files (screen-readers will ignore all
the content).
Avoid using unnecessary animations – be aware that only the very
simplest will make any sense through a screen-reader, and they can be
very disruptive for visually impaired and dyslexic readers, so a descriptive
alternative may be necessary.
Use plenty of white space to avoid clutter.
Use only sans serif fonts with a size of 24 points and above.
Use the ‘Notes’ field to add description and clarity to your material. This
also helps when exporting slides to Word (see Appendix).
Any images that are used will not be read by a screen-reader. Describe
what the image represents on the same slide that it appears and use alttext (see Appendix).
9. Provide materials in multiple / alternative formats
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
When creating PDF files make sure that the PDF has been saved with the
accessibility options turned on.
It is a good idea to provide a Word version as an alternative for those who
may not be able to access the PDF.
10. Consider the format of printed materials
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
Consider using cream coloured paper rather than white to increase the
readability of the document.
Avoid glossy paper.
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APPENDIX
Tips and “How to”
Introduction
In order to help you make the changes as recommended in the “Accessibility
Checklist for VLE Materials”, we have put together 8 simple tips which will
dramatically increase the accessibility of your materials. We have also included
some further information and resources at the end of this document which may also
be helpful in explaining what changes should be made and how to go about making
them.
Tips and “How to”
Tip
How to
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Turn on the readability checker in Word
Display Styles and Formatting in Word
Choose a good colour contrast
Compress images
Add descriptive text to hyperlinks
Create accessible data tables
Provide alternative formats – convert PowerPoint to Word
Add alternative text to images
Tip 1: Check that your Word document is easy to read by turning on the readability
checker
How to:
In Microsoft Word select Tools > Options > Spelling & Grammar and make sure
the “Show readability statistics” checkbox is ticked.
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Tip 2: Use Styles and Formatting in Word
How to:
In Word, select Format > Styles and Formatting… and the Styles and Formatting
Task Pane will appear.
To change the style of headings, sub-headings etc, just select the text you wish to
format and choose an appropriate style for the structure of the document from the
Task Pane.
Tip 3: Choose a good colour contrast when designing your material
How to:
Download the colour contrast tool from:
http://www.paciellogroup.com/resources/contrast-analyser.html. This tool will show
how the background and foreground appears for those with various forms of colour
blindness, luminosity etc. The results of conformity to the various accessibility
priority levels are displayed clearly as pass or fail. F7 toggles the colour slider so
that you can select the exact colour tones you want to compare.
Tip 4: Compress images (effective for Word and PowerPoint)
How to:
When saving either PowerPoint or Word documents, select File > Save as… >
Tools > Compress Pictures… > Web/Screen.
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Tip 5: Add descriptive text to hyperlinks (effective for Word and PowerPoint)
How to:
Select the text you wish to add a hyperlink to. From the menu bar, select Insert >
Hyperlink … and type in the web address. Then, select ScreenTip… and enter
your descriptive ScreenTip text.
Tip 6: Create accessible data tables in web pages
How to:
A tutorial on “Creating Accessible Tables” is available from WebAIM:
http://www.webaim.org/techniques/tables/. Once you have created your table, use
the WAVE evaluation tool to check the table works at http://wave.webaim.org.
Tip 7: Provide alternative formats – convert PowerPoint to Word
How to:
To convert a PowerPoint presentation to Word, within PowerPoint, click on File >
Send to > Microsoft Office Word. If the Notes field has been used, select ‘Notes
below slides’.
However, remember that the slide appears as an image and will not be read by a
screen-reader so notes must be very explanatory. TechDis have a description on
their website that explains the process further.
Tip 8:
Add alternative text to images (effective for Word and PowerPoint)
How to:
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Right-click on the image and choose Format picture... Select the Web tab and enter
the Alternative text in the box provided. The alt-text will not be visible but can be
read by a screen-reader.
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Further Information and References
Clark, Joe, August 22 2005, Fact and Opinions about PDF Accessibility
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/pdf_accessibility accessed 3/1/09
Evett, L. and Brown, D., 2005, “Text formats and web design for visually impaired
readers – Clear Text for All”, Interacting with Computers, 17, 2005, 453 – 472,
Available from http://www.sciencedirect.com/
Evett, L., Tranfield, G., Smith, P., Brown, D., and Hibberd, R., 2007, Accessible for
all: PowerPoints, presented to NCRN 1st Seminar: SENS, 4th Jan 2007
Horton, S., 2006, “Access by Design: A Guide to Universal Usability for Web
Designers”, New Riders, Berkeley CA. Online version of this book – which has a
wealth of resources http://universalusability.com/index.html accessed 3/1/09
JISC TechDis Accessibility Essentials http://www.techdis.ac.uk/index.php?p=3_20
accessed 27/6/08
JISC TechDis flash animation explaining the process of converting PowerPoint slides
to Word.
http://www.techdis.ac.uk/resources/sites/accessibilityessentials3/modules/good%20p
ractice/resources/WORD.HTM
NTU elearning policy and guidelines. To be found on the elearning website,
http://www.ntu.ac.uk/elearning/guidance/why_accessibility/accessibility_of_elearning
_materials_policy/index.html , accessed 5/1/09
Tiresias.org (2008) Checklists
http://www.tiresias.org/research/guidelines/checklists/index.htm accessed 3/1/09
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0, 1999, W3C Recommendation 5.5.1999,
http://www.w3.org/TR/1999/WAI-WEBCONTENT-19990505, W3C
W3C (2008) Web Accessibility Quick Tips: WCAG 2 at a glance,
http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/glance/ accessed 27/2/09
W3C (2008) How to Meet WCAG 2.0: A customizable quick reference to Web
Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 requirements (success criteria) and techniques,
http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/quickref/ accessed 27/2/09
W3C (2008) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0,
http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG/ accessed 27/2/09
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