Ever wondered what accessible web content really means?
Web accessibility is the principle of making online content available to as many people as possible.
Contrary to popular belief, accessibility isn’t limited to those with visible disabilities, such as limited hearing or vision.
Steven Zelko, accessibility expert and Coordinator, Inclusive Development (Tech & Training) at La Trobe’s AccessAbility Hub, answers some common questions around accessibility.
Q. What does accessible mean?
A. Accessibility is about broadening access and connectivity. If you are looking to spread a message, multiplying the forms in which that message can be accessed multiplies the audience and deepens retention. How do you achieve this? Making your written content possible to listen to or making your video file able to be read are good starting points.
Q. Who needs accessible web content?
A. Everyone. Making material accessible enhances the user experience for all people.
Q. What are some examples of accessibility?
A. Some lesser-known examples of accessibility can be as simple as using dark mode for a MS Word document to block out glare for people with light sensitivity. Or using the Immersive Reader function in a web browser to minimize the volume of information and reduce cognitive overload.
A common piece of assistive technology is screen readers. They allow the user to have things read out to them and navigate document headings and move through content using only their keyboard. This can be inhibited by using inaccessible formats, such as PDFs, so publishing your key content as a web page and minimising the use of PDFs can enhance accessibility.
Q. What are some barriers to accessibility?
A. Poor design. Poor communication. “We really need to reform practices and processes”, Steven says. He advises that consultation of universal design at the beginning of development is crucial. Accessibility can’t be an afterthought. Even basic publishing techniques such as using correctly applied heading structures in text and using alt-text on images removes barriers to accessibility.
Q. Why do organisations need to make their web content accessible?
A. Accessibility is a federal requirement. The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 is the legislation that covers website accessibility and requires equal online access for people with disabilities. The average person gets the benefit. If one person can access a document by an Immersive Reader, every other person also has this access. This enhances the learning experience and increases engagement and retention of information. If we make 95-99% of our content accessible this increases access and participation for everyone.
Q. How can I make my La Trobe microsite content more accessible?
A. Use a screen reader to see what it’s like for a blind person to try to access your web information. Don’t publish in PDF, it’s one of the most inaccessible formats available. It was never intended as a resource, but for archival purposes. Stop using cosmetic elements in content. It marginalises people who can’t engage with the content and reminds them the content wasn’t produced with them in mind.
Q. Where to for the future of accessibility?
A. “We win by increments”, Steven says. “Accessibility is better than it was, but there is still a lot of work to do. Accessibility is a communications problem. We are expecting people to be effective communicators, but we’re not showing them how to communicate effectively.”
For more information on accessibility view La Trobe’s Accessibility Statement and intranet Web Accessibility Guidelines. For a deeper dive, learn more about the AA Success Criteria Levels that all La Trobe websites are required to meet at W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1.
If you have a query about accessibility, contact La Trobe’s AccessAbility and Inclusion team at Access.Ability@latrobe.edu.au or join the LTU Assistive Technology Teams channel for useful resources and informative tips on accessibility.
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